For fun you should read the true epistolary story 84 Charring Cross Road about the exchanges between a New York City woman and a London antiquarian book store during the mid 20th century. And then the follow up travel journal The Duchess of Bloomsbury Street, where she did many unique literary adventures in and around London. Both short, fun reads!

This always seems to be the gateway book to those who don’t read or don’t read much, especially since high school or college. If it gets you back into reading great! But there are so much better and more wonderful books out there that will really blow your mind so keep reading widely and deeply.

I’m in the same boat, if it’s going to be a competition then turn it into a reading challenge with yourself. Last year I had three and for each month I read a book about Ireland or by an Irish author, a novella and a memoir. This year I’m rereading a book I loved from prior to the year 2000, a book by an Asian or Asian diaspora author and a book by a dead female author whose works I’ve never read before. You can definitely use it your advantage in trying to learn about something, someone or some place new, or for your career, or even mental health. That way your adding a productive component to a reading competition.

Perhaps short stories or essays might be better audiobook genres for you where they have self contained bite sized cutes you can consume in whole in individual sittings and not have the need to follow a long literary thread.

Pied Piper of Hamelin

Yes, it is and was the reason I picked it up and read it to get the bigger story of how the museum came to be. Great story.

There’s a lot of very cool indie bookstore owners on TikTok, one of the most amazing is Bettiespages from Lowell, Michigan. You can find other stores with #indiebookstore #bookseller

The Independent Bookseller did a printed map of stores a few years ago, here’s an electronic version:

https://www.theindependentbookseller.com/bookstore-map.html

For those who have access to Hoopla through their public library, there’s a great eAudiobook version that’s a great rendition with multiple narrators.

After knowing about this book since the 1980s I finally read it last year and gave it five stars, just phenomenal. I read the followup, which was quite good too. Last year’s Love & Saffron is fiction, but with quite a similar feel to it.

This is true of Dangerous Liaisons which I’m reading now.

Most people don’t know, but Ally Sheedy was a published author before she became an child actress, she probably had a few choice things to say herself.

Others should benefit from my disappointment.

>! The Shards !<

Heads up this is NOT about the movie director of beloved 80s teen films.

Nothing bothers me with people, but violence towards animals is something that unnerves me. A very big release this month is scattered with violence done to animals, but you only see the aftermath. Surprisingly, it didn’t put me off as much as I imagined as opposed to if the text was describing what was happening first hand. I did just hear about a book called The Cows that the reviewer says is horrific, I won’t go near that.

20 books as well, 1 collection of essays, 2 nonfiction histories, 2 novellas or self contained short story, 3 graphic novels, 3 memoirs, 3 short story collections, 6 novels. Two five star reads, a YA memoir Free Lunch and a reread of God of Small Things.

I’m rereading it this year for the first time since I was 16 in the early 80s. It was my favorite book, I’m a bit reluctant about it holding up, but I’m hoping it’s still a masterpiece to me.

This sounds very interesting, definitely check out Why Fish Don’t Exist, there’s a number of things running through it, but one of them is eugenics.

This looks like all the worst cheesy, sentimental parts of Almost Famous.

My second worse rated book of the year out of 235. All treacle and faux inspirational pyschobabble, like some attempt at a 21st century Little Prince, another book I despise. As a children’s librarian there are hundreds of meaningful and deep impacting illustrated childten’s books that are head and shoulders above this. Check out Margaret Wild’s The Fox, for one example.

Short Stories or Essays to me are the perfect travel literature. Short bite sized pieces you can easily consume and pick up and put down at will.

I think part of it is that is it helps maintain the fable like feel of the story by keeping it short and in the novella format. That it’s almost a lesson or story that you could experience in one sitting.