"Outside a dog a book is man's best friend, inside a dog it is too dark to read!" -Groucho Marx========="The person, be it gentleman or lady, who has not pleasure in a good novel, must be intolerably stupid." -Jane Austen========="I don’t believe in the kind of magic in my books. But I do believe something very magical can happen when you read a good book."-JK Rowling========"I spend a lot of time reading." -Bill Gates=========“Ahhh. Bed, book, kitten, sandwich. All one needed in life, really.” -Jacqueline Kelly=========

Wednesday, January 15, 2014

I want to read what I want.

"I want to read what I want." Ever feel like this? I do!

Every day, as a public high school librarian, I feel like I need to read as many YA books as possible so that I can make recommendations to my students. Great books languish on the shelves if I can't talk kids into reading them, and I have a hard time talking them up if I haven't read them. So, even though I do make decisions of what to read within this category, I often feel like I "have" to read books that I'd really rather not read.

In addition, I am in two book clubs. Every month that means I "have" to read two books that may or may not ones I would have selected otherwise. This doesn't mean that I don't enjoy most of them. As soon as someone says I have to read book, a part of me turns all teenager inside and I drag my feet about reading it. It must be some psychological phenomenon---as soon as the words "have to" are spoken, I feel the opposite. Ha!

With these feelings of wanting to read what I want to read swirling around in my head I dropped by the public library to pick up a book I placed on hold for book club next month. As I walked in
I stopped off to browse the rack of new books. I ended up walking out with four books I had no idea I wanted to read until just that moment:

  • I Could Chew on This: and Other Poems by Dogs by Francesco Marciuliano
  • How to Teach Your Children Shakespeare by Ken Ludwig
  • Fantastic Mistakes: Neil Gaiman's 'Make Great Art' Speech
  • The Maid' Version by Daniel Woodrell (this is the book I went for)

Now, to be honest, I probably won't read all three of these extra books, but it felt like an act of defiance just checking them out.  My-my, so pathetic, huh?

Am I the only person who experiences these feelings of wanting to read what I want to read and then feeling defiant when I do select them?

6 comments:

  1. I can TOTALLY relate. I find that varying the genres I read helps a lot. I can only take so many fantasies....And, I throw in the occasional adult book, but usually it's appropriate for teens. I use audiobooks to "read" those adult books that are on my "someday" list. And, I look forward to retirement (not too far away for me) so that I can read what I want. I still think it will be MOSTLY YA, but I'm sure I'll expand my adult reading.

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    1. I was just adding on my fingers and toes how many years until I can retire, too. I'm not sure I will continue to read YA afterwards, well certainly not as much. Sometimes when I do read an adult book (my twice a month books for book clubs) I find myself being impatient with the length of plot development. Too much YA has made me impatient.

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  2. I so understand this dilemma. I was in two book groups until last fall when I quit both (I had been in one of them for 22 years and the other for 5!). I just couldn't stand the feeling of having to read certain books every month any more. I do miss the women in my groups but I am loving only reading books that I want to read!

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    1. I love the gals in both of my clubs so much, I can't give them up! I try to listen to audiobooks for my BC selections. It makes them feel like less work.

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  3. The Maid's Version is our BC book for February! So you killed two birds with one stone there. :)

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    1. I know, that is why I went to the library in the first place, to pick it up. When I make my requests at the library they often come in early.

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