Status
Available
Collection
Publication
Putnam Adult (2003), Edition: First Edition, 256 pages
Description
The well-known publishing correspondent and self-described "readaholic" chronicles a year spent reading-and the surprises it brought. In early 2002, Sara Nelson-editor, reporter, reviewer, mother, daughter, wife, and compulsive reader-set out to chronicle a year's worth of reading, to explore how the world of books and words intermingled with children, marriage, friends, and the rest of the "real" world. She had a system all set up: fifty-two weeks, fifty-two books . . . and it all fell apart the first week. That's when she discovered that books chose her as much as she chose them, and the rewards and frustrations they brought were nothing she could plan for: "In reading, as in life, even if you know what you're doing, you really kind of don't." From Solzhenitsyn to Laura Zigman, Catherine M. to Captain Underpants, this is the captivating result. It is a personal memoir filled with wit, charm, insight, infectious enthusiasm-and observations on everything from Public Books (the ones we pretend we're reading), lending trauma and the idiosyncrasies of sex scenes ("The mingling of bodies and emotions and fluids is one thing. But reading about it: now that's personal") to revenge books, hype, the stresses of recommendation (What does it mean when someone you like hates the book you love?), the odd reasons we pick up a book in the first place, and how to put it down if we don't like it ("The literary equivalent of a bar mitzvah, the moment at which you look at yourself and announce: Today I am an adult."). Throughout, So Many Books, So Little Time is pure delight-a work at once funny, wise, and rueful: enough to make a passionate reader out of anybody.… (more)
User reviews
LibraryThing member elliepotten
Sara Nelson sets out with noble intentions. A devout reader during her working and personal hours, from commuting minutes to whole insomnia-ridden nights, the goal of this project is to read a book a week for a year, and write a journal of her bookish habits, reading choices and profound
As a fellow book lover, I particularly enjoyed the discussion around books that I, too, have read, and authors I like or know something about. I recognised many of her bookish habits and ideas from my own reading – turning down pages to mark quotes or extracts, choosing books, making piles and lists, and the art of reading ‘Just One More Chapter’ at night, until your eyes start to close of their own accord. I recognised too the reluctance to loan out books, and the discomfort that stems from a friend enthusiastically forcing upon you a book that you have no intention of ever reading.
Sadly, however, these habits were almost all I recognised in Nelson’s world. Many of the books and authors, the celebrity biographies and sports personalities, were unknown to me because they were largely American. Bring on the British version!
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reflections as she goes.As a fellow book lover, I particularly enjoyed the discussion around books that I, too, have read, and authors I like or know something about. I recognised many of her bookish habits and ideas from my own reading – turning down pages to mark quotes or extracts, choosing books, making piles and lists, and the art of reading ‘Just One More Chapter’ at night, until your eyes start to close of their own accord. I recognised too the reluctance to loan out books, and the discomfort that stems from a friend enthusiastically forcing upon you a book that you have no intention of ever reading.
Sadly, however, these habits were almost all I recognised in Nelson’s world. Many of the books and authors, the celebrity biographies and sports personalities, were unknown to me because they were largely American. Bring on the British version!
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LibraryThing member bell7
In 2002, Sara Nelson, a book reviewer and journalist by trade, decided to spend the year reading a book a week and writing about her experiences. What resulted is this book, a collection of essays and ruminations on reading: her process choosing a book, reading more than one book, books vs. movies,
I love to read, and I love to read about reading. I am, admittedly, part of that niche, ready-made audience for this book. I enjoyed Sara's thoughts because I could relate and because she had a truly funny way of getting her points across. One essay that stands out in my mind was her discussion of reading more than one book at a time, and how sometimes she has books that she reads at home, but not in public. This could sound snobby, but it didn't to me because throughout the book she's talking about the "low" and "high-brow" literature she's reading, not ashamedly but in a friendly, confessional sort of way. Instead, it reminded me of when I was reading V for Vendetta for a class, but I stopped reading it in public because I kept getting asked if I'd seen the movie (I haven't). So I started bringing out Reading Matters, a collection of research on reading in the United States, that looked smarter and was my "fun" (ie., non-school) book at the time. This was one of many ways in which I found I could completely relate with Sara, which is ultimately, why I fell in love with her book.
