The Challenge: Read One Book a Week
written by Nick Cernis on June 24th, 2008
Worms Words are in my blood
It started in Belgium. One sizzling summer in a third-floor flat, my parents came strutting through the lounge to find their fat little fellow merrily leafing through a copy of War and Peace. I was two years old.
Impressed? You shouldn’t be. To say that I had read and digested Tolstoy’s loathsome work at such an early age would be a half-truth, because the reality is this: I wasn’t reading it. I was eating it.
A taste for reading
Quite why my folks never stopped me munching away is obvious: they were too busy laughing their tits off and taking photographs, the copies of which I have sadly misplaced alongside similar artefacts from a strip poker evening I never attended 18 years later.
Evidence aside, it’s likely that Count Lev Nikolayevich’s words still course through my veins. Some say that I speak Russian in my sleep and have long demonstrated a thirst for “fine Vodka”, a challenging contradiction in terms bettered only by the phrase, “military intelligence”.
The challenge
In case you weren’t actively fed on a diet of poorly-translated illiterature from an early age, I want to swipe two ticks of your time and inject a deep passion for reading into your lovely behind. Relax and bend over. This won’t hurt a bit.
More specifically, I’d like to delicately convince you in a suitably charming manner that reading one book a week is not just perfectly comfortable, but also mind-altering, life-changing, and jolly good fun too.
So here’s the challenge: starting next Monday, I’d like you to read one book a week for one month. Choose your first book and follow-up text right now. Go on. I’ll pop the kettle on while you do it. Don’t do it for me, though. Do it for you.
One book a week?
That’s right. One every 7 days; about four-to-five a month. Perhaps you’re already doing it? Regardless, read on!
If the thought of developing a book fix in addition to your other dark habits is terrifying, you’ve probably been approaching it wrong. With some simple changes that will help you to see reading as a hobby and not a chore, you’ll find it dead easy. It’s all in the mind.
Here are 5 tips to help flick the mental switch.
Wait a minute! Why one a week?
The goal is to flip-start a healthy reading habit together.
Forming a habit requires a change in your life and, since no-one likes change, we’ll transition from your current reading rate to the new pace so rapidly that we’re simply swapping-out one brand of normal for another — a trick, by the way, that I found in a book.
In case you need more convincing, here are some great reasons to become a regular reader overnight:
1. Solve any problem
Think you’ve got problems? So did billions of unlucky buffoons before you. The cheerful consequence is that some of them took the time to write their answers down for the rest of us. Today, there are very few issues that haven’t been solved already (only new ways of solving them).
2. Escape your mother-in-law
It’s a little-known fact: Gutenberg created the printing press purely to escape his mother-in-law. What a gift! Don’t let it pass you by! If you want to get away from it all, books trump shotguns every time.
3. Build your vocabulary
How was the last book you read? Was it really nice? You’ll find, if you haven’t already, that reading becomes something far more expressive over time.
And yes, there is a balance between claiming your crown as Chief Phraseologist and rendering yourself utterly incoherent to 99.6% of your audience. If you’d like a good laugh, check out Gobbledygook of the week at the Plain English Campaign.
4. Expose yourself
I have a dreadful confession: in my 8-hour-a-day computer gaming era, I used to think that a Mongoose was a type of small wading bird, and that gaiters were those horrible green creatures that climb out of toilets in parts of Florida.
As well as correcting some hazy definitions, becoming a regular reader forced me up to wake up to a new hemisphere of fact and fantasy that I’d now be lost without. Exposing yourself to new thinking and ideas is a wonderful experience — read outside your usual circle of authors and try it today.
5. Offline time
How many hours a week do you currently spend online? Scary, isn’t it? Are you actively working and playing in that time, or just screwing around? My guess is that we could all swap a little online time for some hours offline with a good book.
It’s time to phase-out idle mouse clicking, passive TV watching, and mindless game playing for something that’s genuinely worth doing: getting more paper cuts than you can shake a box of Band Aids at.
6. Support authors and publishers
Getting a book to market is bloody hard work. Those who’ve self-published an ebook or printed a novella will be nodding now. The other brave souls amongst you who work in the word-pimping industry won’t be able to nod, largely because your necks are so stiff from craning over a veritable Stonehenge of piled proposals that your vertebrae will be fused together.
7. Do it for George
In a sense, we should be rushing to adopt the altitude of George Leigh Mallory, the great British Mountaineer who lost his life on Everest, and all read a good book simply because it’s there. As I often remark when praised by a kind soul for my own ebook, Todoodlist: “Thanks. It wouldn’t be the same if no-one read it.”
