Category Archives: Reading

A Reading List a Mile Long: 15 Additions for September

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If I’m not reading, I’m adding books to my to-be-read list. That list is monstrously long–maybe not a mile, but getting there!

Here are some of my newest additions, courtesy of Bas Bleu, Daedalus, and Hamilton Book.

BAS BLEU:

  1. The Summer Before the War by Helen Simonson. (#UL6792) $28.00.
  2. Girl Waits With Gun by Amy Stewart. (#UL6072) $14.95. (Great title!)
  3. Lady Cop Makes Trouble by Amy Stewart. (#UL6202) $26.00. (Even greater title!)
  4. Cassandra at the Wedding by Dorothy Baker. (#UK5112) $7.48.
  5. The Queen of the Night by Alexander Chee. (#UL3972) $28.00.

Continue reading →

What Are You Reading in September?

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I am on something of a reading tear this month, and being on vacation this week means that I’m able to tie up some bookish odds and ends.

Since 1st September, I’ve finished:

  • The Pre-Raphaelites by Robert de la Sizeranne
  • A Place in the Country by W.G. Sebald
  • City of Style: Exploring Los Angeles Fashion from Bohemian to Rock by Melissa Magsaysay
  • Super Black: American Pop Culture and Black Superheroes by Adilifu Nama

I’m currently reading:

  • The Fellowship: The Literary Lives of the Inklings: J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Owen Barfield, Charles Williams by Philip Zaleski and Carol Zaleski

To be read by 30th September:

  • Heretics and Heroes: How Renaissance Artists and Reformation Priests Created Our World by Thomas Cahill
  • Kahlo by Gerry Souter
  • Your Movie Sucks by Roger Ebert
  • The Big Book of Bill Murray: A Critical Appreciation of the World’s Finest Actor by Robert Schnakenberg
  • My Paris Dream by Kate Betts
  • Nom de Plume: A (Secret) History of Pseudonyms by Carmela Ciuraru

Which book on your list do you most look forward to finishing?

Please share with me in the comments.

Happy reading!

Re-Reading Books

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“If one cannot enjoy reading a book over and over again, there is no use in reading it at all.”-Oscar Wilde

How do you feel about re-reading books? I firmly agree with Mr. Wilde. I’ve read most of the volumes in my large collection at least twice. There are a handful that are on a more-or-less yearly rotation.

Here are three that I cannot get enough of, no matter how much time I spend with them.

THE RAZOR’S EDGE BY W. SOMERSET MAUGHAM (1944)

My favourite Maugham book, and definitely the novel that I’ve read more than any other. It’s a part of my literary psyche.

“The fact that a great many people believe something it no guarantee of its truth.”-The Razor’s Edge

W. Somerset Maugham. Bain Collection.

W. Somerset Maugham. Bain Collection.

Read it if: You’re always chasing after the meaning of life. You won’t find it here, of course, but you’ll likely feel less alone on your Herculean quest.

A GLASTONBURY ROMANCE BY JOHN COWPER POWYS (1932)

A brilliant, magical masterwork that always has more to give to the dedicated reader.

“It is strange how few people make more than a casual cult of enjoying Nature. And yet the earth is actually and literally the mother of us all. One needs no strange spiritual faith to worship the earth.”-A Glastonbury Romance

John Cowper Powys, circa 1930

John Cowper Powys, circa 1930.

Read it if: You like looong books about the nature of the world and our place in it; mysticism; politics; and human relationships.

The Outermost House by Henry Beston (1928)

Anyone who reads this blog knows how I feel about The Outermost House. If you’re new, just type the title into the search bar. You’ll figure it out soon enough.

No other book is closer to my heart.

“Nature is a part of our humanity, and without some awareness and experience of that divine mystery man ceases to be man.”-The Outermost House

My copy of The Outermost House

My copy of The Outermost House

Read it if: You are enamored with the small mysteries of nature, and of humankind’s wee place in the universe.

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Now it’s your turn! Please head to the comments to share your top books to re-read!

[Book Nerd Links] Mann, Rhys, Joyce, Proust, and Plath

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