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and much, much more.I love to read, and I love to read about reading. I am, admittedly, part of that niche, ready-made audience for this book. I enjoyed Sara's thoughts because I could relate and because she had a truly funny way of getting her points across. One essay that stands out in my mind was her discussion of reading more than one book at a time, and how sometimes she has books that she reads at home, but not in public. This could sound snobby, but it didn't to me because throughout the book she's talking about the "low" and "high-brow" literature she's reading, not ashamedly but in a friendly, confessional sort of way. Instead, it reminded me of when I was reading V for Vendetta for a class, but I stopped reading it in public because I kept getting asked if I'd seen the movie (I haven't). So I started bringing out Reading Matters, a collection of research on reading in the United States, that looked smarter and was my "fun" (ie., non-school) book at the time. This was one of many ways in which I found I could completely relate with Sara, which is ultimately, why I fell in love with her book.
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LibraryThing member tututhefirst
Thank goodness I only borrowed this book. I was expecting discussions of books, not her personal problems trying to figure out what to read, when to find time to read it, and then after endless list making, trying to get the guts to read and stop whining about it. Not my cup of tea. There are too
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many well-written uplifting books out there to suggest you waste time on this one. Show Less
LibraryThing member crazy4reading
I feel like the title of the book; So Many books, So Little Time. I have so many books I would like to read and sometimes wonder if I will ever finish a quarter of them.
Sara Nelson decides to read a book a week for a whole year. Reading 52 books doesn't seem so hard but she runs into a problem of
Sara's friends would ask her " How do you choose your books?" She learned in the very beginning that she didn't always choose the books; sometimes the books choose her. I do agree with that statement. I sometimes start out wanting to read a book and then get side tracked by another book that just calls to me.
Sara talks about how when a book gets overhyped that a lot of readers get mad and that we are a funny, cliquish group, we book people. I know I have felt that way about some books when they are first released and I may hold out on waiting to read them. I did that with the Harry Potter books when the first few books were published. I just didn't see how a children's book could be so interesting. The movie is what made me read the first book. Once I heard that movie was being released I went out and read the book and then continued with the series until it was finished.
Mrs. Nelson also talks about how recommending books to your friends and how that can possibly cause a strain on the relationship. You may love a book that some one else hated. I can see that happening but I also feel that everyone interprets books differently. There are some books that I enjoy but would never call it a literary icon.
I found it interesting to learn about books that I have wanted to read but have put off reading for sometime. Even seeing some of the books listed that she started and didn't finish.
She includes at the end of the book three appendixes. One for what she had planned to read, two for what she actually did read and the third for what is on the must read pile of the following year.
Sara Nelson decides to read a book a week for a whole year. Reading 52 books doesn't seem so hard but she runs into a problem of
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trying to find books each week.Sara's friends would ask her " How do you choose your books?" She learned in the very beginning that she didn't always choose the books; sometimes the books choose her. I do agree with that statement. I sometimes start out wanting to read a book and then get side tracked by another book that just calls to me.
Sara talks about how when a book gets overhyped that a lot of readers get mad and that we are a funny, cliquish group, we book people. I know I have felt that way about some books when they are first released and I may hold out on waiting to read them. I did that with the Harry Potter books when the first few books were published. I just didn't see how a children's book could be so interesting. The movie is what made me read the first book. Once I heard that movie was being released I went out and read the book and then continued with the series until it was finished.
Mrs. Nelson also talks about how recommending books to your friends and how that can possibly cause a strain on the relationship. You may love a book that some one else hated. I can see that happening but I also feel that everyone interprets books differently. There are some books that I enjoy but would never call it a literary icon.
I found it interesting to learn about books that I have wanted to read but have put off reading for sometime. Even seeing some of the books listed that she started and didn't finish.
She includes at the end of the book three appendixes. One for what she had planned to read, two for what she actually did read and the third for what is on the must read pile of the following year.
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LibraryThing member richardderus
Rating: 4* of five
The Publisher Says: Sometimes subtle, sometimes striking, the interplay between our lives and our books is the subject of this unique memoir by well-known publishing correspondent and self-described "readaholic" Sara Nelson. From Solzhenitsyn to Laura Zigman, Catherine M. to
My Review: “Allowing yourself to stop reading a book - at page 25, 50, or even, less frequently, a few chapters from the end - is a rite of passage in a reader's life, the literary equivalent of a bar mitzvah or a communion, the moment at which you look at yourself and announce: Today I am an adult. I can make my own decisions.