Now that you’ve read about why you should be reading, let’s make it work for you.
5 tips to become a regular reader
1. Learn to chain-read
I recommend that you choose and purchase your next book before you even start your current one. That way you’ll always have something waiting in the wings.
When you’ve turned the final titillating page of your current tome, the first thing to do is thump the cover shut, exhale in deep satisfaction, and rush off to get the next one.
It’s a great habit to get into and, unlike chain-smoking, it won’t screw up your lungs.
2. Read for pleasure
I can’t stress this enough: learn how to identify and buy books that you’ll love. It’s a skill in itself. Over time, reading as little as one book a week will train your ability to choose more wisely.
If you’re currently reading your way through someone else’s list, like one of the lengthy and samey “100 books to read before you die” directories, stop and ask yourself why. I guarantee you’ll have more fun by exploring authors, experimenting a little, and creating your own mental top 100.
3. Forget speed-reading
Want to ruin your love of reading? Skim through a book as fast as you can.
In the great curtained halls of academia and the pillared law offices of “Cuthbert, Dibble and Grub”, there is definitely some benefit in reading quickly. But reading for pleasure is a very different monkey.
Yes, it’s ok to skim through the dull bits once in a while, but it’s not a race. If you’re intent upon setting a new bland speed record, try going to the Guinness Book of World Records with a copy of the Yellow Pages; you’ll find a sunlight-starved man with a clipboard and stopwatch who’ll be happy to assist.
If you’d like some light-hearted evidence that speed-reading, retention, and enjoyment don’t make a good threesome, just look to Woody Allen, who quipped: “I just speed-read War and Peace. It’s about some Russians”.
4. Use the 50 page rule
The 50 page rule is simple. It goes like this:
Whenever you pick up your book, read 50 pages or more.
Using this neat idea, you can comfortably read a 350 page book in a week by simply picking it up once a day! The concept encourages you to start reading only if you intend to relax and immerse yourself into a good chunk of your latest literary tipple.
Forget about chapters as natural breaks; read through the chapter endings and you’ll find you complete books faster. Of course, it’s not always possible, but make the effort anyway. If you read on the train, you can always blame me if you miss your stop.
5. Learn to bail out
When travelling to London by rail long ago on a wet November day, I once watched a well-dressed gentleman physically tear the pages from a novel with his own teeth, then dispose of the remains into the rushing air through an open window whilst shouting, “bollocks!” A fellow bookivore, I thought, delighted to find a member of my own species. Then I legged it as fast as I could to the quiet coach.
The episode taught me that a) by the glorious blessing of diversity, people react very differently to the Harry Potter series and b) we should never be afraid to give up on what we consider to be a bad read.
If you’ve gotten 50 pages into a book and it just doesn’t feel right, don’t force yourself to continue. There is no shame in swapping books if you’re not enjoying the first one. (There is, of course, a deep well of shame in half-eating one and throwing it from a speeding train.)
Quick bonus tips
Read more non-fiction
Believe it or not, some of my favourite books never mentioned drunken underage broomstick flights, teleporting interplanetary teapots, or dodgy encounters in Bangkok bars. Many of my most treasured reads simply fixed one or more of my varied problems, or changed my view of the world forever. Non-fiction is awesome. Read more.
Try ebooks
Ebooks, much like Ewoks, are cute little fellows that are easy to handle with very little fuss. Whilst some shun screen reading as a nasty pastime, you’ll find increasingly that ebooks are being designed with more white space and less words per page, which makes the experience much more pleasurable.
Read aloud
Quite unlike Girls Aloud, reading aloud is a pleasant auditory experience, and a lost art form in its own right. When’s the last time you enjoyed a book with someone else? Try it out. Bed time works best.
Write reviews
There is a glorious pleasure in summarising a great read in a delicately-crafted bundle of 20 snappy words or less. Try writing a quick review for the next book you read.
Join a book club
Other people like books too. Consider joining a book club. I’ve created the One Book a Week Club over at Goodreads for us to keep track, get extra tips, and share our titbits and recommendations with each other. Feel free to pop by, register for an account, and start sharing and reviewing your reads today.
Join the discussion
If you’d like to join in, just add the name of the two books you’ll start off with in the comments below. Then join in the debate. How many books are you reading a year right now? What’s stopping you from reading more? Where do you buy your books? Should we start a book group? Are worm holes and tears in the page-time continuum a valid concern for loyal book worms? Share your thoughts below!
