If I could read everything, I would be …

… learning about flying cars and space portals with Michio Kaku (The Physics of the Future).

… working on my cultural enlightenment with Jen Lancaster (My Fair Lazy).

… exploring an alternate history of the United States with Matt Ruff (The Mirage).

… discovering uncharted territory in New Guinea (complete with a previously undiscovered tribe of natives) with Mitchell Zuckhoff (Lost in Shangri-La).

… falling in love with my stove with Cathy Erway (The Art of Eating In).

… revisiting Jane Eyre with Margot Livesey (The Flight of Gemma Hardy).

… bemoaning the dark side of American politics with Alan Huffman and Michael Rejebian (We’re With Nobody).

… scheming to reclaim my stolen crown with George R.R. Martin (A Clash of Kings).

… fantasizing about Victorian poets with A.S. Baytt (Possession).

… and fighting against the growing Nazi threat in Berlin with Erik Larson (In the Garden of Beasts).

But I can’t read everything. So for now, I’m laughing out loud with Mindy Kaling (Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns)) and wishing that there were a million more hours in the day for reading.

If you could read everything, what would you be doing right now?

Photo Credit: Warron Bebster

If I Could Read Everything… is a post from: Sophisticated Dorkiness, © 2010.

You may have noticed that things have been quiet around the blog this week. I’ve been in a wicked reading and writing slump, and instead of trying to force the posts I was planning for this week I decided to just let things slide for a bit.

I blame at least part of the slumpiness to the fact that between the holidays, work, and volunteering, I haven’t spent a full day at my house in 25 days. Twenty-five days! How does that even happen? It’s insane. Let’s just say I am sooo looking forward to spending tomorrow in my pajamas.

I did manage get my act together long enough to write a post for Book Riot with a personal reaction to a fantastic essay by Jonathan Gourlay,  “In the Land of the Non-Reader,” published in The Bygone Bureau: A Journal of Modern Thought. Gourlay writes about his time not reading, and what his life was like treking through “the swamp of the non-reader.”

As a recent and unhappy inhabitant of that same mucky place, I think Gourlay’s essay found me at just the right time. It helped me think about the place reading has in my life as I try to get my life in order:

I keep thinking that if I just get some more sleep, maybe eat a little better, maybe take a day off from work, I’ll suddenly emerge triumphant from the haze, book in hand, and dive back into my life as a reader. But really, reading is not the activity that comes after the rest of my life is in order. It’s the thing that has to come first, the brain and spirit energizer that is going to help make the rest of those things possible.

I highly recommend taking the time to read Gourlay’s essay and bookmark it to pull out the next time you feel yourself lost in the swamp.

Photo Credit: RickyNJ via Flickr

My Life in the Swamp of the Non-Reader is a post from: Sophisticated Dorkiness, © 2010.

Is my poor memory with books related to the fact that I became, at times, a reading robot? Yes, it probably is. Books should be an accomplishment, and when you finish one, you should be proud of it; that’s why we have bookshelves. A book is a bound bundle of mental stimulation and transportation, and when you close it, if you’re reading a really good one, you should feel like you’re coming up for air, waking up from a really good dream. Anything that compromises the possibility of that feeling should be minimized, if not outright eradicated.

If you haven’t read Gabe Habash’s piece about the ups and downs of setting reading goals — “Reading 55 Books in 2011: What I Learned” from Publisher’s Weekly — then you absolutely should. It’s not very long, but offers quite a bit of food for thought.

I like the point the article makes not to be a “reading robot,” just picking up books for the numbers or the pages or to meet some arbitrary reading goal. That isn’t stopping me from setting some goals of my own — too be posted sometime next week — but it has helped me reconsider what role reading goals play in a reading life.

But most of all, I love what he says about books in the paragraph I quoted above. A good book is a transporting experience that immerses the reader in a totally different world. If there’s one thing I hope for every reader in 2012, it’s to have as many of those coming up for air moments as possible.

Photo Credit: Jenn and Tony Bot via Flickr

Don’t Become a Reading Robot is a post from: Sophisticated Dorkiness, © 2010.

I finally, finally, finally had a month of reading that feels more normal, more like me. I felt like I was really struggling with making time to read since I moved in August and it was starting to get me down a little bit.

But November was awesome. I finished 12 books — a number that’s practically unheard of unless it’s a Read-a-Thon month — and I thought thought all of them were pretty good:

1. Covering the Courts by S.A. Alexander (nonfiction)
2. The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton (fiction)
3. Sugar In My Bowl by Erica Jong (nonfiction)
4. Mercury by Hope Larson (fiction) (graphic novel)
5. My Year With Eleanor by Noelle Hanock (memoir)
6. Falling for Me by Anna David (memoir)
7. Learning to Breathe by Priscilla Warner (memoir)
8. The Big Short by Michael Lewis (narrative nonfiction)
9. Gluten-Free Girl by Shauna James Ahern (memoir)
10. The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides (fiction)
11. The Magicians by Lev Grossman (fiction)
12. The Magician King by Leg Grossman (fiction)

My favorite was, without a doubt, The Magician King, which even now makes me feel a little giddy when I think about it. I’ll try to have a coherent review up before the end of the year, but in a nutshell I thought Grossman fixed a lot of the problems that popped up in The Magicians and managed to write a more sophisticated and complicated book about fantasy in the real world. It was stellar and very hard to follow up.

