nomadreader

Remember when I was really excited to join the read-a-long for Anna Karenina ? And then I only managed to post once about it? Anna, it's not you. It's me. In all seriousness, I was enjoying reading Anna Karenina,  which surprised me somewhat. What I was surprised to find, however, is that despite my love of sharing the reading experience, I don't like read-a-longs. I didn't like having arbitrary places to stop each week. I found myself focusing on the ending points more than the book itself. I had trouble forming my thoughts for weekly blog posts. When I read, I want to be swept away at the pace that feels right. Reading a set number of pages each week was unsatisfying. I do love discussing books once I've read them, and I think that's one reason I so enjoy my new book club . For book club discussions, count me in. For read-a-longs, however, I think I'll pass until the final discussion. I'm already starting to think about my 2012 reading goals, ...

Remember last week, when I swooned about how reasonable the reading schedule for Anna Karenina  is? Well, I suppose I still think it is reasonable, but I didn't quite manage to make it to Chapter XX though. I am, however, greatly enjoying my dates with Anna. Here are the things that stick out to me thus far in my adventure: 1. The sentences are really long, but it works .   I don't get lost in the sentences. In fact, I find them to be lovely. They're ridiculously descriptive, and thus far I think these long, comma-filled, descriptive sentences provide fascinating insight into the characters, both past and present. 2. It's not a good book to read in public. I read on the go a lot, but it doesn't work for me with Anna . I need the quiet focus of my apartment. This week has been ridiculously busy, and I just haven't had as much time to read as I like. It's especially annoying when I'm loving The Marriage Plot , enjoying Anna Karenina , and eager to ...

Let me tell you about the hot date I had last night. With Mr. Nomadreader out of town this week (he's home in a few hours--hooray!), I opted for a Friday night date night of epic proportions (literally, she's an epic.) It may have only been our first date, but I think we'll be together until the new year. We won't be monogamous, of course, as many other readers are courting Anna too and I have so many other books to read, but I promise to take her out weekly and spend Friday mornings telling you about our dates. Who is this bewitching lady I'm courting? Have you met the lovely Anna Karenina? She's lovely. I'll save my thoughts on her for next Friday, but here are some things you might find interesting about her. Although we think of her as one of the most famous Russian novels, she was originally published in serial installments (from 1873-1877), so our weekly dates are almost how Tolstoy intended. She is long. Epically long. Approximately 872 pages. I...

Here at the midway point of the year, I've been doing a good job of reading deliberately. I've read the Orange Prize shortlist and plan to read the longlist. I'm reading mostly literary fiction, but I haven't dabbled in the classics yet. Jill at Fizzy Thoughts  is hosting a read-a-long of The Brothers Karamazov , and I'm excited (and scared) to join her in reading this classic. Here are the details :  My copy of the K Bros (you’ve got to be kidding if you think I’m typing Karamazov every time) is 776 pages of small print. However, the book is conveniently broken up into 4 parts. And each part has 3 books. That makes 12 books total (plus a short epilogue). It sounds much more manageable like that, doesn’t it? We’re going to suggest reading a book a week (although if you’re a glutton for punishment and/or a procrastinator, feel free to do all of your reading the night before). But we’re only going to post our summaries/thoughts/pleas for help at the end o...