I’d be particularly interested to hear from anyone who’s using Amazon’s Kindle about the reading experience compared with paper; please join in.
Get reading!
What have you got to lose? Pick up your first book and get going.
Besides, if it’s crap, you can always eat it.
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24 Jun 08
22:06
MO
wormhole! (groan) . Do I win anything? Great post. I’d love to read a book a week. Unfortunately I’m addicted to buying new ones, and have a daunting backlog of unread books taunting me from my bedside table. Looks overwhelming at times.
24 Jun 08
23:06
Katy Ryan
Loved the post, and had to stop by to tell you of my ambitious endeavor. I’ve been a voracious reader since an early age, and have now decided to make my way through “1,001 Books To Read Before You Die.” Surprisingly, I’ve probably actually read less than two dozen, and I’m starting with “Rebecca” by Daphne du Maurier. I’m trying to decide on a time goal by which I should have this task completed. Two years sounds reasonable.
Happy reading!
25 Jun 08
00:06
laanba
I love this post! I’m really going to try to take up your challenge and read a book a week. Right now it is more like a book a month. I’m really bad about re-reading books. In fact I started keeping track of my new reading for 2008 (which is why I know the very sad figure of one a month).
I have a very real problem with #5, offline time. Or should I say online time. You described me to a T. Restless clicking around the internet, checking on sites I just left 5 minutes earlier. Summer is the perfect time for me to break this habit and this challenge is the perfect thing to force me to do it.
Cheers! Time for me to go read (er… after I blog). :-)
25 Jun 08
01:06
kelly g
I am in the middle of Awaken the Giant Within by Tony Robbins, and I just bought Eat Pray Love and The Power of Now for my upcoming vacation. I average around a book every month or two and I sometimes go streaks where I read a lot, or not at all. I would love to make it more of a habit, because I love reading so much, I just don’t make enough time for it.
25 Jun 08
01:06
Cynthia
I am always reading about 10 books simultaneously. I once counted and I total just around 20 books completed a month.
(I think it helps that I don’t own a television!)
The current stack:
“The United States of Arugula” Kamp
“Why Things Bite Back” Tenner
“A Whack on the Side of the Head” von Oech
“Why Beauty is Truth” Stewart
“T is for Trespass” Grafton
“The 4-Hour Workweek” Ferriss
“Broke-Ass Stuart’s Guide to Living Cheaply in San Francisco” Broke-Ass Stuart (I’m moving to SF soon)
“Uncertainty” Lindley
“Newcomer’s Handbook for Moving and Living in the San Francisco Bay Area”
“Four Laws that Drive the Universe” Atkins
25 Jun 08
01:06
awurrlu
Great idea — especially the non-fiction!
I got really burnt out on fiction after getting a degree in English. The class that saved me was one on non-fiction, and I was hooked. So many great true stories, why waste time on the made-up stuff?
That said, here’s what I’ve just read, and what’s on my to-read list:
Just finished:
The Frozen Water Trade by Gavin Weightman
Train Time by John Stilgoe
Next up:
From Squaw Tit to Whorehouse Meadow: How Maps Name, Claim, and Inflame by Mark Monmonier
The Postal Age: The Emergence of Modern Communications in Nineteenth-Century America by David Henkin
25 Jun 08
01:06
Niki Brown
ha…ive been trying to finish the learners by chipp kid for a while now…maybe ill stop surfing and go read :)
25 Jun 08
03:06
EscRiBiTioNiSt®
ahh.. well.. good idea, good thought, and at the right time.
this really suits me who rarely read books and hardly finish one, plus i spend a lot of time online. and i like the idea in ‘5 tips to become a regular reader | 4. Use the 50 page rule.’ i have a few books at home that i haven’t finished!
thanks and i’ll try.
ps. you also mentioned ‘bangkok.’ hoorey.. that’s where i am ;p
25 Jun 08
04:06
Sara
Tons of great info here. Seriously awesome post. I have a hell of a time quitting a book even if I don’t care for it. (The Moviegoer, I’m looking at you!) It seems that once I stop reading one, it takes three or four more misfires before I find a winner.
To find interesting books and deepen the experience, I use goodreads.com to track what I’ve read and vet books if they’re not doing it for me. It’s a pretty honest community, and I’ve had good luck finding appealing books that make me want to keep reading.
