We're 11 days into the New Year and it's still time for reflections and resolutions. Having just finished reading my
first book of 2013 (‘A Half Forgotten Song’ by Katherine Webb – loved it!), I thought I’d reflect on my reading in 2012.
I’ve been keeping a Reading
Journal for four years, after a university tutor suggested it. I record the
author, title and publishing details; the month, time it took to read and its
score out of 10 (I am a harsh score-awarder!); then I launch into my thoughts. Typically, I write between 2
and 4 pages of A5, but sometimes a book has me banging on a bit more about it. I
don’t include a synopsis or give away plot/character twists, as I like to
preserve the surprises for a future re-read, but I do note down themes (blame
the literature half of my degree!), and any lines I particularly loved.
Admittedly, recording the books you’ve
read can be a quicker, more succinct and perhaps more list-driven process than
mine, but, remember, I’m wordy by nature and a wordsmith by calling!
It’s pleasing to track back
through my entries and read what I thought about each novel; particularly when
comparing the first time with a re-read. Plus, from a writers’ point of view,
it’s a way to practise writing more regularly - which is something I can always do with, regardless of any resolutions!
So, how many books did you read
in 2012? Would you like to read more this year, or less? Why? Were there any
titles that you’d recommend, or ones that you’d avoid like the plague? And how
have I done, recording my reading over these last four years?
Well, let’s have a little look...
2008 = 49 books read
2009 = 25 (This was the year I was
writing Book Number One, so my mind was elsewhere...)
2010 = 51
2011 = 51
2012 = 53
A book a week, then. Well, not
quite... Here’s the monthly breakdown for 2012:
Jan = 2 books
Jul = 8
Feb = 3 Aug = 9
Mar = 2 Sep = 5
Apr = 4 Oct = 7
May = 3 Nov = 3
Jun = 2 Dec = 5
Like everything in life, my
reading rises and dips, dips and rises – but I’m glad I’ve read the equivalent
to a book a week. Could I read more? Possibly – but I’d rather enjoy the
balance of reading and writing and the other creative things I do, than become
a slave to statistics! This year, I'm hoping to write the narrative for Novel Number Two, so if I can end 2013 with at least 26 books read, then it'll be an average of a book a fortnight and I'll be pleased.
Have I tempted you to reflect a
little more about what you read and what it makes you think about, and perhaps to
record it? Hope so! Happy reading.
~ttfn~
