The Hot Iron

Sunday, December 30, 2007

Reading Mission Accomplished

At the beginning of this year I made a pledge – a resolution if you will – to read 12 books.  I did this for several reasons – I have never been much of a reader, I had books on my bookshelf I bought but never read, seeing my wife reading books all the time… you get the picture.  As 2007 closes, I am pleased to say I met my goal.

I decided to tie these books into my newly-launched blog, and would write something on each one as I read it.  Some of the books had been in print for many years, so writing a review would be no good, plus there are book reviews elsewhere.  Instead I decided to personalize my responses by writing what I took away from each book.  I would conclude my takeaways with whether or not I recommend the book for others to read, as I felt there would be a chance I didn’t like the book.

As I read each book, what would I do with them?  My bookshelf was runneth over with books, documentation and of course sports memorabilia.  As I was now a book reader, more shelf space was required.  So rather than have these books become like trophies on the mantelpiece, I decided to give them away.  Once I finished a book and wrote my takeaways, it was promptly sent off to someone who I felt it appropriate to them.  Sometimes this was via my wife who became interested in my newfound passion, but they have all left my office and are in the hands of others.

It would not be appropriate to sum up a year’s effort without stats.  Of the 12 books I read, only 5 were in my possession at the beginning of the year.  One book was given to me by the author, a friend, and another was given to me by the city of Chicago (along with several thousand others I presume).  Two books I heard about from articles I read, and one was mentioned in several of the other books I read.  One book I read via email messages from the DailyLit service, and 1 was book was authored by someone with the same name as me.

You can read all of the book takeaways and supporting posts under the “Book Take-Aways” category, always available on the sidebar of The Hot Iron.  Now onto writing my 12th takeaway post, then starting my first book for 2008!