Tuesday, January 20, 2009 | By: Slacker Mom

So Many Books, So Little Time

If you know me or you've read some of my previous blogs, you know I love to read. I can read a book in a day or even an afternoon. When CJ was gone for 10 days at Christmas, I would stay up reading instead of going to bed alone. I went through 8 books.

I used to read like this all the time. At least I did until I had Corban. I remember that I started a book when I was pregnant with him, but then after having him and getting busy with baby, I didn't pick it up again for another 3 years. That was pretty much the way it went for a few years. I didn't have time to commit to a book. When the kids started going to school and I had a little bit of time, I started reading again. But I always made sure that I was reading a book written by a Christian author, something faith based or it was a book about Autism. I figured my free time needed to be spent learning more about God or my son. How dare I think of reading just for entertainment's sake.

Then one day, I was at a friend's house making plans for an upcoming retreat. She was speaking to one of the other ladies there about a particular book. The book was Miss Julia Speaks Her Mind by Ann B. Ross. It sounded funny, like I would enjoy it. I found myself wishing I had time for pointless reading. As I was leaving, I said something to that effect to my friend. Her response has always stuck with me. She said, "You have got to get over your guilt!" and she sent me away with the book. Well, I took her advice and read it. Of course, it was the first in a series and so I had to keep reading the adventures of Miss Julia. That snowballed into what is now my current obsession with books.

I still don't have time everyday to read but I squeeze it in when I can. I try to make sure I always have a book with me when I'm going somewhere so that I can sneak in a page or two while I'm in line or stuck in traffic. The problem I have now is that I have too many books waiting to be read. And I keep borrowing good books from friends so I now have their books laying around as well.

Some of the books waiting so patiently for their turn are Wicked, Memoirs of a Dutiful Daughter, Mother Warriors, The Almost Moon, and Born on a Blue Day. These are the ones that are calling the loudest to me right now. I also have dozens more on shelves waiting to be picked up.

My reading preferences change according to my mood. I used to read mostly romance, then I moved on to horror and suspense (at one point I owned all of Dean Koontz's books). Lately I find I'm drawn to memoirs and books dealing with tragedy. I've never actually dealt with any kind of tragedy so I'm not sure why those hold a particular interest for me. My favorite so far has been Angela's Ashes. Frank McCourt's whole life is one tragedy after another but I love his books. I love his style of writing; it's unlike anything I've read before.

The Notebook is another one that I loved. I haven't seen the movie yet and after reading the book, I'm having a hard time getting myself to willingly sit through it. It was the saddest, most heart-wrenchingly romantic book I've ever read. I just can't get myself to experience all that emotion again.

The last book I'd like to mention is The Shack. If you've never read this book, YOU HAVE TO! It's so good. It's another tragedy but this time it comes from a God-centered point of view...sort of. It was written by a man named William Young. He made up this story to try to explain the Trinity to his kids. It's fascinating. You may not agree with everything he puts in there, but it really gets you thinking. It really made me think about how we put God in our little boxes and we limit what He's capable of. It also made me think of the Trinity in a whole new way. Like I said, you don't have to agree with it, but read it and see what you think.

So, for now, I will continue to squeeze in pages, or even paragraphs, whenever possible. Whether it's just brain candy or something of substance, I am trying to keep my mind active (even if the rest of me isn't!).

1 comments:

Lee Ann said...

I love the Shack too. It's one you have to put down and then pick up again. Some spots are a bit intense for me. Overall, an awesome read.

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