I didn’t have a specific reading list for November, which was nice. It let me go on a stunt memoir reading binge and dive into some library books as soon as they arrived and read without guilt. I liked that. Since I don’t have any book obligations this month, I’m going to keep reading what I want until the end of the year.

My one goal for this month is to end the year caught up writing reviews. Right now I’m only four books behind, which is about as close as I’ve been since… last January? Fingers crossed I can get on track and start the year with a fresh slate.

What books are you excited to read before the end of the year? Any other end of the year goals?

Photo Credit: Rob Warde via Flickr

November Reading Wrap-Up and December Reading Plans is a post from: Sophisticated Dorkiness, © 2010.

If this post goes up as scheduled on Wednesday morning, the boyfriend and I will be starting the second leg of our Thanksgiving road trip to Wisconsin. We left home on Tuesday night and won’t be back until Sunday. The blog is going to be pretty quiet while I’m gone, but I did want to share the books I decided to bring with me.

• The Emperor of All Maladies by Siddhartha Mukherjee — This one has been on my shelf for a long time, but I can’t quite get started with it. I think I just need some sustained reading time to get into the book, which seems perfect for a car ride.
• Don’t Let’s Go to the Dogs Tonight: An African Childhood by Alexandra Fuller — This one wasn’t on my radar until a favorite podcast, NPR’s Pop Culture Happy Hour, mentioned it in a recent show about memoirs. It made me curious.
• Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood — I love Margaret Atwood, but I don’t read her very often because I feel like I have to ration her books out slowly… what will happen when there is no Atwood left? A road trip seems like a good time to bust some out.

I also checked out a few audio books from the library for Boyfriend and I to listen to. Picking out audio books for the two of us has always been hard because we have pretty different tastes in books. He usually likes things that have some sort of subversive element or that are really funny, and I’m more plot-oriented. I also never think to reserve books ahead of time, so selection is limited.

But anyway, here’s what I grabbed from the library this week:

• Sex on the Moon by Ben Mezrich — With a title like that, how could this book not be at least mildly entertaining?
  
• A Walk in the Woods by Bill Bryson — Boyfriend likes to hike, so I’m thinking that plus Bryson’s sense of humor might make this one a winner.
• The Uncoupling by Meg Wolitzer — I really want to read this one because I’m curious about the connection to the Greek play, but I think the plot will grab his attention too.
• The Corrections by Jonathan Franzen — This was a random grab. Anyone read/listened to this one that can give a verdict?

My Thanksgiving Road Trip Reads is a post from: Sophisticated Dorkiness, © 2010.

I had a request on Twitter today to share some more recent pictures of my darling cat, Hannah. I got Hannah almost two years ago from the Humane Society. She was stray, abandoned along with a few other young cats.

Honestly, I’m not sure how she got up there. Mysterious!

Hannah is my first real pet, so I’ve had a bit of a learning curve trying to figure out what she does that’s normal cat behavior and what’s part of her own persnickety personality.

A Saturday Post of Cat Photos is a post from: Sophisticated Dorkiness, © 2010.

There are many cool things about my new job as a community newspaper editor, but one unexpectedly sweet perk is that I have my own office. Not a cubicle or other Office Space-like desk divider system, a real, honest-to-goodness office that I get all to myself. It’s actually pretty ridiculous.

I’ve been so busy for the last couple of months that I haven’t had much time to think about decorating the place. I’ve started bringing in a few things for my desk and bulletin board — tea mugs for storing pens and, you know, drinking tea; photographs, postcards and a favorite xkcd comic — but the walls are still pretty bare.

The former editor put up nine black and white journalism-related pictures, but they don’t really inspire me much. I want art with more pops of color that reflect some of my passions better.

My current idea is to buy a series of vintage dictionary prints from some Etsy shops I found over the weekend. I love the mix of old words and beautiful color prints, and I think I can combine favorites from different shops into a relatively coherent looking photo collage. These are some of my current favorites:

Top row (left to right): Minnesota by StayGoldMedia; Elephant & Butterfly from nommon; Penguin Family by nommon. Bottom row (left to right): Keep Calm by woodendoll; Tulips by Vintagraphy; Pigs Can Fly with Love Balloons by VintageDictionaryArt

I really want some book-related art, which is why I figured I could turn to all of you for some advice. Do you have any favorite bookish pieces of art or places to shop that I could use? Any favorite Etsy shops I could mix and match from? Better ideas that vintage dictionary prints? I am totally open to suggestions!

