Monday 20 August 2007

Meanderings

When it comes to books I don't tend to be a quitter. I plod on to the bitter end even when the book is a real turkey. But I've started to think this is stupid. Life's too short to spend precious reading time on something that's not worth my attention or maybe is but just doesn't suit my mood at the time.

So I've turned over a new leaf (groan). I've been struggling with a book called Captain Hatteras by Jules Verne for four days now. I grabbed it from the library when I saw it was both nautical and about the arctic - both of those things being right up my street. Also I'd never heard of this particular book by Verne but had enjoyed others by him... admittedly many years ago. Anyway, it took me four days to read eighty pages and yesterday I finally conceded defeat and abandoned the thing. I've no idea what the problem was but it was boring me stupid. I think I was hoping it would be along the lines of Redburn by Herman Melville which I read a couple of months ago and thoroughly enjoyed. It wasn't. Not even remotely. I suppose if I like Herman Melville I should read Herman Melville... and not Jules Verne! And I also need to learn that it's okay to stop reading a book if it's not engaging my interest - as Oscar Wilde said, 'Life's too short to stuff a mushroom'.

So then it was time to choose something else to read. I'm so bad at this. The reason being that I buy so many books and thus my tbr pile is massive. I also use the town library on a regular basis so nearly always have 6 to 8 library books to choose from. And I'm nothing if not indecisive... choosing my next read causes me agony. Again the problem is with me in that I enjoy too many genres and am never quite sure which I'm in the mood for... fantasy, travel, cosy crime, historical, a Persephone, an autobiography; life would be so much simpler if I just read crime books or romances!

Anyway, to cut a long story long I chose in the end. I'm eighty pages into this one in one day and it's utterly brilliant. It's Mistress of the Art of Death by Ariana Franklin... a favourite author of mine under her other writing name of Diana Norman. She usually writes historicals and this too is an historical but also a crime story - set in 12th. century Cambridge. There are shades of Ellis Peters' Cadfael and the feel of C.J. Sansom's Shardlake novels and the writing is, as always from this author, fabulous. I love it already and am looking forward to a really good wallow while my husband is away this week.

5 comments:

Tara said...

I *so* know what you are speaking of in your first paragraph. In the last few years, and particularly since I became a Mother, I have come to realize there are simply too many good books to be read to waste time on one I'm not enjoying. That's the point isn't it - to enjoy it?? Obviously, there are things to be learned as well, but I figure, nothing to be learned from an uninteresting book.

Robin said...

I have a hard time choosing my next read, too. Too many choices! The one you finally settled on sounds really good. I haven't read any Ariana Franklin, but this one sounds like a book I'd enjoy. I'll add it to the list!

Cath said...

Tara: I think I'm almost embarrassed to admit defeat with a book - like I haven't tried hard enough or something. Which is really silly because, as you pointed out, the idea of reading is to enjoy the book, not plod through something you hate just to prove you have sticking power.

Robin: I think it would be good if someone could discover a way to read more than one book simultaneously, that would solve a lot of problems like choosing what to read next. I'm pretty sure that Mistress of the Art of Death will be one of my best reads of 2007. Will post more about it when I've finished it.

StuckInABook said...

I'm still rigidly like your unreformed self! I will always get to the end of a book - the only reason I wouldn't if it was scaring or disgusting me. Perhaps it's because I've only just stopped being a student, and haven't felt pressure on my reading time much yet - but I'd like to think it's because of a sort of contract between me and the writer. They've put so much effort into writing the thing, I feel I should at least try to finish it. BUT I daresay my opinions on the matter will change...

Cath said...

Simon, I understand you completely - it's the way I've always felt until recently. I think it's because I'm in my fifties and people all around me have started to pass away. I know this will sound morbid but I'm worried I won't live long enough to read everything I want to read. Luckily, I am able to see the funny side of this rather bizarre worry...