So what did I do? What any self-respecting reader would who is in the middle of three books--started a new one! I chose Maureen Corrigan's Leave Me Alone, I'm Reading. Books about books and/or reading are like comfort food for my soul. They are what I turn to when I feel stressed and need to just let go. And Corrigan's book is doing a marvelous job. I never thought about the idea of comfort reading before, but I see a pattern of it throughout my reading life. Do you engage in comfort reading? And if so, what do you generally choose as a comfort book?
I'll tell you what: after reading Ulysses, pretty much anything will feel like comfort reading. ("Whoa. Whoa, I, like. Understood that sentence. And the one before it. Oh man, screw this, I'm gonna go play Tetris.") I've got some ideas for what's going to come next. I'll tell you for sure once I get there, but I think I can safely say that, as much as I might right now think I would love to make January 2006 the month I finally completely read Anna Karenina, re-read The Brothers Karamazov, grok Gravity's Rainbow, polish off Don Quixote, fight fire with fire with You Bright and Risen Angels, and shine a little light on Bleak House, I'll probably steer clear of doorstops for a while.
Though...there really is something comfortable about long novels, isn't there? Or is that one of those "dork" things dorks like me say? Yeah. If you need me, I'm gonna go build up some upper body strength...now, where did I put my copy of Infinite Jest, anyway...
2 comments:
For me, it's just the sense of accomplishment. Although, I remember finishing The Fountainhead and then for some stupid reason, diving immediately into Atlas Shrugged. I barely got a few chapters into it before I hit Rand overload. Never did pick it back up.
Yeah, I like the long ones, provided they're enjoyable. Maybe the best thing about them is that you know it's going to be awhile before you have to worry about finding something else? I'm about 1/3 of the way through "War and Peace" right now, and that's a nice cozy spot.
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