Okay, I’ve been tagged in a few different posts by my fellow book bloggers, and I’m ultra-excited about it. First up, the to-be-read tag. The TBR Tag was created by A Perfection Called Books and Dana Square. I was tagged by Leila of the (wonderfully named) LeilaReads.
Let’s explore that dreaded (or is it delightful?) to-be-read list…
How do you keep track of your TBR pile?
I add things to my shelf casually on Goodreads if they look interesting, but if I am dedicated to reading a book, I add it to my Amazon Wishlist, where I have separate categories (to-read fiction, to-read non-fiction, to-read health/healthing/brain books).
Is your TBR mostly print or eBook?
It’s odd, because I always add the Kindle version of the book to my list (cheaper, right?), but I often end up purchasing a printed copy if it is something I know I’m going to really enjoy. I love eBooks for the convenience of ARC’s, but I’d rather have a printed version of a book I really love, as I want to highlight and mark it up myself with actual pens and post-it’s.
A Book That’s Been on Your TBR List the Longest
Russian Lover and Other Stories by Jana Martin
I can’t remember where I got this recommendation from. It still sounds like a great read, but I’ve passed it over for other books for many years. I’m more inclined to read novels than short stories, and there are always so many tempting choices out there, it is impossible to consume them all. Thus the ever-growing tbr…
A Book You Recently Added to Your TBR List
The Supernatural Enhancements by Edgar Cantero
I’m in a post-textuality class right now, and we’re reading a lot of ergodic literature (with extraneous information in addition to the text or very unusual formats). I’m really enjoying it, as it reminds me of how obsessed I was with House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielwski when I was younger. A classmate saw The Supernatural Enhancements at Barnes & Noble, and mentioned it because of its formatting.
A Book in Your TBR Strictly Because of Its Cover
The Girl Who Was Saturday Night by Heather O’Neill
This is a great question–I do a lot of cover browsing. One of my favorite books of all time, The Gardens of Kyoto by Kate Walbert, I picked many years ago solely on its cover and I really lucked out there. Recently, I saw The Girl Who Was Saturday Night by Heather O’Neill when I stopped in at the library to grab something else, and with a cover like that, who could resist?
A Book on Your TBR That You Never Plan on Reading
Rats, Lice and History by Hans Zinsser
Ha! Sometimes I get really interested in a certain subject, and add books referenced in whatever I’m currently reading to my to-be-read list. I’m not sure where this came from, but I assume it was a book on viruses like Spillover by David Quammen. I should probably remove it, but you never know… I may really want to know about the epic “world scourge against which the author fought the good fight” one day!
An Unpublished Book on Your TBR That You’re Excited For
Bred to Kill by Frank Thilliez
Syndrome E was the best kind of scary, in that smart, bone-chilling way that horror films always aim for and fail to reach. Although its sequel, Bred to Kill, isn’t being released until January, I already can’t wait to try to read it at night with most of the lights out, and then get way too scared, and have to turn back all the lights back on to make the story a wee bit more tolerable. Yes, I already know Bred to Kill will be that terrifying.
Book On Your TBR That Basically Everyone’s Read But You
The Bone Clocks by David Mitchell
Yes, the new David Mitchell, The Bone Clocks, is rocking everyone’s world but my own right now. I just have way too much going on, but I’ll get there soon!
A Book on Your TBR That Everyone Recommends to You
Oliver Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout
Many friends (and the Pulitzer Prize Board) have all recommended Elizabeth Strout’s Oliver Kitteridge to me. I should probably make it a priority, now that I think about it.
A Book on Your TBR That You’re Dying To Read
Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel
The hype around Station Eleven has been pretty unreal. It sounds like such a creative approach to an apocalyptic novel. I can’t wait to get my hands on it!
How many books are on your GoodReads TBR shelf?
A very hopeful 610. Wow! I haven’t even been paying attention to that number. Time to get reading…
I now tag:
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4 Comments
We do have fabulous taste in blog names, don’t we?
Back to the topic at hand… I really enjoyed your post! Is it terrible that the hype about The Bone Clocks makes me not want to read it? Station Eleven looks interesting, though.
And I am super impressed (horrified?) with your gargantuan TBR list on GoodReads. Based on your typical number of books read per month, how long would it take you to finish all of them?
No it isn’t terrible–I think the hype surrounding books usually makes them disappointing to read, but there have been a few bad reviews and a few good reviews with The Bone Clocks, and David Mitchell sounds so smart/interesting. I want to check out more of his stuff.
I was also impressed and horrified alike with my list! I went through and tried to see what the deal was, and a few were doubles of different editions or ones I’m totally over, so now that beast of a number is down to 590. Oh dear! I’ve read 94 books thus far in 2014 and we’re in September, so I read about 10 a month? That list will take me 59 months, or just under 5 years. Yikes! Not to mention how many new books come out each week that I add to the list…
I think all TBR lists are essentially neverending. It’s just interesting to me to quantify it in some way. My list is always evolving. I remove books every couple of weeks if I can’t remember why I wanted to read it.
Definitely a fun exercise–I’ve never thought about going through and pruning my to-be-read, but I certainly will now!