Menu

Friday, July 17, 2015

The Problem of Too Many Books

Most bookworms will have an immediate reaction to that post title. They'll say, "There's no such thing as too many books!" Well, I beg to differ. I have come to the conclusion that there is indeed such a thing, and it has very frustrating effects.


Warning: this is something of a rant.
You see, when I first started reading at bookworm-levels, I would start a series and read until there were no more books published in it. I'd only read a few series at a time since I'd read large Young Reader's series that published new books fairly quickly - none of these YA trilogies with a year and a half in between each book being published. So I wouldn't be reading a whole plethora of different story lines at once. It was very easy to keep track of and I could throw all my emotion into a single story at once. It was great.
. . . at once.
Then I grew out of the Young Readers' section in Barnes & Noble and moved into Young Adult, where long series seem to be an endangered species and it takes a year or more for each successive book to be published. It has become impossible to read through a single series in only one or two reading binges.
This is problematic. To compensate for the lack of lengthy series, I had to read more and more series at once. So now, I find myself in the middle of dozens of series of books, with some sequels out and waiting to be read, and others waiting to be published. In addition to that, there is a huge stack of stand alone novels and series-beginners I want to read, which will inevitably lead to even more books being added to my to-read pile as I decide I like an author or that first book in yet another trilogy.
AND NOW AFTER FIVE YEARS I FEEL LIKE I'M DROWNING IN MY TO-READ PILE.
Does anyone else relate?
Entering the blogging world didn't help, either, because now not only am I getting books to read from browsing bookshelves and Goodreads, I'm getting book reviews every week recommending this book or that book.
Oh, and Library, you aren't helping with your splotchy coverage of series, and World, your prices on paperbacks are thievery.
So, I have resolved that I will try my hardest once again to read all the published books in a series at once before moving on to another story line. Even if some books haven't been published yet, at least I won't have a cloud of "those-two-sequels-are-out-already-and-you-need-to-read-them"s around my head all the time. No. I'll just have a cloud of single books whizzing around which I have to find a way to get from my under-stocked library or buy dirt-cheep online or purchase full price using a precious Barnes & Noble gift card. Heheheh, the cloud of books will go away eventually, won't it? I'll just have one book at a time to read?
No?
Oh. A bookworm's curse, I suppose.
*faints*

4 comments:

  1. I have so many books on my 'To-read' list, it's crazy. Ah, 'tis the life of a bookworm. Btw, do you critique stories? Also, is that Danny Kaye at the bottom?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It depends on the story. Genre, length, and what stage of editing it is in. I don't like critiquing things if I know I don't like the genre or if I'm going to be distracted with minor mistakes in every sentence like poor grammar.
      I don't know who Danny Kaye is, but the gif I used at the bottom is from Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.
      Thanks for the comment!

      Delete
    2. It depends on the story. Genre, length, and what stage of editing it is in. I don't like critiquing things if I know I don't like the genre or if I'm going to be distracted with minor mistakes in every sentence like poor grammar.
      I don't know who Danny Kaye is, but the gif I used at the bottom is from Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.
      Thanks for the comment!

      Delete
    3. It depends on the story. Genre, length, and what stage of editing it is in. I don't like critiquing things if I know I don't like the genre or if I'm going to be distracted with minor mistakes in every sentence like poor grammar.
      I don't know who Danny Kaye is, but the gif I used at the bottom is from Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.
      Thanks for the comment!

      Delete