25 Jun 08
07:06
amypalko
Wonderful post, Nick, the concept of which I full-heartedly endorse. What’s keeping me from one book a week? Well, that would be my study of literature, of course! I was one of those who stupidly believed that by studying literature I would get to indulge in my love of reading. And this indeed proved the case for my honours degree and my masters. The phd, however, is a different beast altogether and I’ve had to read the same books over and over and over. One of the things which is spurring me on to submission of the thesis, is that I’ll be able to get back to embracing my reading habit. There are so many wonderful books in the world just waiting for me to pick them up and start turning the pages. Ah, bliss…
25 Jun 08
08:06
Sunili
@MO - Oh I hear ya re the book-buying addiction!! D’ya think we can just tell Nick we’re doing our bit to help authors even without having to read them all???
25 Jun 08
09:06
Sunili
(Woops, I didn’t realise that comment was going to be a whole one by itself, sorry!)
Fab post (as always)! And ohmigosh, yes, speed reading fricking SUCKS. I realised the other week that the reason why I haven’t been reading books is because I went to law school. Blerkgh.
So I am highly excited by the prospect of this challenge, and my first two books will be:
- Possession by AS Byatt (which I have been reading for months); and
- Princess Diaries #9 (which I have been meaning to read for months and is on the bottom of the stack of books I’ve bought but haven’t read).
Hurrah!
25 Jun 08
10:06
Ben
Oh, Wormhole? Darn, I thought the pun was you were reading the books so fast people observing you would experience some sort of Doppler effect induced READshift (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Redshift#Mechanisms).
25 Jun 08
12:06
Steve
Great post!
I try to read one a month and do pretty well at meeting that goal, though it has suffered some since starting work on my MBA. Once done, though, one a week will be my goal. My wife is a voracious reader, she reads one or two a week.
I like the 50 page rule. I plan on doing this right away.
Reading Now - “Made to Stick” by Chip and Dan Heath.
Hope to read next - A title discovered on a blog post this morning, “What I talk About When I Talk About Running,” by Haruki Murakami.
Well done.
25 Jun 08
12:06
Morten
For awesome free ebooks, try changethis.com..
25 Jun 08
12:06
Morten
Uhh, ohh.. sorry. I realize my above comment sounds a lot like spam (it’s not). But don’t worry, I’m not affiliated with changethis.com, and only mentioned the site because of the ‘Try ebooks’ in the ‘Quick bonus tips’ section.
25 Jun 08
13:06
steph
@Nick: Thanks for inviting me!
Fantastic post in many ways! Sending it on to my sister, too.
My first choice is *How to Become a Famous Writer Before You’re Dead* by Ariel Gore, and I’m still trying to decide from the many I have in line for the second!
25 Jun 08
14:06
Avid reader
This whole article is invalid because you called Tolstoy loathsome lol!
25 Jun 08
15:06
Charfish Charlie
Love this post, Nick! It makes me feel less like a loser/geek/bore knowing that you and your readers don’t think reading is just for…well…losers, geeks and bores.
However, I already read one book a week, so what the hell do I do now?
Oh…and the physics joke with the worm is obviously the glasses. Worms don’t wear glasses ’cause they have no ears to hold them up. Yeah…that must be it.
25 Jun 08
15:06
Nick Cernis
@MO - There used to be a bookshop between my office and the bus stop. It was more deadly than costly, but it meant I always had something to read.
When faced with a pile of new books, I’d recommend one of the following solutions:
a) read them
b) give them away to someone who will
Good luck!
@Katy Ryan - 977 books in two years? That’s almost 19 a week, or 2.69 a day! A brave goal, which puts me to shame… Go for it, and make sure you’re doing it for love. (What else could it possibly be? :)
@laanba - Agreed that Summer is a great time to get into reading. I should have added “Read topless” in my list of extra tips to encourage folks to get outside. Thanks for blogging about the post!
@kelly g - You’re right — it can be hard to find the time. Making it a habit is the key; I started by filling ‘dead time’ throughout the day with reading, and built up to actively allocating chunks of my day (early morning, lunch, or bed time) to my book habit.
@Cynthia - I used to be a 10-at-a-time kinda guy. (No, not like that! You’re a filthy bunch. Honestly.)
Dropping the habit of reading in parallel for reading in series did wonders for my enjoyment, not to mention my comprehension. A good list you’ve got there, though — I can see how several would tie-in nicely at once.
