Several years ago I read the book So Many Books, So Little Time by Sara Nelson. At the beginning of the project the author set out to read a book a week and then reported her experiences as she read. In addition to reporting how she selected which book to read when, Ms. Nelson also talked about such things as how she organizes her bookshelves and how she decides how many books to take on a trip. That is where I am now.
I am leaving for a trip tomorrow and I have a huge dilemma: How many books should I take with me on the trip?
First, let's get this out of the way up front, I don't have an e-reader. I know this would be a perfect time for one. Put a ton of books on the e-reader and bada-bing, I'm ready to go. But this in not an option right now. As a stop gap measure, I have downloaded a reader app on my Droid. So I will download some classic as a last resort.
Secondly, I am flying. This makes things complicated. Usually when we vacation via car I just pile eight to ten books in a box so I won't run out of reading material. Weight is an issue. I'm thinking I may have to limit my selection to three books, but which three?
Next, as a high school librarian I like to spend my summer reading YA lit so that I have lots of new books to recommend my students in the Fall. No problem. Just take three YA books with me, right? The problem here is that YA books tend to have more white space on each page than adult books, so they are approximately the same size/weight but take less time to read. It is unlikely that three YA novels will be enough for the ten days I'm gone.
Five of the days I will have a lot of leisure time while my husband attends a conference. I hope this means some good poolside reading time. Better make sure that the books are paperback and not library books. Wouldn't want one of those books to get splashed.
Hmmm...Here's what I've decided to do. Take my book club selection with me on the plane. It needs to be completed by the time I get back and it is light weight. For my other books, search the house for paperback books on my TBR pile. Pick one YA and one adult book. Go to the book store at the airport or in the town I'm visiting if I read through these before the end of the week. (I'm still not convinced that this will be enough!)
What do you do when you travel? How do you make sure you have enough books to read?
