Reading

Reading

Over the last year or so, I've read more books than I have in quite a long time. To be clear, none of these books are Earth-shatterig masterpieces, but all the same, they let my mind wander and explore new worlds. I've been trying to keep this spark alive and have found that moving back to physical books has been wonderful so far. I'm planning on making a new page on my website that has a listing of the books I've read and if I feel like it, even reviews of them (likely short, but still fun).

What do you like to read?

There are endless possibilities with books for just about anything you could ever want. I've read a few self-help books and other nonfiction, but I most definitely prefer reading fiction when given a choice. There's something about being able to completely immerse myself in a new world and see the characters through their own points of view that is exciting to me, esepcially if I really get involved in the book. My favorite genres are science fiction and thrillers. I'm a particular fan of Stephen King (but I'm slightly ashamed to admit that I've not yet read most of his books). I also quite like military thrillers, think Tom Clancy and Stephen Coonts. The Hunt for Red October is an incredible book (and the movie was really well done too), as is Flight of the Intruders. I don't have much of a requirement on a specific length of book either - if the premise sounds interesting enough to me, I'll read it!

I've got a long list of books that I need to read still for sure. My bookshelf is definitely packed with books that I've yet to read compared to books that I've completed. I'm a bit of a hoarder/collector in that point of view - I tend to buy new books that I think will be interesting well before I even have a chance to consider putting them into rotation. I'm trying to make a concerted effort to finish more books on my shelf though, but I also want to be mindful that there's no contest. Reading more books than others doesn't matter - what matters is enjoying the worldbuilding, the characters, the "what ifs" that you ask yourself while thinking where the story will go next. Letting your imagination get into the world and feel as if the characters are right there with you is what I really enjoy. Good books for me make me want to keep turning the page. I don't feel bad putting a book down if I'm not enjoying it. No sense in continuing it if I don't have an interest, although I honestly can't even remember the last time I stopped reading a book because I wasn't getting into it.

Why physical books over an ereader?

I mentioned earlier that I've been enjoying physical books more than my ebooks lately. To me, there's something about the physical nature of them, being able to feel the book and turn the physical pages. It's cozy and helps me disconnect a bit more. Modern ereaders are definitely superior to what they used to be and you can hold entire libraries in their digital storage, but I definitely prefer the paper books myself. Part of it feels like it's more intentional for me too, which is something else that I've been trying to strive for this year. I don't know how to describe it, but I just feel better reading a physical copy of a book.

There's also the concept of ownership. Once purchased, the physical book is mine. I can do what I want with it, no one can take it from me, alter it, anything. I can lend it to friends and family, store it in a safe place, tear it apart, you name it. Not so with most ebooks. I'm talking mostly about ebooks purchased on places like Amazon with their Kindle readers - you are purchasing a license for the book, which can be revoked at any time in the future. You don't own that book, you own a license to read the book. If the Kindle service were to go away, all of the books you purchased (of which I also have a fair number) would go away too - assuming they don't have a fallback disaster plan to release them from DRM.

Be cozy

There's something idyllic about a warm drink, a comfy chair, and a nice book. One of my recent favorites that is about the coziest book I've ever read is A Psalm for the Wild-Built by Becky Chambers. This was a very quick read about a Monk who sets off to build a new life to find their purpose, set in a world where robots gained self-awareness and stopped their work to build their own lives, separate from humans. Summarizing this book into this singular sentence feels a bit disingenuous, but take it from - this book is a treat and will get you thinking about your own purpose and what it means to be yourself. From the cover art to the descriptions of the characters and sets around the world, there is a quaint yet vast world to uncover in this short novel - which has a sequel available that I need to read too!

That brings me to where I'll leave you, with one last thought. I've been recently purchasing my books from ThiftBooks, an online bookstore that allows users to sell their used books for credit on the website. It has a wide collection of books, both new and used, that are generally cheaper than other equivalent online services that I've already named here. I left the link to their website plain, although they do have a referral program. If you are interested in signing up for an account and would like to use my referral link, feel free to email me and I'll share it with you - I don't quite like sharing referral links as if they were the actual link since they feel spammy to me. Other excellent places to find books would be your local library - seriously they need you and offer so much more than just books to check out - as well as local used book stores.

I'd love to hear your book recommendations and what you like to read. Send me an email with the link below if you'd like to chat!

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