Really, I could stop right there and have given you a full review of this tasty li'l morsel of a book about reading, loving, choosing, and enjoying the books that mark your life.
“You know you're in a bad patch when the most interesting part of the book you're reading is the acknowledgments page.”
No, no, this would be a fine place to end one's quest for a summing-up of this aperçu-heavy literary profiterole. A pyramid of crispy pastry filled with rich, scrumptious vanilla ice cream and loaded with fudge topping.
"Reading's ability to beam you up to a different world is a good part of the reason why people like me do it in the first place---because dollar for dollar, hour per hour, it's the most expedient way to get from our proscribed little 'here' to an imagined, intriguing 'there'. Part time machine, part Concorde, part ejector seat, books are our salvation."
Heavens, what was I thinking to have left this crystalline distillation of the infinity-edged pool of publishing's unending and occasionally successful manufacture of lovely writing, pretty jackets, and escapist/timeless/delectable work.
...and so you see my dilemma...stop where? stop there why? explain or not?
Just go read the damned book already.
The Publisher Says: Sometimes subtle, sometimes striking, the interplay between our lives and our books is the subject of this unique memoir by well-known publishing correspondent and self-described "readaholic" Sara Nelson. From Solzhenitsyn to Laura Zigman, Catherine M. to
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Captain Underpants, the result is a personal chronicle of insight, wit, and enough infectious enthusiasm to make a passionate reader out of anybody.My Review: “Allowing yourself to stop reading a book - at page 25, 50, or even, less frequently, a few chapters from the end - is a rite of passage in a reader's life, the literary equivalent of a bar mitzvah or a communion, the moment at which you look at yourself and announce: Today I am an adult. I can make my own decisions.
Really, I could stop right there and have given you a full review of this tasty li'l morsel of a book about reading, loving, choosing, and enjoying the books that mark your life.
“You know you're in a bad patch when the most interesting part of the book you're reading is the acknowledgments page.”
No, no, this would be a fine place to end one's quest for a summing-up of this aperçu-heavy literary profiterole. A pyramid of crispy pastry filled with rich, scrumptious vanilla ice cream and loaded with fudge topping.
"Reading's ability to beam you up to a different world is a good part of the reason why people like me do it in the first place---because dollar for dollar, hour per hour, it's the most expedient way to get from our proscribed little 'here' to an imagined, intriguing 'there'. Part time machine, part Concorde, part ejector seat, books are our salvation."
Heavens, what was I thinking to have left this crystalline distillation of the infinity-edged pool of publishing's unending and occasionally successful manufacture of lovely writing, pretty jackets, and escapist/timeless/delectable work.
...and so you see my dilemma...stop where? stop there why? explain or not?
Just go read the damned book already.
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LibraryThing member 9days
Let me start by saying that I did not finish reading this book. I got about 3/4 through before I had to put it down.
This book is good in theory, but fails when it begins (not too far in) to reveal itself for what it is- namely, literary posturing.
It becomes obvious quickly that the author isn't
Perhaps I could have overlooked that if she hadn't barraged the reader with material intended to take the spotlight off that problem.
At least once per chapter (and the chapters are short), I was forced to hear, once again, that she is in an interracial marriage. While that's wonderful, her constant going on about it made me feel that it was her that was uncomfortable with it, and no one else. And did I mention that her husband, who doesn't share her ethnic race, works for SNL? Well, the author did, and almost as often as she mentioned that she was in an interracial marriage.
Reading all of this, I nearly forgot that it was supposed to be a book about books. Yes, the author reads books, just as promised. But there's surprisingly little importance placed on this. It's almost as if the reading is an afterthought.
It's really a shame, because I loved the idea of this book. I only wish the author would have written it for the love of reading, and not to mask some familial insecurities.
This book is good in theory, but fails when it begins (not too far in) to reveal itself for what it is- namely, literary posturing.
It becomes obvious quickly that the author isn't
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really the bibliophile she claims to be. What she is, it seems, is someone whose mother and sister are bibliophiles (also, a poet and writer, respectively), and whose shadows she lived in her entire youth. By her own admission, she was never much of a reader, and felt inadequate in a home full of book lovers. The author speaks of her jealousy of her more "literary" and "well-read" sister more than once, and reads books suggested by said sister solely on the merit that she feels she should.Perhaps I could have overlooked that if she hadn't barraged the reader with material intended to take the spotlight off that problem.
