by Sarah Statz Cords
So here we are at the end of 2009, and it’s a biggie; it also marks the end of a decade that never got named. (Does anyone know? Did the cultural powers that be ever decide upon the “Oughts,” the “Noughts,” or the “Noughties”?) So of course my mind turns toward resolutions for 2010. And I don’t mean resolutions that I don’t have a snowball’s chance in, well, you know, of keeping. None of that “lose weight,” “keep a cleaner house,” or “be a better person” stuff for me. The only resolutions I’m ever interested in making and keeping seem to center on reading. For example:
I resolve to subscribe to one literary or book-related magazine. Print culture is struggling and I, for one, am not ready to see it go.
I resolve to visit one book group meeting at my local library. I would like to learn more about how people talk about books and why, and help boost, even by one person, program attendance at the library.
I resolve to continue to be the aunt who will only give gifts of books to my nieces and nephews. Sure, they may be more into Webkinz now, but I’m not entirely sure where one buys Webkinz, and I’m not about to find out.
I resolve not to stop listening when people tell me to read books I don’t want to (like William Young’s The Shack and Greg Mortenson’s Three Cups of Tea), but instead to ask why they’re recommending them, and then read the books in question to see what I can learn.
So how about it? Are you ready for your new year of reading? What are your reading goals for 2010?
My resolution is to read one classic a month and one nonfiction a month. I’m sorely lacking in RA skills for nonfiction and there are so many classics I’ve always wanted to read!
About magazines: for a general popular one that will keep you on top of what many people are reading…and titles that would be great to suggest, I like Bookmarks. http://www.bookmarksmagazine.com/
For literary, how about The Believer and/or McSweeney’s from Dave Eggers? You can get them separately or as a combo subscription: http://store.mcsweeneys.net/index.cfm/fuseaction/about.home/about_us.cfm
And then there are all the great genre magazines like Locus for SF http://www.locusmag.com, Mystery Scene http://www.mysteryscenemag.com, Romantic Times http://www.romantictimes.com, or Historical Novels Review http://www.historicalnovelsociety.org/the-review.htm?
Dakota,
I love it! Great idea. And, you know I have to say this: don’t forget to include some nonfiction in the mix! Check back in sometime or let us know at raoblog@lu.com which genres you decide upon!
My resolution is to read one book from each major genre (romance, western, mystery, etc.) to get more of a feel for those genres. I haven’t yet decided each and every genre, but that’s the plan so far.
Christina, Betsy,
I always mean to keep better track of my reading, too–I salute you for adding that as a resolution. That’s another one I don’t think I can adopt, though, because the chance of failure is too high for me–I am simply too disorganized! I hope it goes well for you, though. No time like the present indeed!
Debbi,
Here, I’ll try my resolution: What did you really like about “Three Cups of Tea”?
Venta, Christina,
Well, regarding literary magazines, every year I think about subscribing to One Story; they publish one short story a month. I’ve also wondered about the Virginia Quarterly Review, which they enjoy over at Bookslut. I have subscribed to Orion, which is more of an environmental magazine, but has always featured a lot of nonfiction writers I like, and which doesn’t accept advertising. Does anyone else have any suggestions? There’s also the Kenyon Review and Glimmer Train and many others…
Links for lit mags mentioned:
http://www.one-story.com/
http://www.vqronline.org/
http://www.orionmagazine.org/
http://www.kenyonreview.org/
http://www.glimmertrain.com/
Oops! My bad. I read your post so fast, I thought you said you resolved not to stop listening when *young* people told you to read books you don’t want to. But Three Cups of Tea is still a great book!
Three Cups of Tea is a great book. And I’m not all that young.
I keep meaning to write my notes about books AS I read them (I say this with a pile beside me). No time like the present.
I like your resolutions. Have you decided which literary magazine you will subscribe to?
Last year I made a resolution to keep track of what I read in a year because a lot of times I look back and can’t remember all the good books I’ve read. This is especially useful for reader’s advisory or for library job interviews. I hate it when the interviewer asks and the only titles I remember are the big ones that everyone has read like The Kite Runner.
I successfully kept my resolution however I started out writing brief descriptions about each book and what I liked/disliked but it got to be so tiresome that by the last half of the year I was just writing down the titles and authors. I think I will continue that practice this year as well.
Hi, Sarah!
Any recommendations for resolution #1?
Di,
I’m going to steal your saying “no two people ever read the same book” as I try to keep that resolution in mind!
Venta,
That’s a great one. I skirt the issue by reading the last chapter of any book I’m disliking, and then I feel like I’ve gotten closure, without wasting the time! But yes. It’s okay to dump something you’re not liking, even without reading the last chapter.
I resolve not to get mad at myself for not finishing a book. It’s o.k. not to read something I’m not enjoying.
Looks like great resolutions to me. Your last one is one I should definitely adopt. I keep reminding myself “no two people ever read the same book” and I could learn a lot by not tuning out talk about books I didn’t like or thought I wouldn’t like and didn’t read.