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ggherrera's review
4.0
At first, I thought Conroy's writing was a little too flowery and I would get lost init. This is my first Conroy book. Overall, I really loved it, though. I read it in two sittings and didn't want it to end. I feel like now I have to go and read his fiction, so hopefully that impresses like his non-fiction did.
toniclark's review
5.0
This is a gorgeous book. The only book by Conroy that I’ve read before is The Prince of Tides, and it was so long ago, I barely remember anything. (Yes, I’ll reread it!) My Reading Life is a glorious, heartfelt, and moving tribute to words, language, stories, readers, writers, poets, teachers, and books. It’s really something to be savored, read and reread.
Re-read in 2020 on audio.
Re-read in 2020 on audio.
jwoodsum's review against another edition
4.0
This book was so interesting. I love books about reading and folks reflecting on what specific books have meant to them. Pat Conroy has been a serious reader since childhood - aided and abetted by his mother who loved to read. Conroy has wonderful memories of reading books with his mother and debating characters with her as if they were real people. He devotes chapters to Gone with the Wind, Look Homeward, Angel, Deliverance and War and Peace. The chapter on War and Peace was so raptuos that I have determined to read it. I'm also thinking about the books that have been significant to me and my own reading life.
littletaiko's review
3.0
Sadly, I received My Reading Life as a Christmas gift in 2010 and am just now reading it. Strangely, most of the books I received as gifts that year haven't been read yet. Anyway, I digress...My Reading Life was a very personal and educational look at what inspired Pat Conroy throughout the years. I've never read any of his books but am sufficiently intrigued to pick one up some day. Actually, what this book did was make me really want to read War and Peace and see how it compares to his assessment.
pattydsf's review against another edition
4.0
I know that one of the reasons I enjoyed this book was listening to Pat Conroy read this book. I am not always fond of author's reading their own works. Just because you can write does not mean that you can read out loud. However, I believe that Conroy had good training - his mother read to him.
This was an enjoyable book, I found parts laugh out loud funny and I learned lots about Conroy's life, why he reads and why he writes. Conroy and I have differing opinions about some of his books, but for good or for bad, I found a few more books that I need to read or reread.
I also may have changed my mind about why Conroy writes the books he does. I always believed he is writing to deal with his father, but that is not what Conroy says. I don't want to spoil the book, so you will need to read this and see what you think. I would recommend that you listen. Not only do you get to hear Conroy's words from his own mouth, but there is a short interview at the end of the book on CD.
This was an enjoyable book, I found parts laugh out loud funny and I learned lots about Conroy's life, why he reads and why he writes. Conroy and I have differing opinions about some of his books, but for good or for bad, I found a few more books that I need to read or reread.
I also may have changed my mind about why Conroy writes the books he does. I always believed he is writing to deal with his father, but that is not what Conroy says. I don't want to spoil the book, so you will need to read this and see what you think. I would recommend that you listen. Not only do you get to hear Conroy's words from his own mouth, but there is a short interview at the end of the book on CD.
drlisak's review against another edition
4.0
A book that simultaneously overwhelms and inspires. Pat Conroy loves words, and sometimes this love of word leads to sentences so rich in imagery and sound that they become hard to follow. At the same time, his understanding of the power of books and works to heal, inspire, confront, challenge, question, and so on makes me feel like I have no hope as a writer while at the same time realizing that I also have no choice but to read and write.
greenvillemelissa's review against another edition
4.0
Book #67 Read in 2013
My Reading Life by Pat Conroy
This non-fiction book tells the tale of the importance of literature and books and reading in Conroy's life, first in his childhood and then as an adult who is becoming a writer. Conroy talks honestly about his abusive father, his mother who remained a mystery to him through adulthood and the connections he made over books and literature. It seemed as if reading truly saved him at times. Conroy details the books that he found especially meaningful; some are classics, some are not so mainstream, but all meant something to him. This is a book for book lovers and also for Conroy fans; his writing style of his fiction carries over to this book. I enjoyed it.
http://melissasbookpicks.blogspot.com
My Reading Life by Pat Conroy
This non-fiction book tells the tale of the importance of literature and books and reading in Conroy's life, first in his childhood and then as an adult who is becoming a writer. Conroy talks honestly about his abusive father, his mother who remained a mystery to him through adulthood and the connections he made over books and literature. It seemed as if reading truly saved him at times. Conroy details the books that he found especially meaningful; some are classics, some are not so mainstream, but all meant something to him. This is a book for book lovers and also for Conroy fans; his writing style of his fiction carries over to this book. I enjoyed it.
http://melissasbookpicks.blogspot.com