The Lots of Books in a Year project

Last year I tried to do the book a week thing, and I made it...a few weeks. I am not going to try it again, for many reasons, (one of them is that I think it discourages the reading of long or difficult books. Another is that I don't enjoy failure), but I do want to read a lot and to write a little about the books I read. I am feeling especially inspired about this project right now because of two things: 1. I discovered that I can check out audiobooks online through my library and listen to them on my iphone while I walk the dog. This will cut into my This American Life, Fresh Air, and DisUnplugged podcast listening time, but I think that will be okay. I'm hoping it will encourage longer walks, which will be good for both me and the dog. and 2. I convinced myself that I really DO want one of those fancy machines that turns into a book after all and ordered a Nook with some Christmas money. Just a couple of weeks ago, I was very sure that I did not need any such thing. I was contemplating putting several new hardcovers in my Amazon cart the other day, though, and I think that's what changed my mind. That and that my grandmother gave me more money than I was expecting for xmas. And that they had refurbished Nooks on Overstock.com. So it's on its way. In fact, my tracking info tells me it's been in Georgia since yesterday afternoon, so I'm a little annoyed that it's not here yet. But it's okay, because I spent all morning trying to figure out how to get those audiobooks from the library, and now I have two of them loaded on my phone. My library does not have e-books, but the library system in county south of me does, and I'm considering paying the $40/year non-resident fee to get a card there (I've considered it in the past anyway for access to a better selection of actual books, so that wouldn't be the only reason, but maybe the thing that tips it over the edge).

I think I'm including books I pre-read for the kids here, too, because I also like writing about them. And that's it. Those are the rules. Read books and write about them. Oh, obviously I'm counting audiobooks. I have a relatively extensive Amazon wish list to work with. I've been scouring best books of 2010 lists. I check NPR's website periodically to see what books they're talking about. I have plenty of things to check off on the "books I should have already read" list. And I have a short mental list of books I've been meaning to read forever and haven't gotten around to (Shelby Foote's 3 volume Civil War history and Middlemarch are the ones that spring immediately to mind). My first audiobook is Alice McDermott's After This--because I like Alice McDermott and because pickings are relatively slim in the library's audiobook collection. But there are at least a dozen or so that I'm interested in, so that's a start. Next up for real reading is Franklin and Eleanor: An Extraordinary Marriage, which the kids gave me for Christmas. I might go start it right after I finish this entry!

Because I am such a go-getter, I have already started on my book reading project and finished book #1! Some might think declaring a book I read this week to be book #1 is cheating instead of go-getting, but I disagree, and it's my blog. Anyway....BOOK #1(!) is Sleepwalk With Me and Other Painfully True Stories by Mike Birbiglia. Another Christmas present. I love Mike Birbiglia. I am not sure exactly what to make of his book. I enjoyed it...but 90% of it is material I've heard him do, pretty much word for word in many cases,  in other formats, so it's kind of hard for me to judge it as a book. I could kind of hear his voice saying it all as I read it. This did not make it unpleasant or boring to read; it's all stuff I could listen to him do over and over again, so reading through it was fun, too. But I'm not sure how much value there is, for me, someone already familiar with most of the stories, in having them in book form. The parts I enjoyed the most were, predictably, the parts I hadn't heard before--largely some stories about the early years of his stand-up career. The book is based on his recent off Broadway show of the same name, and some of it is about his experiences dealing with a sleep disorder that causes him to sleepwalk and act out his dreams, often in dangerous ways. Stand-up comedians very often annoy the crap out of me, and I'm always kind of delighted to find one who doesn't, because I enjoy being made to laugh. I first heard Mike Birbiglia on This American Life (where he's a frequent contributor) and immediately became a fan. So I guess to sum up...I highly recommend Mike Birbiglia as a performer; I really have no idea whether or not to recommend this book to non-fans. I have a hard time figuring out how it would read to someone not at all familiar with his work. But there you have it anyway....BOOK #1!