However strange it may seem, my reading usually involves multiple books at the same time. No, I’m not a marathon reader, nor do I have magic eyeballs that let me read two books simultaneously.
When I say that I read multiple books, what I mean is that I have trouble only reading a single book, one by one.
I read my bible each morning, and then I usually have between one and three other books that I take turns with, chapter by chapter. If it’s a fun fiction, I might power read through it, burying myself under blankets with a cup of tea.
My problem is, of you wish to consider it a dilemma, I don’t usually read simple stories. I have a passion for the really big Saga stories, for diving deep into something, and/or reading on topics that really make you think about what lies beneath the words written. This means I have to take a break from a tougher topic, long enough for it’s meaning to sink in, if you know what I mean.
Right now, I’m reading The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis, as well as the Dragonlance Chronicles by Margarette Weis and Tracy Hickman. The first is not an easy read, and the second is an action packed, imaginative Fantasy series with everything from elves to mighty knights in shining armor, riding on the backs of silver dragons.
I know it seems like a rather odd combination, but hey… don’t judge this Willy Wonka brain! I can’t help it… it’s just what I do.
Here, take one or two of my cookies…
You can dip them in your coffee or tea. Happy reading!
Not only is today’s prompt only asking for us to give the name of a book, but everybody already knows what my face is constantly buried in, when it comes to reading.
I guess that means I get a day off from things, so I’ll just leave you with some cookies…
While I’m not currently reading anything aside from the Bible, I could literally fill a book with all the titles of books I’ve read over the last 54 years. I think I’ve read so many that it really would take a book to write them out… well, maybe not a whole book.
I’ve read so many books that it would be easier for me to go to the library and just start picking them all out… I’ve written in the past about my days working in a library, as well as my love for books. As a child I would watch the calendar for the school years Scholastic Fair, saving any and all change, as well as collecting cans in the area to trade for nickels at the nearby 7 Eleven Store. I was a willing gopher for my mother during the month prior to the upcoming event, and shamelessly hoarded any coin or bill laying around, if it wasn’t nailed down or already claimed. When my mother walked me through those school house doors on Scholastic Day, I sounded like a walking Piggy Bank in those echoey hallways.
I will always remember with fondness, the whole of the process of walking through the lines in the library to look at the different books, sitting with my mother to mark an X in all the squares that held my future books, and putting the order form under my pillow to reread every day until Book Pick Up.
Books, my friends, have the same New Smell experience as that of a new box of Crayons. Unwrapping the clear plastic cover slowly, pulling the book open for the first time, and finally running my hands across the fresh new pages… this was what all those gopher days, sticky can hands, and dumpster diving were all about. I can remember getting this same thrill as I walked my own kids through their Book Fairs, though looking back, I am pretty sure my girls felt the same as I had back in my childhood. I know this because I too wound up getting a Three for One Gopher deal for nearly a month each school year.
Throughout my life I have read many different Genres depending on the phase I was in at the time, from Sci-fi to Science, from Romance Novels to How To Improve your Love Life self-help resources, from Fictional Adventures to real life Autobiographies, and on and on and on…
During the last 5 years of Life Interruptus stuff, my reading came to a standstill. I struggled to even pick up my Bible. I stopped writing as well, which nearly undid the fibers of my being. It was God alone that completed the demolition of my reading/writing Roadblock!
Aside from my study of Gods Word, I am not currently reading any particular book. I spend a good many hours every day working on writing my own Novel, as well as reading and responding to what my friends write about here on WordPress. I did actually read a book last year called “Night Driving” by Chad Byrd. Very good read!
I have to admit that I miss reading terribly, but at the same time, I only experience discomfort and frustration while attempting to get into a good read. Until my eye surgeries at the end of the month, these peepers are limited to a bright screen sitting no more than 18 24 inches away… forget about reading my phone, remember when I re-recorded my own voicemail thinking it was the doctors office who called. Forget about reading a Calendar, as we also know that I can’t seem to get to a single appointment on time, even though it is written on the board right in front of my desk.
The number ONE thing I am looking forward to from surgery will be to hold my own Bible and read God’s Word while tracing the lines of text with my fingers, or writing in the margins. I miss such simple things that were taken for granted all of those early years. As a writer it is imperative that one manage three tools for the trade… our minds, our eyes, and our hands… lose even one of the three and our world implodes.
One of the things that actually helps me have patience while waiting for my procedures, is to come up with a Bucket List of sorts, for books I want to read… once I get new eyes.
I know this might sound silly, but I want to go back and reread some of my favorites! I have settled on rereading the entire Brian Jacques Redwall Series… I used to own the entire hardbound collection before Life Interruptus. If you’ve young adult readers in your home, this is a fantastic series.
I would be happy for any suggestions of books you’ve had a chance to read… it’ll give me a few different directions to go look for what I want to dip my eyes into next…
Here, instead of a cookie, this Book Bunny wants to read you a story about a carrot…
Journey With Me! 