Books of 2017

[brigdh]

I will eventually get around to posting a recap of all my 2016 reading, but first I wanted to post about my new project for 2017: Mount TBR. The idea is simply to get as many books off your TBR (to-be-read) list as possible, whether that means clearing out your Kindle's harddrive or getting physical books off your shelves.

While I do have plenty of ebooks stored that I've been meaning to get around to someday, my main problem is the physical books I've picked up on sudden impulses at second-hand bookstores or been given as gifts:



Yes, those are all unread books. Even the ones in the piles to side. Yes, the shelves are double-stacked. Clearly I've needed to start reducing their numbers for a while now.

I first heard of the Mount TBR challenge from just_ann_now; you can officially sign up on GoodReads or on the challenge starter's blog, and there are levels you can commit to – 12 books is Pike's Peak, 100 books is Mount Everest, etc. However, I think personally I'm going to be lazy and not join any particular group, but simply clear off as much of this bookcase as I can manage in twelve months.

We'll see if that doesn't just tempt me to acquire more.

Comments

[rhi]

Oh wow, I thought my pile was impressive! Right, aiming for Pike's Peak or bust and thank you!

[brigdh]

Good luck! I'm sure we'll both need it. ;)

[just-ann-now.livejournal.com]

*gigglesnort*

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

:D

Thanks again for introducing me to the concept!

[osprey-archer.livejournal.com]

Yes! 2017 is the year for some book mountaineering! I also am trying to get through some of my unread book stack this year. The unread Kindle books are probably a lost cause, though, now that I'm using Netgalley. They just pile up so fast!

Also, I can sell the physical books back to Half-Price books, and use the money to... let's be real, buy more books. But fewer books than I had in the first place!

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I've completely given up on unread ebooks for now. At least they're not overflowing a bookcase!

Also, I can sell the physical books back to Half-Price books, and use the money to... let's be real, buy more books. But fewer books than I had in the first place!
Hahaha, this is my plan exactly!

[dhampyresa.livejournal.com]

I JELLY

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

:D Thanks!

But having so many books already on my TBR list means it's very very difficult to immediately start on whatever new and exciting book I hear about today!

[sholio]

Can I ever relate to this. I did a book purge last year, or maybe the year before, and finally got rid of some books I'd literally been carting around with me since college -- through multiple cross-country moves -- in the expectation that I might someday read them. hahahaha NO, after 20 years I don't think it's happening. And I STILL have a large box of unread books that keeps getting deeper.

So yeah, this might be something I should try, too.

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

Ha, I can't quite commit to dumping anything unread yet, though some of these books are probably at least 10 years old. But if I didn't take on this project, it may soon reach that point!

[hamsterwoman]

That is a lot of books XD Good luck!

I'm particularly looking forward to your thoughts on American Gods, if/when you get tot hat one.

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

I've read American Gods before, and absolutely loved it! This copy is the new 'author's cut' edition that came out a few years ago on the 10th anniversary of publication, and I will be interested to see what the differences are. I'm definitely planning to reread it in the next few months, because I want the book to be fresh in my mind before the TV show starts.

[sovay]

This copy is the new 'author's cut' edition that came out a few years ago on the 10th anniversary of publication, and I will be interested to see what the differences are.

I'm also curious: I bounced off the novel when it came out, but I hadn't realized it had a revised edition.

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

I seem to have an odd relationship with Gaiman compared to most people: his books that I see most often named as his best – Stardust, Neverwhere, Coraline – I have lukewarm feelings about, whereas American Gods is by far my favorite of his novels.

(Though of course Sandman is forever going to be the best thing he's done.)

[sovay]

(Though of course Sandman is forever going to be the best thing he's done.)

Agreed.

I bounce off most of Gaiman's prose. Every now and then I like a short story of his, but the closest any of his novels has come is Anansi Boys and even that I don't think is genius, I just like it. I also like Stardust, but I have the edition with the Charles Vess illustrations.

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

I do think his prose tends to be better in his short stories than his novels. Maybe that's one reason I like American Gods; I don't know if you got far enough into it to see this, but it's full of short little vignettes set at various moments in American history or with different modern-day gods, most of which could function as independent short stories.

[sovay]

I don't know if you got far enough into it to see this, but it's full of short little vignettes set at various moments in American history or with different modern-day gods, most of which could function as independent short stories.

You are totally allowed to love American Gods! I read the entire novel: it just really didn't work for me (and at the time it came out I was surrounded by friends for whom it was their first encounter with the concept of gods in the modern world, which made them think it was brilliant and left me yelling DEATHBIRD STORIES AND THE ENTIRE MYTHIC FICTION MOVEMENT DAMMIT and generally did not help anything). The vignettes were the part that worked best.

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

Ah, yeah, I can see how that could be annoying. There's always something a bit irritating when a single example gets proclaimed as startlingly original, despite being part of a well-established genre.

[sovay]

Yes, those are all unread books. Even the ones in the piles to side.

I can totally vouch for the Dick Francis.

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

Ha, I just happened to read that one over the weekend! It was indeed excellent, even more than I expected.

[sovay]

Ha, I just happened to read that one over the weekend! It was indeed excellent, even more than I expected.

He's one of my mother's favorite mystery writers, so I grew up with his books in the house, but didn't notice until a couple of years ago that he was actually really good. I have since made up for that.

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

A couple of friends have been recommending him to me for years, but I've been very slow to listen to their advice. One of them even is directly responsible for my owning this book: we were at a bookstore together and she insisted I buy it. Which I now can finally see that she was completely right. :D

[ivy]

I really enjoyed "Everfair". Also, I just counted and I have 30 books in my TBR pile. (I keep them stacked on my desk to kinda shame me into better book behavior, heh. If the stack gets above the picture frame I have to read it down until it doesn't any more.)

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

Thanks! I'm particularly looking forward to that one.

Ha, yeah. This bookcase is the one I have next to my bed, because I thought having such close access to them at times when I'm feeling lazy might make me more likely to read them. ...it has not really worked, unfortunately.

[incandescent.livejournal.com]

I'm so relieved to see that you didn't read all those books yet. Because that would be terrifying, whereas my pile of books looks much the same. Crap, I really should so through those.

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

Haha, no, definitely not yet! I'm slowly making my way through one by one.

[incandescent.livejournal.com]

I just piled mine up. Not as bad as I'd feared, but still pretty bad. I just need to seat myself down and read them. *determined*

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

They do look so much when they're all together instead of spread out over a whole house! But I can do it – and so can you! :D