As the image and lame songish title suggest, I did in fact take the plunge and get myself an ereader — the nook from Barnes & Noble!
I got my nook a few weeks ago, actually, but was waiting to post until I had pictures and some stuff to say about it other than “Ohmigod it’s so cool!” I picked it up in a B&N store in Madison, which was cooler than ordering online and then waiting for it to come. The sales people were helpful, and as part of a month-long nook promotion, I got a $50 giftcard to B&N! I see ebooks in my future!
Musings
In order to celebrate my recent graduation, I decided buy myself an e-reader. But I’m stuck as to which one to get and need your help.
Right now I’m debating between the Kindle, the Nook, or a Sony E-Reader (I don’t know which one yet). I’m not getting an iPad because I can’t stand the glare from the screen for reading (that’s why I don’t read on my computer).
There are, I think, two schools of thought about summer reading. The first is that summer is a time for light, fluffy, beachy reads. Sunshine means pulling out your Patterson novels or Picoult melodramas, then laying back in the sun with a floppy hat and a margarita.
Other people think of summer as a time for reading projects — using time and vacation to really delve into something intense. That’s what I did last summer when I read Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace. I didn’t always love it, but I got done and felt proud of what I’d accomplished.
I don’t generally like reading books by the Nicholas Sparks of the world because I find them melodramatic and overwritten in a way that tugs at your emotions using clichéd and obvious methods. I’m not opposed to tugging on heart-strings (The Time Traveler’s Wife made me cry like a baby), I’m just opposed to it [...]
Life got in the way this weekend and I couldn’t participate in Dewey’s 24-Hour Read-a-Thon. My friend Amanda came to town to look for apartments next year, which took most of Saturday. Luckily, we did find a great place close to where I live now that has a nook area, wood floors, a decorative fireplace, and built in bookshelves. It’s awesome. I can’t wait to move in August and share pictures.
Last week was my Spring Break, but I didn’t really get much reading done because I was distracted and my brain was basically shut off. On Thursday Boyfriend and I took a mini-vacation to Chicago because, despite living in the Midwest, I’d never actually been to Chicago before (except for O’Hare Airport).
This weekend I’m heading home to celebrate my dad’s birthday. I don’t have a car in Madison right now, so I’ll be making the five-ish hour trip on the MegaBus. While I always intend to do work on the trip, I inevitably end up reading instead — who wouldn’t use an excuse for hours of uninterrupted time when you can’t be expected to do anything else?
I used to let people vote for one book I’d read each month, but had to stop at some point when reading obligations (book club, school, review copies) got to be too much. But since this is a special occasion, I get to bring the voting back!
One of my goals in the last two years has been to take good notes while I read. I’ve found having notes helps when I start to write reviews because I have ideas, quotes, and impressions jotted down already.
A few people have mentioned they can’t seem to take notes while they read, so I wanted to write a post with five easy tips on how to get in the habit.
My vacation, and hence my challenge to read 3000 pages in 30 days, ended on Monday. Sadly, I didn’t quite reach my goal — I only read 2308 pages between December 20 and January 18. Still, that’s nothing to be ashamed of and I did get to read some pretty fabulous books.
The books I finished included Mountains Beyond Mountains by Tracy Kidder, Traveling Mercies by Anne Lamott, Dracula is Dead by Sheilah Kast and Jim Rosapepe, The Bind Assassin by Margaret Atwood, Dream Girl and Dream Life by Lauren Mechling, and Memoir: A History by Ben Yagoda.
I’ve been really burned out on blog reading that last few weeks. Particularly over my Christmas vacation (which ended yesterday, boo), I felt overwhelmed every time I sat down tried to catch up. Does that ever happen to you?