At least once per chapter (and the chapters are short), I was forced to hear, once again, that she is in an interracial marriage. While that's wonderful, her constant going on about it made me feel that it was her that was uncomfortable with it, and no one else. And did I mention that her husband, who doesn't share her ethnic race, works for SNL? Well, the author did, and almost as often as she mentioned that she was in an interracial marriage.
Reading all of this, I nearly forgot that it was supposed to be a book about books. Yes, the author reads books, just as promised. But there's surprisingly little importance placed on this. It's almost as if the reading is an afterthought.
It's really a shame, because I loved the idea of this book. I only wish the author would have written it for the love of reading, and not to mask some familial insecurities.
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LibraryThing member BritAnnia
So Many Books, So Little Time: A Year of Passionate Reading by Sara Nelson
This book found me in my favourite local used-bookstore while I was perusing the selection of books-about-books.
I found Sara Nelson's writing to be mostly pleasant and easy to read. The book did move to slightly deeper
Nelson did not discuss books she actually read during the year(of passionate reading) as often as I expected given the title of this book. Instead, it was more an examination of books she'd read in years past; a rumination of events in her life and how they affected her reading choices. I enjoyed her views on the way books we read, and how we relate to them at a given time, can mimic our life in that moment. And of the connections between stories of different authors over expanding periods of time.
As I read along I considered checking out a few of the titles and authors presented... until I reached near the end of the book where Nelson declared how much she loved certain books that I had previously read and didn't feel the same way about at all. A sort of irony there as portions of this very book ponder the way we judge others by books they suggest to us and how it can change how we perceive someone if we disagree about how great or awful a book is.
My Opinion: A Pleasant read.
This book found me in my favourite local used-bookstore while I was perusing the selection of books-about-books.
I found Sara Nelson's writing to be mostly pleasant and easy to read. The book did move to slightly deeper
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topics and longer chapters as it progressed but overall it was very simply written in a conversational style.Nelson did not discuss books she actually read during the year(of passionate reading) as often as I expected given the title of this book. Instead, it was more an examination of books she'd read in years past; a rumination of events in her life and how they affected her reading choices. I enjoyed her views on the way books we read, and how we relate to them at a given time, can mimic our life in that moment. And of the connections between stories of different authors over expanding periods of time.
As I read along I considered checking out a few of the titles and authors presented... until I reached near the end of the book where Nelson declared how much she loved certain books that I had previously read and didn't feel the same way about at all. A sort of irony there as portions of this very book ponder the way we judge others by books they suggest to us and how it can change how we perceive someone if we disagree about how great or awful a book is.
My Opinion: A Pleasant read.
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LibraryThing member anotterchaos
Hmm. Took the longest to read of all my current library books, I guess that says something. I guess the biggest thing it says is that the author & I share little in our reading tastes.
This seems to be part of a new genre..."I spent a year doing ____ now let me tell you about it." Julie & Julia.
I guess I'm disappointed in most of those because I want to know more of the source material--Julia Childs, the Encyclopedia Brittanica, the books themselves--than the author's life, which so unkindly intrudes.
Also, I am obviously not in the know in the NY publishing world, or all those names she drops would mean something, I guess.
Interestingly, the author mentions a book that seems not to want to be read...she gets interested but keeps losing it. This happened to me with this very book. It would vanish...behind the couch, under a cushion, in plain site on the desk...I never could find it when I wanted it. I was sure for two days that I'd accidentally thrown it away. A sign?
One very apt quote:
"For me--as, I believe, for a lot of readers--when a book gets overhyped, we get mad. We're a funny, cliquish group, we book people, and sometimes we resist liking--or even resist opening--the very thing everybody tells us we're supposed to like." Sara Nelson, So Many Books, So Little Time
This seems to be part of a new genre..."I spent a year doing ____ now let me tell you about it." Julie & Julia.
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The Year of Living Biblically. The Man Who Knew Everything. I think the most successful of those was The Year of Living Biblically...mostly, because it was the most informative (at least to me).I guess I'm disappointed in most of those because I want to know more of the source material--Julia Childs, the Encyclopedia Brittanica, the books themselves--than the author's life, which so unkindly intrudes.
Also, I am obviously not in the know in the NY publishing world, or all those names she drops would mean something, I guess.
Interestingly, the author mentions a book that seems not to want to be read...she gets interested but keeps losing it. This happened to me with this very book. It would vanish...behind the couch, under a cushion, in plain site on the desk...I never could find it when I wanted it. I was sure for two days that I'd accidentally thrown it away. A sign?
