The Sunday Salon: Bookish Chatter

There War and Peace sits. I barely touched it this past week, sad to say. It is not for lack of interest. Or maybe it is. Just a little. It takes a bit more concentration and effort, and so I find myself gravitating towards other books, less hefty books that I can breeze through with less effort. At first I was berating myself for not spending more time on War and Peace, but I gave myself a good talking to about my attitude. I will get to it when the time is right, maybe set aside some time tonight even. Timing can be everything when it comes to enjoyment of a book: the right atmosphere and the mood being just so.

The more pressing reason, however, is that I have other reading commitments I am trying to fulfill. My energy and motivations are divided, and since War and Peace is a long term project, it is the one that ultimately gets set aside. At least for now.

I actually spent most of yesterday reading. I was quite engrossed in a thriller, playing a game of cat and mouse with a rather clever assassin. It did not take me long to get through Greg Rucka's Smoker. Today I am settling in for another round with the same assassin, although a different book, this one called Critical Space. I have been slowly working my way up to the latest book in the series, which I am very overdue in reviewing for Curled Up With A Good Book. If anything, I feel most guilty that I have fallen behind in my reviewing obligations, and so I am working to catch up as best I can.

I prefer to read series books in order, watching the progression of the characters and the back stories as they evolve from one book to the next. Sometimes it does not work out that way, however, and I find myself reading a book out of order. Usually it turns out that it is okay. Most books in the types of series I read can stand on their own when it comes right down to it. When I first requested Greg Rucka's latest novel, I had not done enough careful research. I knew it was part of a series. What I did not know, however, was that the book I selected to read and review is tied closely to the book that came before it--and if you want to get technical, the book before that one as well. Because I hate jumping into something in the middle, or even at the end, I decided to start from the beginning and work my way forward.

As a result, War and Peace and many of the books I would like to get to for the various reading challenges I am participating in this year have fallen by the wayside. I am pretty sure I can count Critical Space as a chunkster, and so I will have at least filled one reading challenge requirement this month. Even with these self-imposed obligations, I am quite enjoying the reading I have fit in so far this year. I only wish I had more time to spend actually reading.

On another note, the bookstores beckoned to me this past week, and as much as I tried to resist I was not very successful. With an entire room of my house devoted to books waiting to be read, you would think I would be satisfied with the lot I have collected. Still, the books I have yet to get my hands on call to me. On the plus side, gift cards and discounted remainders make an easy excuse to go book shopping and take away a little of the guilt I may feel towards the books I already have piling up. I spent very little of my own hard earned money this past week in book purchases, but brought home way too many books just the same. All are new-to-me authors with the exception of Elizabeth Flock.

Recent Additions to my TBR Collection:
I'm Not Scared by Niccolo Ammaniti - recommended by Kimbofo
March by Geraldine Brooks
World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War by Max Brooks
Sacred Games by Vikram Chandra
The Tea Rose by Jennifer Donnelly
Foucault's Pendulum by Umberto Eco (actually Anjin's purchase, but it still goes on my TBR list)
The Cry of the Dove by Fadir Faqir
Everything Must Go by Elizabeth Flock
Heart-Shaped Box by Joe Hill
The Mission Song by John Le Carre
The Last Life by Claire Messud
Lost and Found by Carolyn Parkhurst
18 Seconds by George D. Shuman
Last Breath by George D. Shuman - recommended by Kris
When One Man Dies by Dave White

I hope you all have a great week. Happy reading!