making space for books

I do not tend to think of my blog slowdown (posting has neared a standstill at points over the last year!)(you may have noticed. or not.) as a positive thing. There are good books I've missed, even better conversations skipped entirely, and potential new internet friendships ignored. However, there is a silver lining to the quiet (probably several, really): I now sit with books. I make space to contemplate them – sometimes unconsciously. I still read them at the same speed as ever, and after I finish I continue to jot down notes and reflections to help recall later what I liked and didn't like.

But then I wait. I let my heart stop hammering and my tears dry.  I turn those thoughts over and over. Sometimes I change my mind entirely. Sometimes when I get down to finally writing and posting the review I focus on a theme or outside concern that doesn't bear any relation to the direction my notes took in the first place. I think it’s a wonderful change. My reviews end up more thoughtful, or at least more representative of the reading experience I had and the way I'll remember the book down the road. 

Anecdotal evidence suggests that these long-mulled reviews end up being more positive than the ones I used to finish one night and post the next day.  And I don’t mean positive as in “I love every book I read now!”  I mean it in the sense that I am more enthusiastic about the books I’ve read, and who they might be perfect for.  I bring up books in conversation more often, even if they were not my cup of tea.  I’m sharing them more readily, too (both recommendations and physical copies).

I take this rekindled enthusiasm as a promising sign for both my reading and my blog.  I needed the “blog break” over the past year, though I lamented (and was ashamed of) it at the time.  But these days I’m excited to read, and consider my reading, in a slightly different way.  It’s a good thing.

I’m curious: How long do you consider a review and/or how long does it take you to write a review?

#diversiverse (in which i challenge myself to read diversely)

I’m sure my fellow bloggers will agree that one of the most wonderful things about blogging about books is that you discover new worlds and authors every day.  But even if you’re immersed in the world of books, it’s easy to continue with blinders on.  Whenever I catch myself thinking that I read widely, I give myself a thorough shake.  I don’t.  I try (sometimes), but mostly I stick to familiar categories, authors, and suggestions by a few select reading friends.   That’s why I was so glad to see that Aarti at Book Lust is hosting A More Diverse Universe (#diversiverse for short) challenge for the last two weeks in September.

So what’s all this about then?  The challenge:

• Read and review one book

• Written by a person of color

• During the last two weeks of September (September 14th - 27th)

It’s so simple.  It’s simple, unless you (like me) don’t pay much attention to authors while reading unless they’re FAMOUS (imagine that all in lights!).  And I should be paying attention to the authors I’m reading, because, to quote Aarti, “[T]he media we consume does not accurately reflect the diversity of our society.  And books are such a massive part of the media we consume that we should demand and fight for those that do represent minorities and those that do present the world from a different perspective than the one we are used to.”  Basically, I know I should be doing better, I should be finding new voices and broadening my horizons, and this is my chance to begin.  I’m also excited (as always) to find that new story or character that will change my life.

If you’d like to sign up to join the fun, check out this post.  And if you’re interested in resources for reading more diversely (i.e. how do I find the books?!), Aarti has covered that too.  Keep an eye out here from September 14-27 – I’ll post a couple of reviews (and maybe even a giveaway).

do you review every book you read?

I had a number of interesting conversations last week with fellow bloggers at the BEA Bloggers Conference and Book Expo America. One of the topics we covered popped into my head again while I was at work today. I thought I'd pose it to you (my readers who are also bloggers): What percentage of books read do you review?

Since I couldn't open a Word document and write a post then and there, I took to social media.  I got a lot of interesting responses, varying from right around where I am to 100%, but it seemed as though most of the replies were grouped toward the high end. Please feel free to share your own estimate in the comments! I'd love to know if it's abnormally skewed due to the active twitter audience on a given Tuesday morning (or any other plausible factor!).

Now for the confessional portion of this post. The reason my percentage is so low? Is because around half of the books I read are romance novels.  And I generally do not review or record them in any way (you won't see them populating my Goodreads shelves, for instance). There's always the off chance that my mother or grandmother will read my blog, after all!

Lest you think I am *afraid* of my family knowing I read romance, I'm not. Well, not much. It is more that I have little desire to have a conversation about the romances I read, and especially not 'in public.' That is not the case at all with middle grade and young adult literature. When I read a fantastic YA book, I want to shout it from the rooftops. So, if we redefine the original question, I'd say I review about 90% of the young adult and middle grade lit I read.

The rest of my reading pie is taken up with slices of adult fiction and adult science fiction and fantasy.

So, please do tell: what does your read-to-reviewed ratio look like?

p.s. In case you also read romance and haven't discovered them, two romance-reviewing blogs I trust implicitly are Smart Bitches, Trashy Books, and Dear Author. They do a much better job of recommending romance than I ever could/would.