One very apt quote:
"For me--as, I believe, for a lot of readers--when a book gets overhyped, we get mad. We're a funny, cliquish group, we book people, and sometimes we resist liking--or even resist opening--the very thing everybody tells us we're supposed to like." Sara Nelson, So Many Books, So Little Time
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LibraryThing member goldiebear
This book was mildly entertaining. There were some good antidotes on some interesting books. I felt for one that this book was a bit dated. She referred to some books as bestsellers at the time and how people were going crazy over them, when obviously it was 5 years ago. She picked some interesting
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choices, but honestly I wish she had talked more about the books than she did about her family. I do understand that this is supposed to actually be a memoir type book, but she yapped a lot about her husband and kid, which I could have done without most of the time. She also did a lot of name dropping --certain authors who she knew and such, which at times I thought tacky. That being said, it was an interesting concept and I did find myself laughing or relating to things through out the book could feel her pain about reading books that someone had recommended to her for sure! I know I have gone through that… So no, it wasn't at all boring, but nothing to jump for joy about, in my opinion. Show Less
LibraryThing member RoseCityReader
Sara Nelson had a great idea for a book lover’s book: She would spend one year (2002) reading a book a week and writing about it. Although she started off with a list of 26 or so books that she wanted to read, there was not a lot of rhyme to her reason. She did not have a definitive list like
Likewise, she did not have a formula for how she wanted to write about the books. She did not want to simply write reviews of the books she read. She wanted to write about each book’s connection to her personal life, such as what was going on in her life that made her chose a particular book, personal views that made her react to a book in a certain way, or memories a book conjured.
In keeping with her theme, I considered my own personal connections with So Many Books as well as the books Nelson read. As she described, I decided I would try “matching up the reading experience with the personal one and watching where they intersect – or don’t.”
There were a lot of intersections. . . .
Full review on Rose City Reader.
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Pulitzer Prize Winners, or Books I Meant to Read in College But Never Did, or anything like that. She ended up choosing the books each week in a pretty spontaneous fashion. Likewise, she did not have a formula for how she wanted to write about the books. She did not want to simply write reviews of the books she read. She wanted to write about each book’s connection to her personal life, such as what was going on in her life that made her chose a particular book, personal views that made her react to a book in a certain way, or memories a book conjured.
In keeping with her theme, I considered my own personal connections with So Many Books as well as the books Nelson read. As she described, I decided I would try “matching up the reading experience with the personal one and watching where they intersect – or don’t.”
There were a lot of intersections. . . .
Full review on Rose City Reader.
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LibraryThing member msf59
An entertaining look at the quirky behavior's of an avid book lover. A must for readers who enjoy books about books!
LibraryThing member auntieknickers
Did not enjoy this as much as I had expected to; I kept reading expecting some worthwhile insight but there weren't many. For one thing, Nelson and I just don't like the same kinds of books in general.
LibraryThing member xenchu
Sara Nelson and I are not much alike. Of her reading lists in the back of the book I have read very few and I think I can call myself a heavy reader. She is very fashion conscious and I run around in sweat pants and t-shirts. Finally, she has many 'dear friends' while I am almost friendless and an
Also, her goal of reading a book a week falls short of my usual amount of reading but then she has a life and my life is pretty much reading. Still I liked the book it is a lot more than a dreary list of books read and it was worth a chuckle or two.
The blurbs on the back of the book say the book is for readers. To a certain extent this is true, but if you are a non-reader (but why would you be reading this if you were a non-reader?) it might spark your interest in a book or two, which would be no bad thing.
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almost total introvert.Also, her goal of reading a book a week falls short of my usual amount of reading but then she has a life and my life is pretty much reading. Still I liked the book it is a lot more than a dreary list of books read and it was worth a chuckle or two.
The blurbs on the back of the book say the book is for readers. To a certain extent this is true, but if you are a non-reader (but why would you be reading this if you were a non-reader?) it might spark your interest in a book or two, which would be no bad thing.
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LibraryThing member cait815
2.5 stars. While I did enjoy some of her anecdotes and observations, I was ultimately disappointed with this book. And would it have killed her to use spoiler warnings before blurting out the endings to some of the books she was writing about?