Office Decorating, Bookish Style is a post from: Sophisticated Dorkiness, © 2010.

Truman Capote’s 1966 nonfiction novel In Cold Blood is considered controversial for a number of reasons, among them the pretty disturbing descriptions of violence and questions about Capote’s accurateness in writing the book. Although not one of the most widely challenged books, In Cold Blood is one of the top nonfiction books on the ALA’s list of banned or challenged classics – it’s at 53, right behind The Awakening by Kate Chopin.

To help celebrate Banned Books Week, I decided to participate in a virtual read-out, where people around the world can upload short videos with readings from challenged books. I hope the volume for the video is ok; on my computer it’s really, really quiet!

Interestingly enough, In Cold Blood is still a controversial book. Just this week, a school district in California is debating whether they should add the book to the school’s 11th grade AP English reading list. The book hasn’t been banned, but we won’t know until October whether it will be allowed. I’m curious to see how this plays out, and I’m glad the administrators involved are taking the time to read the book before making a decision.

If you haven’t read In Cold Blood, I definitely recommend it as a great, classic example of narrative nonfiction that is entirely creepy enough for an October read. In fact, I’ll be waxing nostalgic about the book as part of an upcoming guest post for Jenn’s (Jenn’s Bookshelves) “Murder, Monsters & Mayhem” celebration next month!

Banned Books Week Virtual Read-Out: ‘In Cold Blood’ is a post from: Sophisticated Dorkiness, © 2010.

I’m going ease back into blogging post-Labor Day with a little meme I’ve seen going around the last week or so. I think I most recently saw it with Melissa (The Betty and Book Chronicles), who says it originated with Pop Culture Nerd. Wherever it came from, this one was fun. Here’s my life as a book for 2011, so far.

One time at band/summer camp, I was: In the Sanctuary of Outcasts by Neil White

Weekends at my house are: Nothing to Envy by Barbara Demick

My neighbor is: In the Garden of Beasts by Eric Larson (I live next to a house of college football players!)

My boss is: The Help by Kathryn Stockett

My ex is: Train to Nowhere by Colleen Bradford Krantz

My superhero identity is: Moonwalking with Einstein by Joshua Foer

You wouldn’t like me when I’m angry because: Reality Bites Back by Jennifer L. Pozner

I’d win a gold medal in: The Imperfectionists by Tom Rachman

I’d pay good money for: The Broom of the System by David Foster Wallace

If I were president, I would: The Geeks Shall Inherit the Earth by Alexandra Robbins

When I don’t have good books, I [am] Lonely by Emily White

Loud talkers at the movies should be: Crossing the Heart of Africa by Julian Smith

Photo Credit: Horia Varlan via Flickr

My Life as a Book is a post from: Sophisticated Dorkiness, © 2010.

Has there been a breakout nonfiction book this year? You know, one of those titles that everyone is buzzing about, a nonfiction book that even literature lovers feel compelled to try because the word-of-mouth is just so good?

Last year we had The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot. That book had a great story — 10 years of research to tell an almost entirely unknown tale of medical ethics and scientific research. And on top of that, it was a great read that everyone seemed to be talking about. There were quite a few other pretty buzz-worthy titles (The Warmth of Other Suns, Unbroken, and The Emperor of All Maladies all come to mind), but The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks was probably the biggest nonfiction book of 2010.

But this year… I just can’t think of a title that has the same kind of buzz across different circles of readers.

There have been a few nonfiction titles I saw get a fair amount of buzz across various sites on the Interwebs. Cinderella Ate My Daughter by Peggy Orenstein comes to mind, as does Sugar in my Bowl by Erica Jong. Sex on the Moon by Ben Mezrich was also a big deal earlier this year. I also think The Grand Pursuit by Sylvia Nasar, a story about the birth of modern economics coming out this month, is going to be big, but I can’t be sure.

I’ve got popular nonfiction on my mind because today is the first day you can nominate titles for the 2011 Indie Lit Awards, book awards given by literary bloggers. As I’ve mentioned before, I’m the Director of the Nonfiction award, which means I deeply want to see some amazing books on the list. It’s a little selfish, actually — I have to read all the books when judging rolls around in January, so I want them to be awesome.

(If you want to start nominating already, the nonfiction form is available online here.)

Last year I had a pretty good idea of a few books that would end up on the nonfiction list, but this year I’m drawing a total blank. In a change from last year, each participant can nominate five books in every genre, which should expand the pool we draw from to develop the short list for each category. Also, anyone can nominate books, not just bloggers. Good changes, right?

Do you have any favorite nonfiction reads from this year? Have you heard buzz about any big nonfiction titles that totally fell under my radar? Any predictions about nonfiction titles that will make the “best of” lists at the end of the year?

Photo Credit: atomicity via Flickr

Has There Been a Breakout Nonfiction Title in 2011? is a post from: Sophisticated Dorkiness, © 2010.