@awurrlu - I recently polled my friends to find out how many non-fiction titles they could recall reading. The average? Just one! You’re right — people are missing out on a treat.
@Niki Brown - Go for it! Surfing is fun, but it’s amazing how rapidly the day gets wasted. Whoops! Don’t mind me! As you were…
@EscRiBiTioNiSt® - Ah, a Bangkoker*. Welcome! The 50-page thing is what did it for me. I used to stop at chapter endings like they were some kind of physical barrier, which multiplies the time it takes to finish a book excessively. Give the 50-page rule a shot. It might feel odd to stop mid-chapter at first, but you’ll soon be breezing along (and it’s pretty easy to jump it up to 60 or more).
*If you think that sounds weird, think how the poor people of Hamburg feel.
@Sara - I love Goodreads too. I’ve created a group there and added the link in this post. Do join in!
@amypalko - I once knew a drummer who said that his highly adept percussive mind had ruined popular music for him forever — every piece he listened to became a study in the subtle nuances of syncopation to the point where all other instruments were mentally blotted out! How the learned suffer for their art! (I told him to try Jazz improv.; pure poetry by comparison.)
Thanks for the Stumble, and good luck with the PhD, Amy. I hope that finishing it gives you more space to relax with literature in addition to analysing it. (A warning: you may also find that friends introduce you thusly: “This is Amy. She’s a doctor. But not the type that helps people.”)
@Sunili - Thanks for taking up the challenge with such enthusiasm, for spreading the word, and for pointing me towards Goodreads. Much appreciated, as ever.
@Ben - Additional additional bonus points go to you, sir! If I had a Geek-Out Trophy, I’d be sending it on to you now, probably by quasitronic transmogrification or similarly suitable means.
@Steve - Another with more qualifications than me! I see a market for a new Top Trumps game in these comments alone…
Yes, studying does get in the way of reading for pleasure, but it’s possible to fit it in. The 50 page trick certainly helps. Glad to hear you’re happy to give it a shot!
@Morten - Thanks for the link, Morten. I’d seen the site, but hadn’t leafed through the archives until today.
@steph - Great to have you on board, Steph! I’ve been meaning to check out the Famous Writer title too. Not that I want to be famous before I’m dead of course. I’m a patient man.
@Avid reader - You’ll be interested to hear that I was only using Tolstoy’s own words! In an (unpublished) private letter in 1873, he described the translation (the one I ate) of his original work as “loathsome”. [source]
Perhaps the Russian edition tasted better.
@Charfish Charlie - Losers, geeks and bores? Au contraire, some of my best friends are utter dullards.
I’m so pleased that there are others out there who already read so regularly. Do you review books? It’s great fun to write a concise review that praises (or critiques) a work in 20 words. I’d heartily recommend signing up to Goodreads and giving it a shot.
Unbeknownst* to many, book worms are able to maintain their bespectacled appearance entirely thanks to their invisible noses, which remain hidden by means of a secret passed down through 18 generations of wriggly ancestors.
* A beautiful word. Speaking it aloud makes me feel both double my age and full of flu in just 3 syllables.
25 Jun 08
16:06
mukesh
I have always felt that I should read a book a week, but I have never had the commitment toward it. I know I am motivated to read books after reading this post, but I am not sure how long I will remain motivated. One of the tips given here may help. As the write-up says it’s difficult to change our habits, we should finish books quick giving ourselves no time to think whether we should do this or not, and by the time we realize what’s happening, we may have turned into a bookworm. I will try this tip. Let’s see how it goes.
25 Jun 08
17:06
Tim Brownson
Which book are you staring with Nick??
Go on tell the lovely readers which fabolous free eBook you downloaded not but a day or two ago.
There aren’t 2 Nick’s are there? If there are, I’m going to look really foolish now.
25 Jun 08
19:06
DaFerret
I’m definitely going to try this, though I fear I won’t finish a book in a week. Ironically enough, I just purchased two books a day ago. Perdido Street Station and The Book of Joby. Should be interesting!
25 Jun 08
21:06
April, the Chief Cook & Bottle Washer
Ooh, goody! Guilt free reading for pleasure. I mean, I have to answer the challenge. Don’t I?
“Life of Pi”, by Yann Martel (so I can finally give it back to its owner) and “Why Buffy Matters”, by Rhonda Wilcox. How’s that for exposing myself? :)
I’m not an utter dullard (of course, most dullards would say the same, wouldn’t they?), but I do confess to being a bit of a geek…and proud of it.