LibraryThing member Cheryl_in_CC_NV
Ack. Should've been great, but the author is part of the publishing 'clique' responsible for so much dreck that comes from neurotic & pretentious New Yorkers that I could condone neither her hypocrisy nor her self-centered short-sightedness. I could go on with specific examples, but I want
ETA - *you* - you members of goodreads - have a lot more that is interesting & insightful to share about books and reading than Nelson does.
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desperately to be quit of the whole business.ETA - *you* - you members of goodreads - have a lot more that is interesting & insightful to share about books and reading than Nelson does.
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LibraryThing member TheAmpersand
Nelson's book provides a wonderful example of what it means to be a "contact reader." This term was popularized by Jonathan Franzen who, in his infamous "Harper's essay," explained that some readers keep reading because they crave a sense of connection – to other readers, to a larger, imaginary
Her style's light and enjoyable, and this is a pleasant read, but I also suspect that Ms. Nelson and I are very different sorts of readers. She's given to some popular writers that I'm, rightly or wrongly, just too much of a snob to touch, and I'm less impulsive and scattered than Ms. Nelson. I read things through and hate giving up on books, while she's a bit more willing to skip around in the hopes of finding a narrative that'll really captivate her. Call it a cultural difference: I'm a tweedy academic in my mind's eye, and she worked for a woman's mag while writing this book. The reviewer who suggested that this was a sort of critical "chick lit" wasn't too far off. Still, "So Many Books" is a welcome reader-to-reader communication.
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world, or to their own experiences. I'm sure that lots of LibraryThingers will identify with Ms. Nelson's experiences and sentiments, from her anxiety about choosing her next book to her guilt about not getting to big "important books" sooner. It felt good to finally have somebody to share all of these bookish musings with, even if that someone was just another book. Her style's light and enjoyable, and this is a pleasant read, but I also suspect that Ms. Nelson and I are very different sorts of readers. She's given to some popular writers that I'm, rightly or wrongly, just too much of a snob to touch, and I'm less impulsive and scattered than Ms. Nelson. I read things through and hate giving up on books, while she's a bit more willing to skip around in the hopes of finding a narrative that'll really captivate her. Call it a cultural difference: I'm a tweedy academic in my mind's eye, and she worked for a woman's mag while writing this book. The reviewer who suggested that this was a sort of critical "chick lit" wasn't too far off. Still, "So Many Books" is a welcome reader-to-reader communication.
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LibraryThing member Alirambles
I spent a lot of my reading time trying to figure out what the big deal was about reading a book a week. I have no idea how many books I read in a year--does anyone care? What is the point in pressuring yourself to read at a certain rate? Oh--because it's a hook for a book which you know you can
The book was a series of essays, some were about books. Others were about personal details of the author's life that would have been better shared in a different context. I was embarrassed, like I would be if my dentist discussed his wife's anger management problems while examining my teeth.
Ironically, I lost a lot of respect for Ms. Nelson when I followed one of her reading recommendations and found the book extraordinarily bad. Ironic because, while this has never happened to me before (I've read recommended books I didn't like, but never one where I felt insulted by the recommendation itself), Ms. Nelson claims it happens to her often enough that she cringes when new friends recommend books. I'm guessing that her friends cringe, too.
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get published because you're an insider in the publishing world. Okay, I get it.The book was a series of essays, some were about books. Others were about personal details of the author's life that would have been better shared in a different context. I was embarrassed, like I would be if my dentist discussed his wife's anger management problems while examining my teeth.
Ironically, I lost a lot of respect for Ms. Nelson when I followed one of her reading recommendations and found the book extraordinarily bad. Ironic because, while this has never happened to me before (I've read recommended books I didn't like, but never one where I felt insulted by the recommendation itself), Ms. Nelson claims it happens to her often enough that she cringes when new friends recommend books. I'm guessing that her friends cringe, too.
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LibraryThing member MissConstantReader
I did enjoy this book, but I found the emphasis a little too heavy on the books she DIDN'T like. I would like to have read more about the books she loved.
LibraryThing member Deesirings
There are some interesting comments about reading and books in this book but not all that much about the books that the author actually read during the year of preparing this work. I did enjoy reading this but I think any number of people who enjoy reading could have written equally compelling
I read quite a few of the other reviews posted here about this book and I agree that Nelson surpasses the topic that might be expected from the title by discussing her reading habits in general, her personal history and her family life throughout her year of writing. This book is at least part biography. It's easy to understand why many readers would be disappointed by this in that it does seem different from what would be expected looking at the title and description of the book. Despite this, I found the biography and family elements interesting and the whole approach to the topic one that works. Likely, other approaches would work equally well or better but I enjoyed this particular book for what it was.
