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ryandriyani's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
slow-paced
3.25
bookish_danielle's review against another edition
3.0
I don't think I would recommend the book unless you were interested in the author. The book is more about the author's life and subsequently the book she happened to read in a year. If you're wanting book recommendations, this is not really the place to find them. There are far better books that do this in an organized manner. But that is not to say that I didn't glean some interesting Concepts from the book about reading... Such as not finishing a book if you're not totally into it and expanding your horizons in book topics.
jsl's review against another edition
3.0
A fun, cute little book about one reader's goal to read a book a week. The writing was light and fun even when dealing with more serious subjects. I just sailed through this, and, like the book nerd I am, saw myself in this book more times than I care to count.
Towards the beginning of the book, there is a part where the author is having a really hard time figuring out what book to take on vacation and I had to laugh out loud and read this to my husband. My decision on what book to read next/what books to take on even a little weekend trip is a major point of discussion within our house, which floors my non-reader husband.
I loved looking at her book list and I felt like I needed a notebook beside me while reading this, just to write down all the recommendations!
I liked this for what it was, and was admittedly a little surprised that someone who reads so much and has a career in writing was just not that great of a book writer. Each chapter read more like an individual magazine article than a chapter in a book, but I realize that the author has a job in magazine editing, so that only makes sense. That is really the only fault with the book, although I can overlook it because the rest was so fun to read.
Towards the beginning of the book, there is a part where the author is having a really hard time figuring out what book to take on vacation and I had to laugh out loud and read this to my husband. My decision on what book to read next/what books to take on even a little weekend trip is a major point of discussion within our house, which floors my non-reader husband.
I loved looking at her book list and I felt like I needed a notebook beside me while reading this, just to write down all the recommendations!
I liked this for what it was, and was admittedly a little surprised that someone who reads so much and has a career in writing was just not that great of a book writer. Each chapter read more like an individual magazine article than a chapter in a book, but I realize that the author has a job in magazine editing, so that only makes sense. That is really the only fault with the book, although I can overlook it because the rest was so fun to read.
emkoshka's review against another edition
3.0
'...for every moment that was exhilarating, there was one that was frustrating. For every reading experience that was edifying, there was one that was elusive'.
My mother gave this to me many years ago and I remember reading half of it before putting it aside, bored with the content (I think I was up to the chapters on baseball) and irritated by the author. On a reading binge of my own this year, I picked it up again this month and managed to finish it, actually staying up late at night because I didn't know how to put it down! It confirmed my own belief that reading is an organic passion. We can impose all the order we want on it, with to-be-read lists, rigid reading schedules and gimmicky challenges, but what we actually end up reading always seems a little chaotic and yet perfectly appropriate.
While I made it to the end this time, the author still really irritated me: self-absorbed yuppie fashionista New Yorker. And the books she read and described didn't really appeal. But it was well written, perhaps a little too cleverly, reflecting Nelson's immersion in the publishing industry. She has a way with words, for sure, and I think that was what kept me reading to the end. A triumph of style over substance.
In the spirit of 'year of reading' memoirs, I've picked up a copy of Susan Hill's Howards End is on the Landing: A Year of Reading from Home and am looking forward to comparing it to Nelson's book. Methinks Hill and I will be a better match, but I had a little light and frothy fun with Nelson too.
My mother gave this to me many years ago and I remember reading half of it before putting it aside, bored with the content (I think I was up to the chapters on baseball) and irritated by the author. On a reading binge of my own this year, I picked it up again this month and managed to finish it, actually staying up late at night because I didn't know how to put it down! It confirmed my own belief that reading is an organic passion. We can impose all the order we want on it, with to-be-read lists, rigid reading schedules and gimmicky challenges, but what we actually end up reading always seems a little chaotic and yet perfectly appropriate.
While I made it to the end this time, the author still really irritated me: self-absorbed yuppie fashionista New Yorker. And the books she read and described didn't really appeal. But it was well written, perhaps a little too cleverly, reflecting Nelson's immersion in the publishing industry. She has a way with words, for sure, and I think that was what kept me reading to the end. A triumph of style over substance.
In the spirit of 'year of reading' memoirs, I've picked up a copy of Susan Hill's Howards End is on the Landing: A Year of Reading from Home and am looking forward to comparing it to Nelson's book. Methinks Hill and I will be a better match, but I had a little light and frothy fun with Nelson too.
cherylanntownsend's review
4.0
With a mission to read a book a week, which to many is no big feat, the author selects from her massive piles of ARC’s (she does book reviews) TBR piles and what’s new temptings. She does have a family and job that adds a bit of diversion to her goal, but fully intends to work around that.
