Writers tend to be voracious readers. Some of us even read multiple books at a time; I’m reading three simultaneously at the moment. What we read, as you may have seen in some of our previous posts, often influences what we write, and we all need that constant input. The more we read, the better our writing becomes.
Because we all read so much, we like to check in now and then to share with each other what we’re currently reading.
I’m currently reading the Mistborn trilogy, by Brandon Sanderson ( http://www.amazon.com/
There are currently three books in my “reading” rotation. I alternate American Gods by Neil Gaiman and A Dance with Dragons by George R. R. Martin on the Kindle. When I’m taking a walk or doing housework, I listen to Annie Jacobsen’s Area 51: An Uncensored History of America’s Top Secret Military Base. It’s my second time through the Gaiman and Jacobsen books. Both warranted a reread.
I am currently reading My Life in France by Julia Child and Alex Prud’Homme. I was trying an experiment where I read only memoirs for a while, and this book is a capstone to that experience. It is well written and full of personality. The introduction describing how Prud’Homme helped his great aunt record the story of her life is very touching. The way Child describes Paris of the 1950’s you can tell she was really in love with that city. My mother told me once that people often fall in love with Paris. She said I should go there because it might turn out to be the love story of my life. I have not taken that on yet, but from reading this book it is becoming a very compelling idea in my imagination!
When it comes to books, I have a bit of ADHD. For some reason, I can never read just one at a time. Usually I try to balance the books I’m currently reading by choosing something fiction or fun paired with something that’s either a classic or nonfiction, in addition to whatever we’re reading for book club. Right now I’m reading The Great and Secret Show by Clive Barker (one of my favorite books and favorite authors), and The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson (because I’ve really gotten into true crime lately). For book club, I’m reading The Law of Dreams by Peter Behrens, which I’m enjoying more than I thought I would. Book choices for book club can be a little hit and miss.
I’m currently reading half a dozen books, some in hardcover and some on my Kindle. I’ve been reading Ray Bradbury’s Zen in the Art of Writing, taking in a chapter here and there for inspiration. And I’m reading George R.R. Martin’s Game of Thrones (which is a lot more time-consuming than watching it on HBO). I’m also working my way through a biography, a book of poetry, a cyberpunk novel, and an old mystery. Some day I’ll have “time enough at last.”
I’m reading a few books. For a modern novel, I am reading Requiem for a Dream by Hubert Selby, Jr. For short stories, I am reading The Complete Stories by Flannery O’Conner. I also keep a set of books going on my Kindle. Currently, those are How to Tell a Story and Other Essays by Mark Twain, The Adventurous Boy’s Handbook by Stephen and Finn Brennan, and The Damned by Algernon Blackwood.
I finished reading “The Night Circus” by Erin Morgenstern today and was disappointed, even though the story is intriguing. The text is replete with comma splices, misused words, and even sentences with scrambled words. Evidently her editor is incompetent or under order not to change. It is one thing to purposefully employ experimental writing techniques; it is quite another to continually abuse the English language to the detriment of the story. Morgenstern crafted a fine, although ethereal story, and it deserves better treatment than found in the present version.
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