I set a reading goal of 35 books this year. Sadly, I'm only on #5, 6, & 7 (not counting cookbooks which would add several more). But I have tackled a couple of really long books (Suite Francaise & Poisonwood Bible) - does that count? I try to read in the evenings and manage to read maybe 10 pages before falling asleep. :) Sometimes I read during nap time or while watching the boys play outside but generally my snippets of reading are few and far between and I find I'm not a particularly fast reader these days.
As a child, I devoured books - occasionally reading as many as 3 a day during summer break. I brought home stacks of books from the library and was constantly looking for new authors. My parents gave me a book of the month club for my birthday one year and I loved it! Books were always high on my Birthday and Christmas wish list. As the years have passed, my reading has definitely slowed down (see above :)) but my love for books has not ceased as evidenced by our sagging book shelves.
My to-read reading list is huge with just books we own. And still I enjoy receiving books, going to bookstores, and drinking in the rows and rows of books at the library. I find great pleasure in scanning shelves or tables of books at garage sales, thrift stores and library book sales for that one great find!
I love opening a book for the first time - a well-written first sentence is like a proposal for an excellent read. I love the musty smell of old books and the crisp newness of never-before-opened books. I lose myself in a good story but find equal fascination with facts and human interest in non-fiction.
I long for more time and energy to turn the pages of well-loved books and to discover new ones but wouldn't trade the time with my beautiful children as I guide them down their own road of book discovery. Maybe some day they will share their parents love of books for I have not filled our shelves alone. :) And maybe they will be inspired by the stories they have read and the books they have loved.
As I watch them grow and change, barely pausing from their constant chatter and play, I know there are seasons of life. Someday, I will once again read and read and read...until then, I will content myself with the snatches here and there and work a little harder to find more time to devote to reading good books.
4 comments:
I am so with you on this one! This is one area where I have NO discipline-- and neither does Kurt. Which makes it dangerous when we enter Barnes&Noble...
And I LOVE the smell of books-- new or old or in between. I have to smell the pages before I start to read, and then smell them every few pages. Recently, I caught Moses doing this-- but somehow, I don't think board books have QUITE the same smell... :)
Yes, it's hard with kids to get a lot of reading in. At least Andrew likes to read, so you can read together at night. It's going to be a long time (after school is done) before Kevin enjoys reading again, I think. :) You'll have to tell me what you thought of Poisonwood Bible. I read it last year and had mixed feelings.
Reading is definately a "seasonal" thing -- as in seasons of life. Sometimes there just isn't as much time for it. But books are wonderful, and requesting books online from the library is just about the greatest thing ever!!!
You are wise not to let yourself get too wrapped up in books right now. I've been guilty of ignoring my kids for a good plot line or staying up into the wee hours of the morning to read and then being exhausted.
I think I read about 8 books through last year which was a record for me since having kids. I think I've only gotten through 2 so far this year.
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