Some years ago, possibly before we left GA for NY, and when our good friends Brent and Joanne lived in Charleston, they got us hooked on a series of books. They mentioned the first book as a must-read - they read a chapter aloud to each other before bed, it was so entertaining. We hadn't heard of these books before - and it was about a year before the Big Buzz surrounding them really exploded. Joe and I purchased the first two and flew through them, in love with the characters from page one.
The third book was a bit bulkier, and Joe dove into it first. I lost a little momentum. With a new environment, new jobs, new hobbies - any excuse I could find, really - I didn't read for pleasure that much anymore. I continued to read the books, but very slowly.
The fourth and fifth installments were pure chores. Not because of the story, but because of so many other things I found to do instead. They were rather large books, so it's not as though I could lug them just anywhere - my knitting was much more portable and enjoyable to me. But I kept on - making sure I at least finished them before their movie versions hit the local screens.
One of my goals for this new year has been to finish the series, and I devoured the final two volumes during lunch and weekends of the last several months. I'm not a quick reader (for an English major and literature lover, I have remarkably average-ish reading comprehension...I can dissect a poem, but don't ask me details about a chapter I just read), and for me to set my knitting aside and just read was somewhat of an accomplishment.
As of 10:55pm last night, I finally finished the Harry Potter books.
And in doing so, I finally realized that I can carve out time for reading again. I look forward to my next adventure. Any recommendations?
Two people, four cats, and a house with a beautiful view.
About Us
- Betharoopie
- A writing, knitting accountant from the South now living in Idaho, with her woodworking, engineer husband and four cats (RIP Milo and Cosmo).
4 comments:
I, too, am a half-assed reader, but I have loved the Number 1 Ladies Detective Agency books. A joy to read for someone who has to work at reading (like me)!
Kristin
Yay! Welcome to The Club (of the HP Finishers)!
Currently I'm loving the Friday Next series by Jasper Fforde. The first book is called "The Eyre Affair" and it's super enjoyable. I was hooked by the 2nd chapter! :-D
One of my all-time favorite series is the Amber series by Roger Zelazny (my new dog is named after the main character in the first five books, Corwin). But don't read the second series, in which Corwin's son is the main character. Start with "Nine Princes in Amber" and go from there!
Terry Pratchett's Disworld series. Fun, humorous, smart. Not too long! Lots to choose from.
Congrats on finishing HP. I guess you didn't listen to the books on CD. So worth it. The reader (Jim Dale, who does the narrating for Pushing Daisies) is wonderful.
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