What I’m Currently Reading

I hope I’m not the only person who shuffles between reading 5…or 6…or 15 different books at a time.

Because from this pile of books I’m currently reading…

…it looks like I have a problem.

I think, perhaps, I am making up for a dark time a few years back where I stopped reading. Where the answer to the question, “What was the last book you read?” came out in a stuttering of ‘errs’ and ‘umms’ until I’d answer, “Does Better Homes and Gardens” count?*

*And even then, let’s be real, I was only looking at the pictures.

Thank goodness time and logic now stand beside me and I have allotted time in my life for reading.

Alright, not having a full-time job also helps with that and perhaps that is why* I have found myself lost among seven different books.**

*I’m not so sure about that though. I seem to remember having several books with bookmarks in them while I was still working…only, I got through them at a much slower pace.

**I’m going to be transparently honest with you. Though you will find seven books mentioned throughout this post, there are possibly two or three I’ve left out. And that doesn’t count the pile of books waiting to be pulled into the circulation.

First up: the writing based books. For a while, I’ve considered getting my master’s in writing as a way of directing my steps and keeping myself accountable to daily writing.

This is clearly not a good enough reason to shell out thousands of dollars as my husband and the book ‘DIY MFA’ have expressed to me.

So, instead, I try, keyword TRY, to keep a writing schedule each day, and use the book ’90 Days to Your Novel’ along with other writing exercises to aide in keeping me on track.

‘On Writing’ by Stephen King is to the writer what ‘Catcher in the Rye’ was to Jerry Fletcher in the movie, Conspiracy Theory*. It’s a ‘got to have’ book. I have two copies myself and though I’ve read it several times before, I’m running through it again. It isn’t an ordinary writing book, but that is exactly what it is…

…a book on writing.

…written by Stephen King.

Come on now. Everyone should have a copy of this book and read it regularly.

*If you haven’t seen it, my fifteen-year-old self is shaking her head at you.

After spending far too much time reading Atlas Shrugged, I decided to give myself a little light reading in the form of a collection of P. L. Travers’ first four ‘Mary Poppins’ books.

Somehow I can’t avoid ridiculously thick books.

The movie, Saving Mr. Banks, sparked my interest in reading the original novel, and a desire to research the world of children’s literature helped me crack open this behemoth book.

‘The Jersey Shore Cookbook’ and ‘Dishing Up New Jersey’ really need no explanation.

I saw them, I needed them, and Hubby bought them for me.

I have taken my time, casually taking in each page. When I buy cookbooks, I usually try to read through the entire thing once, marking recipes I’d like to eventually make. With these, I’ve been reading up on different New Jersey restaurants and the recipes that make them famous, while only once in a while marking things I’d like to make.*

*Dishing Up New Jersey has clearly received more attention.

Finally, for the rejected astronaut inside of me, ‘The Total Skywatcher’s Manual’. Because, if I can’t take a spaceship into outer space, I might as well read about it, right?

This book isn’t just a bunch of pretty photographs* of what can be seen in our sky. It is truly a manual to guide in better understanding and appreciating the world hidden above our heads.

*Though the glossy, colorful pages are certainly a plus!

 

What books are you currently reading?