@Charfish Charlie - When I am reading fiction of my choosing, I often read a book in a weekend. So, there’s your challenge. Join me in the world of the sleep-deprived and slightly cross-eyed (just don’t tell Dave Navarro that I’m tempting you to the dark side). :)
25 Jun 08
22:06
Hayley
I read a lot of web pages - does that count?
Seriously, I have recently got back into reading, after a brief flirtation last year when I found two books that came free with magazines (yeah, I know…) and thought I should at least give them a go before I passed them on to the local charity shop. They weren’t too bad, if you cared to look past the trashiness!
I am currently on a Terry Pratchett marathon. I have just completed Monstrous Regiment, am about to finish Going Postal, and have got the next two (Thud and Making Money) lined up ready. I like to collect the hardbacks.
*Trundles off to do geek things*
26 Jun 08
01:06
GirlPie
Wonderful reminder, and so good to hear your voice again.
The tips are especially useful. I think I’ll have to begin with something slender (to assure I accomplish the task) and something beloved from my childhood love of reading… hmm… ah-ha! The original Nancy Drew! Friday night will be a good starting line for me — thanks!
26 Jun 08
02:06
Gary
I’ve had a Kindle for about 3 weeks and love it. I think I may be reading faster because I’m getting through more books, more rapidly.
I like the continuously available store. I usually buy three or four when I buy any. When I finish or run out, I can reload immediately, any place, any time. Never short on reading material!
I like to have newspapers, blogs, and books available all the time. I can easily jump around based on what I’m interested in, ability to concentrate, etc.
Form factor is great. It’s a one-handed experience, which means I can read while leaning on an elbow, or any other comfortable position, and easily change pages. (I think that might be one of the reasons I’m reading faster.)
26 Jun 08
06:06
Jarkko Laine
Wow, Nick! How do you manage to do it every time? So far, I have marked pretty much all of your posts as starred in my Google Reader - and this one was no exception!
I love to read too - been like that ever since I was a kid. And now I’m trying to get my son excited in this fine life style of devouring books (he’s just 1 year old, so he can’t read yet…though…but maybe he could eat some literature too).
26 Jun 08
13:06
James Chartrand - Men with Pens
A side note on developing habits:
It takes approximately two weeks to create a new habit, and this two weeks involves dedicated attention to maintain the habit. Critical period.
It then takes approximately another two weeks to establish the habit firmly so that it truly becomes a habit and not just a temporary change.
So… A week isn’t enough ;) But it’s a start.
26 Jun 08
13:06
Nick Cernis
@mukesh - Good luck!
@Tim Brownson - Ha! I’ve pimped your book in your PTO debut guest post, which is now live here.
@DaFerret - Go for it! Find the time and a week is perfectly comfortable.
@April, the Chief Cook & Bottle Washer - Life of Pi is a good read. Thanks for joining in!
@Hayley - Terry Pratchett is wonderful. Hopefully you’ve not noticed that I pretend to buy them for you and then read them myself. Whoops!
@GirlPie - Thanks! There’s no shame in reading small books to build up the habit. Even kids’ books are fun! A Porcupine Named Fluffy is simply delightful.
@Gary - Great to hear from a Kindle user. You confirmed exactly what I suspected, which is that having books on electronic tap encourages you to read more. I’m looking forward to their UK arrival. Thanks for chiming in.
@Jarkko Laine - Ha! Thanks, Jarkko. I’d definitely recommend the aforementioned Porcupine book for your young one in a couple of years. Right now, though, it’d make good eatin’!
@James Chartrand - Men with Pens - Completely agree. (It’s why I said to read one book a week for a month.) If people keep it up for that long, it becomes a habit much more readily than just reading one book fast!
26 Jun 08
13:06
James Chartrand - Men with Pens
Now, look. See? SEE? You caught me skimming and scanning. Dammit. I hate when that happens.
Let’s try again.
@ Nick - I completely agree with your post! As you mentioned, developing a habit takes a full month. I’m thrilled that you pointed that out to people.
… who don’t read everything. ;)
26 Jun 08
13:06
Nick Cernis
@James Chartrand - Men with Pens - Ha! Not to worry. I’ve done exactly the same on your site too. (Not that I’d dare to skim it, of course.)
You always correct me just as artfully too…
26 Jun 08
17:06
Kevin Wilson
I’ve read an average of 5 books a week since I was about 6. (Gosh, that’s over 11,000 books! There were some repeats in there, though). Like other posters, I can do this partly because I have no TV. Most of mine are non-fiction.