A little background into her family, marriage, book selecting makes it less of a Goodreads profile page and more biographical, hence, more enjoyable. Selective trashing, tho not ruthlessly, of her DNF’s or DNevenS, give me solace. Then her raves, well, often give me pause. Goose and gander, I suppose.
I liked the chapter on Anna Karenina & Madame Bovary, where she likens her reading to adultery... sneaking off for relationships with her characters. I sometimes feel that way. These are MY friends, don’t interfere!
The chapters are short, referring to one or more book, relating to their relevance to that time in her life, her family, her work. Often, the very selection is based on such. (Ditto!) I could not read Rowling’s “The Casual Vacancy” given my husband just suffered a severe brain bleed and subsequent stroke. So, yes, the book choice echoes the mood.
It’s a fun read that allowed me to feel more normal in my reading habits. Tho I am not on a review payroll for any magazine, I do, nonetheless, get my share of ARC’s. I do still have a substantial stack of such from my years of having a bookstore. This was one such book. The haphazard method of selecting this week’s book is akin to what’s for dinner. Look in the fridge or cupboard and find something tasty. Next to my bed is a metaphor for exactly that.
So surprised to see so many books I had never heard of, but that’s just another plus to this book... several have been added to my TBR list.
A little background into her family, marriage, book selecting makes it less of a Goodreads profile page and more biographical, hence, more enjoyable. Selective trashing, tho not ruthlessly, of her DNF’s or DNevenS, give me solace. Then her raves, well, often give me pause. Goose and gander, I suppose.
I liked the chapter on Anna Karenina & Madame Bovary, where she likens her reading to adultery... sneaking off for relationships with her characters. I sometimes feel that way. These are MY friends, don’t interfere!
The chapters are short, referring to one or more book, relating to their relevance to that time in her life, her family, her work. Often, the very selection is based on such. (Ditto!) I could not read Rowling’s “The Casual Vacancy” given my husband just suffered a severe brain bleed and subsequent stroke. So, yes, the book choice echoes the mood.
It’s a fun read that allowed me to feel more normal in my reading habits. Tho I am not on a review payroll for any magazine, I do, nonetheless, get my share of ARC’s. I do still have a substantial stack of such from my years of having a bookstore. This was one such book. The haphazard method of selecting this week’s book is akin to what’s for dinner. Look in the fridge or cupboard and find something tasty. Next to my bed is a metaphor for exactly that.
So surprised to see so many books I had never heard of, but that’s just another plus to this book... several have been added to my TBR list.
cobwebs's review
3.0
This one was very enjoyable-- I had read nearly half of it in the library before realizing that I should probably save the rest for home. Though I didn't fully relate to her lifestyle, or her book preferences, the love of reading is universal and enough to keep me connected. I'm even considering a few books mentioned within that weren't high on my to-read list before.
jrabs's review against another edition
1.0
I enjoyed this right up to the halfway point. After that I found I couldn't relate in the slightest to Nelson and and as the pages went on began to dislike her quite a bit. For all the promise of the title, "So Many Books, So Little Time," it doesn't seem to me that Nelson particularly likes reading - shelves full of books be damned. Maybe she really is a passionate reader, but it's a shame that person never graced the pages of the book.
bookinginheels's review against another edition
1.0
Normally I love books about books and I'd heard this one was good, so I was quite disappointed to find that, well, it just wasn't.
The author really irritated me at times - she's snobby enough to read two books at a time so that she can always be 'seen' reading something intellectual while keeping her 'real' books at home and is willing to forgo friendships with people who have different book tastes.
I'm not even sure she actually likes reading - she thinks people who reread lack any intellectual capacity and constantly refers to reading as 'work.' I mean, yes, she reviews books for a living but she needs to take a 'reading break' from the exhaustion from reading a book a week.
She comes across as so snobby that she profoundly annoyed me enough to affect my opinion of the book.
The author really irritated me at times - she's snobby enough to read two books at a time so that she can always be 'seen' reading something intellectual while keeping her 'real' books at home and is willing to forgo friendships with people who have different book tastes.
I'm not even sure she actually likes reading - she thinks people who reread lack any intellectual capacity and constantly refers to reading as 'work.' I mean, yes, she reviews books for a living but she needs to take a 'reading break' from the exhaustion from reading a book a week.
She comes across as so snobby that she profoundly annoyed me enough to affect my opinion of the book.
bellbo's review
3.0
A book about reading. It was a good read with a lot of personal stories from the author. HOWEVER I wasn't interested in the majority of the books she was reading during her journey.