2017 introduced me to some new authors. Happy discoveries were the essays of Rebecca Solnit (American); the novels of Miriam Toews (Canadian) and esteemed English novelist Margaret Drabble.
I find as I age that I am reading more non-fiction. Its appeal grows as the years roll by. Let’s face it, there are only a certain number of permutations on the Basic Plots, and sooner or later they begin to sound horribly familiar. I suppose inevitably one becomes jaded with popular novels, same-old-same-old etc. But that said: I still love to read, whatever the genre.
Inspired by Bookish Beck’s detailed 2017 summary I did a quick sweep through my Book Journal and discovered that during the year most of my reading was in the Fiction category, with Non-Fiction coming in at just under 30%. Did I prefer Female to Male authors? An almost even 50/50 split – by happenchance, not by design on my part.
This year I read 89 books . I’d hoped to make it a neat 100, but hey! who’s counting? Well, actually, I was but … oh, never mind.
I’m not a huge fan of targets, but I promised myself that I would read 18 books out of my TBR pile. Score? I managed 16. Close but no cigar. Trouble is, I belong to a Book Club at my local Library, and every month introduces me to fresh temptations. And when it comes to books, my willpower is not that strong. So the TBR pile hasn’t diminished that much, due to my book club’s monthly offerings, plus my inability to pass up a book sale. Maybe I should devote January to reading only the TBR pile? Now there’s a notion!
However, I can proudly report that I did manage to stick to my self-promise that I wouldn’t buy any new books between 1 January and 31 March 2017. Of course on 1 April, there I was on-line, wrecking my credit card again and eagerly watching my postbox for the parcels.
Naturally I attended a number of book sales throughout the year, and found some terrific bargains. The McGregor annual book sale in support of the Donkey Sanctuary was a highlight (see my post The McGregor Booksale posted in December); as was the huge Booksellers’ Winter Sale held at the V&A Waterfront ( see my post in June: A genuine book sale).
I’m still formulating my Bookish Promises for 2018. As age roars on and my eyesight etetriorates, I probably won’t bother with the classics that I have never tackled. Sorry, Virginia Woolf – way too late now. Maybe I’ll make a determined assault on the TBR pile, perhaps donating some of the pile to charity, and focus on the books that I really, really want to read.
I’m flirting with the notion of Audiobooks, and also the notion of buying a Kindle. My only interest in the Kindle is that you can enlarge the text to a readable size. Still under consideration.
Promises or no promises, declining eyesight or not, I’m looking forward to another year of reading more wonderful books! I wonder what you’ve set your sights on?
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