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accounts documenting a year of reading in their lives. In fact, I think it would be really fun if this became an annual publication, each time written by someone different.I read quite a few of the other reviews posted here about this book and I agree that Nelson surpasses the topic that might be expected from the title by discussing her reading habits in general, her personal history and her family life throughout her year of writing. This book is at least part biography. It's easy to understand why many readers would be disappointed by this in that it does seem different from what would be expected looking at the title and description of the book. Despite this, I found the biography and family elements interesting and the whole approach to the topic one that works. Likely, other approaches would work equally well or better but I enjoyed this particular book for what it was.
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LibraryThing member skinglist
Yeah, this book was written for me! Sped through it after forcing myself to put it down last night and GO TO BED but picked it up again this morning. Don't want to spoil too much of it, but I really loved seeing how someone else uses the same logic as I do in choosing a book to read.
A big thing
A big thing
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where I agree with her is on the timing of a book, hype and I generally do not get along well. The more it's hyped the more likely I am to find it as overrated. Anyway, great read. Show Less
LibraryThing member RidgewayGirl
Sara Nelson is a reader and this is a book for readers, discussing things like double-booking (reading more than one book at a time) and the leaning stack of books next to her bed, waiting to be read. She is married to someone who doesn't read much, at whom she is constantly pushing books, and she
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often neglects other things when a book grabs her. She liked some books that I didn't care for (the complete works of Phillip Roth, [A Staggering Work of Heartbreaking Genius]), disliked a few that I loved (Alias Grace) but I agreed with her tastes more often than not. It was good to find someone who could so concisely describe my feelings about books like Tuesdays with Morrie. Show Less
LibraryThing member snoble23
The author is a book reviewer who decides to read 52 books in a year. I think that most of the Library Thing members would like this. It really is written by "one of us". She is a book addict :) It was like visiting with a friend who gets me.
LibraryThing member generalkala
Normally I love books about books and I'd heard this one was good, so I was quite disappointed to find that, well, it just wasn't.
The author really irritated me at times - she's snobby enough to read two books at a time so that she can always be 'seen' reading something intellectual while keeping
I'm not even sure she actually likes reading - she thinks people who reread lack any intellectual capacity and constantly refers to reading as 'work.' I mean, yes, she reviews books for a living but she needs to take a 'reading break' from the exhaustion from reading a book a week.
She comes across as so snobby that she profoundly annoyed me enough to affect my opinion of the book.
The author really irritated me at times - she's snobby enough to read two books at a time so that she can always be 'seen' reading something intellectual while keeping
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her 'real' books at home and is willing to forgo friendships with people who have different book tastes.I'm not even sure she actually likes reading - she thinks people who reread lack any intellectual capacity and constantly refers to reading as 'work.' I mean, yes, she reviews books for a living but she needs to take a 'reading break' from the exhaustion from reading a book a week.
She comes across as so snobby that she profoundly annoyed me enough to affect my opinion of the book.
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LibraryThing member debnance
I was apprehensive about finally reading this book, to tell you the truth....I'd saved it for several months and kept picking it up and admiring its cutesy title, its cartoonish cover, and its clever book concept (try to read a book a week for a year and then write about the experience)....Could
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the book possibly live up to the expectations I'd generated for it?Surprisingly, yes. This book feels like it was custom cut for us, the book-obsessed in the world, with chapters on the appeal of first lines in novels, husbands who don't read, double-booking....You almost wonder---Is Nelson here, secretly, among us in our online book groups, silently listening to and writing down our book passions, our book concerns? She is definitely one of us, in spirit. I heartily recommend this book. Show Less
LibraryThing member Lindsayg
I have read this one so many times. Sara Nelson decided to spend a year reading a book a week and writing about the experience. Probably part of the reason I love it so much is that Nelson and I have similar tastes. She admits to be a contrary reader just like I am. The more a book is being hyped
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the less she wants to read it. With this book she wanted to examine the way her life effected what she read, and vice versa, so the end result isn't 52 book reviews, but rather a detailed commentary about being a reader. Show Less
Language
Original language
English
Original publication date
2003
Physical description
256 p.; 8.62 inches
ISBN
0399150838 / 9780399150838