Obviously, I don’t buy all these. Apart from the expense of the books themselves, think of all the needed bookshelves and the cost of a bigger house to hold them all!
The library - and especially the Inter-Library-Loan system - is your friend. Most of the books I buy I have already read, so I know they are good and I want to own them. The library also means I can bring home stuff which looks vaguely interesting or even completely off the wall, and if I don’t like it I haven’t wasted hard-earned cash.
Kevin
27 Jun 08
08:06
Internet Business Ideas
I love reading too.
I usually read more then one book at a time.
I shopping for new books every month and read them. at the end if the book is boring or if I know I will never read it again I give it to the local library
Tanny
Home Business Ideas
28 Jun 08
08:06
Rosemary Nissen-Wade (aka SnakyPoet)
What Kevin said! All of it … except that I do have a TV.
What a novel (no pun intended) idea to read one at a time. It means carting one book around with you instead of picking up the nearest one at various locations around the house. But OK, I’ll do it. 50 pages at a time is a good notion.
I have just started the Complete Poems of Anne Sexton, and about time too (had read far too little of her work before). So that’s my first. And a friend recently gave me Financially Free by Anne Hartley, so that will be the second. (I would probably be financially freer if poetry didn’t take precedence over money.)
As for the huge pile by my bed waiting to be read - GIVE THEM AWAY UNREAD??? You’re kidding!
28 Jun 08
10:06
Rosemary Nissen-Wade (aka SnakyPoet)
Oh, and another thing – I love anyone who says ‘contradiction in terms’ instead of ‘oxymoron’. Thank you!
30 Jun 08
20:06
emily carmichael
now here’s one challenge i won’t have a bit of trouble keeping up with! i work in a public library, and have the pleasure of handling EVERY single new book headed for our shelves. my to-read list is mind-boggling. i currently have 17 books checked out. a personal tip: rediscover the pleasures of children’s and adolescent literature. start with the books you loved when you were a kid, then branch out. there’s more to children’s lit than Harry Potter (though i remain a dedicated fan).
on the reading stack:
Thunderstruck by Erik Larsen
The Eater’s Manifesto by Michael Pollan
The Chestnut Solider by Jenny Nimmo
The End of the Alphabet by C.S. Richardson
Lady Macbeth by Susan King
Sundays at Tiffany’s by James Patterson
Eternal Lovecraft: the persistence of HPL in popular culture ed. Jim Turner
Voice, Text, and Hypertext: emerging practices in textual studies ed. Raimonda Modiano
In Defense of Food by Michael Pollan
recently finished:
Voyage of the Dawn Treader by C.S. Lewis
Love the One You’re With by Emily Giffin
Civil and Strange by Cláir Nà Aonghusa
A Wall of Two : poems of resistance and suffering from Kraków to Buchenwald and beyond by Ilona and Henia Karmel
30 Jun 08
23:06
Rosemary Nissen-Wade (aka SnakyPoet)
Dear Emily, I understand perfectly. I was a public librarian for 18 years. Lucky you!
Dear April, Of course Buffy matters! Surely that is one of the Great Truths of our Universe?
Dear Nick, I thought the joke was something along the lines of Bookwormhole. (Covering the serious message about how reading can take us travelling interdimensionally.)
1 Jul 08
02:07
Mike Smith - Bootstrapping Blog
I joined the group and hope to keep up with everyone :) Nice challenge!
1 Jul 08
03:07
Katy Ryan
Since we last talked, I’ve finished “Valley of the Dolls” and “Rebecca.” On to “Crime and Punishment.” Great to see everyone’s suggestions — I’ve added a lot to my reading list, in addition to continuing to tackle “1,001 books you must read before you die.” If only I could be paid full-time to read!!!
1 Jul 08
19:07
Ian Parker
Great post, Nick! I al ready have a (largely unused) GoodReads account so I joined the club. It’s funny you should mention “War & Peace” because I read the most recent translation not all that long ago. It was delicious!
In any case, I think I’ll tackle “Housekeeping” by Marilynne Robinson first, and then on to “Sway: The Irresistible Pull of Irrational Behavior” by Ori and Rom Brafman since, like you, I am a big fan of non-fiction. It is definitely far more entertaining and enlightening. Fiction has its merits, but that’s just my opinion.
It looks like my Amazon Wish List is going to grow quite a bit though based upon what everyone is reading/has read. Excellent idea. Thanks again for starting the GoodReads group. Talk to you soon.
Ian
2 Jul 08
22:07
Meg
Other than Hairy Maclary and Are you my Mother, I haven’t read a whole book in ages . . . I used to be such a voracious reader too . . . your 50 page rule my just be my saviour . . .
3 Jul 08
23:07
Christina
My current read is “Under the Banner of Heaven” - John Krakauer
I have been reading a book (sometimes more! go me) a week for awhile now. I am starting to see the sad reality that I didn’t bring enough books when I moved to Costa Rica with only 2 bags. Unfortunately, I only have two left and bookstores are quite scarce here. I guess beach bums don’t read.
New challenge? Making it through another 7 months with no books! Ah!
3 Jul 08
23:07
Rosemary Nissen-Wade (aka SnakyPoet)
@Christina - Dear Christina, buy books online through Amazon and Abe Books. Also Google “Free ebooks”.
6 Jul 08
17:07
The Conscious Snob
This is a wonderful post. I love to read, and I frequented the local library for my books. However, notice the past tense. I have since subscribed to a lot of publications (Time, Newsweek, Wall Street Journal, BusinessWeek, etc.) that I want to read, so it takes time away from reading of actual books. I generally spend a chunk of time on the weekends to read a book, but I don’t finish one a week anymore. I hope to get back to that, which may mean removing a periodical or two.
7 Jul 08
20:07
Christina
@Rosemary - The postal system here practically doesn’t exist. Amazon doesn’t ship here anyway…=/ Thanks for the tip though!
8 Jul 08
00:07
Rosemary Nissen-Wade (aka SnakyPoet)
I must regretfully renege on this one. Anne Sexton’s Collected Poems needs more than 50 pages a day to get through in a week - and it also needs to be read slowly, with much pausing and pondering. Already it’s overdue form the library and I’m going to have to give it back and take it out again later.
Mind you, it comprises all of her books, so on that interpretation I have already read three of them!
And btw I ALWAYS read books for pleasure. (There’s some other reason?)
8 Jul 08
00:07
Rosemary Nissen-Wade (aka SnakyPoet)
@Rosemary Nissen-Wade (aka SnakyPoet) - @Rosemary Nissen-Wade (aka SnakyPoet) -
Sad! A challenge indeed. Hopefully the free downloadable ebooks will work for you.
8 Jul 08
00:07
Rosemary Nissen-Wade (aka SnakyPoet)
@Rosemary Nissen-Wade (aka SnakyPoet) - Dunno wot happened there; I was meaning to reply to Christina!
8 Jul 08
17:07
Tei - Rogue Ink
Oh, MAN. Why am I in the middle of my first series-posting when you do this? I would totally rock this challenge OUT. I read practically a book a day, and no, I’m not kidding, and yes, that’s a little sad, and no, I don’t care, and yes, I probably should spend some of that time doing laundry or something but I read pretty damn fast.
Unless it’s something that has to be savored in the mind, like Marquez. Or poetry.
Next up on my list: Ann Patchett’s Run and something new by Terry Pratchett, to whom I have only recently been introduced.
8 Jul 08
21:07
April, the Chief Cook & Bottle Washer
@Rosemary - Buffy - “…one of the Great Truths of our Universe?” I don’t know, but I’ll take any excuse to do my Buffy dance. Dnnn….dnn-dnn-dnn :)
Sadly, I have failed the challenge this (last) week. I inhaled a historical romance (one danger of downsizing is finding books you forgot you had) last weekend, and started The Life of Pi on Monday as scheduled…but haven’t gotten too far beyond starting.
I’m making it my book for the week again, and pushing Buffy back one. This time, I prevail!
9 Jul 08
17:07
o
Hi! Great idea to ease non-readers into the habit!
Me, I read several books at once, all year round. I’m currently enjoying “Personal Finance for Dummies,” The Discovery of France: A Historical Geography from the Revolution to the First World War” by Robb Graham, and “To Kill a Mockingbird,” by Harper Lee.
My challenge is to the book readers out there: Know all those books on your shelves you haven’t gotten to yet? How many can you get through by December 31st?
10 Jul 08
00:07
Rosemary Nissen-Wade (aka SnakyPoet)
@o - Now that’s a good challenge! Not all of them, I don’t think, but it would be an excellent thing to get through some … any. (I sometimes succumb instead to the great pleasure of re-reading.)