It’s funny, you know. I cannot imagine reading a book a week on any kind of regular basis, and yet that’s pretty much exactly what I do. I mean, sure, if you separate paper books from audiobooks, I average a little under 8 days and a little over 10 days per book, respectively. But if you add them together, I finish a book roughly every 4.5 days.

Of course, this challenge isn’t for folks like me, for whom reading is already a major part of daily life. I could probably finish a book in a week if I only read one at a time. I suspect many of my readers are in a similar situation. But if you would like to read more, this is a good list of tips. (And it’s a pretty humorous post to boot.)

The 50 page rule, however, is not one I can stick to. That would mean never reading for less than an hour at a time (I’m a very slow reader), and that’s simply not possible. But I suppose it’s a reasonable goal to strive for if you have trouble finishing books.

©2010 utter randomonium. All Rights Reserved.

Daisy Yellow is an excellent blog about art and creativity, especially in terms of your daily life. I’m a fairly new follower but I have found it an invaluable resource for inspiration.

Every month she posts new creative experiments meant to challenge you in new ways. I’ve decided to participate in these for September. I will not be doing all of the challenges, but I think I can commit to these:

♥ Carry a notebook with you for a month, adding notes, scribblings, to-do’s, sketches, doodles, coffee stains and whatever you wish. — This isn’t too different from what I normally do, but I’ll try to be more mindful of actually taking the notebook with me when I go out.

♥ One day this month, write a thoughtful description of 5 sounds that you encounter. — I am fascinated by this idea.

♥ Create an itunes playlist or mix CD with 15 songs that make you feel just right. — This will be the most difficult, as I don’t listen to much music these days.

♥ Read four (4) books this month, fiction or non-fiction. — Not a problem.

I think it’ll be fun. Now to go find a notebook…

©2010 utter randomonium. All Rights Reserved.

Ishmael by Daniel Quinn: I picked this up because a friend highly recommended it, saying it was one of her favorite books of all time. Basically, the narrator comes across a classified ad in the newspaper advertising a teacher in search of a student with an interest in saving the world. The narrator, who was too young to join the hippie movement but was nonetheless enchanted by their ideals, looks up this teacher out of curiosity. From then on the book is almost entirely their sessions together, learning about the mythology of the “Taker” and “Leaver” cultures, respectively, and how to “save the world”. I alternated between interest in the story and exasperation at the preaching. The ending was too predictable and too convenient, but I’m not sure how else it could have ended. As for the philosophy, well, it certainly wasn’t a life-changing experience for me. I was left with too many questions. Living in harmony with the planet is certainly a worthy endeavor, but never are issues addressed like, for example, travel. Transportation requires a disruption of the natural order: trees and animal habitats must be swept away to lay roads, runways, and rails. Sure, it’s easier to adapt to your surroundings if you never go anywhere, but such isolation also sows xenophobia and superstition. This is not to say we shouldn’t strive to coexist peacefully with the rest of nature, or that it is our right and duty to reshape the world to suit our purposes. Not at all. I just felt that the arguments presented here were incomplete. They also propose that we who have plenty should not aid those suffering from famine and drought. I understand the idea behind it – it will just lead to overpopulation and more famine in the future – but I am not comfortable with the lack of compassion.

All that said, I must give this book high marks for giving me quite a lot to think about. Its insufficient arguments and somewhat ham-fisted narrative style aside, it made me ponder things I’d never even considered in the past. It instilled in me a desire to research the ideas presented in order to form my own opinions on subjects I never knew were up for debate. I certainly recommend it to anyone in search of a thought-provoking read.

Also posted on BookCrossing.

©2010 utter randomonium. All Rights Reserved.

To celebrate the release of Lane Smith’s new book, It’s a Book, Macmillan Publishers are celebrating the first annual Unplug Day tomorrow. The tag line is, “unplug. unwind. recharge. read a book!”

I prefer to read print books and do not own an ebook reader, but I still won’t be participating in this. It’s on a Tuesday. I can’t go computer-free on a workday. (But I may spend the evening reading. That could be nice…)

Click for larger version

Hat tip to Book Patrol.

©2010 utter randomonium. All Rights Reserved.

Tomorrow is the very first Read Comics in Public Day. It’s simple: read a comic in public, have somebody take your picture, and then email the photo to them.

I will definitely be participating, if only because I’ll be at Baltimore Comic Con. (Incidentally, I’ll be at table A191 in the Artists Alley with BS/OD.) What about you? Will you be reading comics in public?

Hat tip to Comics Alliance.

©2010 utter randomonium. All Rights Reserved.

Holes by Louis Sachar: Stanley Yelnats is wrongfully convicted of shoe theft and sent to a juvenile detention camp to dig holes in a dry lake bed. Little does he realize, but he is about to be caught up on intertwining stories spanning several generations of his family and friends. Though I figured out how it would end early on, I still had lots of fun getting there. I loved how neatly everything tied together and how realistic most of the characters were, despite their rather silly names, like Armpit and Mr. Sir. I’m not surprised this won so many awards – it does a good job of storytelling without unnecessary conflict or controversy. Thumbs up.

Also posted on BookCrossing.

©2010 utter randomonium. All Rights Reserved.

Comet in Moominland by Tove Jansson: I love Moomins. Let me say that up front. They’re sweet and adorable and funny. In this tale, a comet is speeding toward the earth, so Moomintroll and Sniff have to journey to the observatory in the mountains to find out what can be done about it. Along the way they make many friends, and though there is a chronological order to these stories, you don’t need to read them in order. If something’s not explained, it’s probably not important (or purposely mysterious, like the Hattifatteners). The illustrations are darling and I enjoyed every moment of the journey. I love how all the Moomins are so accepting of everyone, no matter how bizarre or unfriendly. One day I hope to read the original comics, but for now I’m plenty happy with the books.

Also posted on BookCrossing.

©2010 utter randomonium. All Rights Reserved.

Number the Stars by Lois Lowry: It’s interesting how many novels about the Nazis are written from the point of view of a child. This is no exception: Annemarie is a 10-year-old girl living in 1943 Copenhagen, which Germany invaded years before. Her best friend Ellen is a Jew, and one day her parents flee to avoid “relocation.” Annemarie’s parents take in Ellen and have her pose as their daughter. There’s quite a bit of tension every time the Nazis show up; I doubt I could have been that calm in the face of such danger at that age. Don’t skip the afterword, which explains what parts of the book were based in fact; a surprising amount of details and twists turn out not to be just clever literary devices. It’s a good glimpse of history, and unlike most books written about this time period, I didn’t cry even once. Which was a nice change.

Also posted on BookCrossing.

©2010 utter randomonium. All Rights Reserved.

Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt: Winnie Foster meets the Tucks, a family accidentally made immortal by a strange spring in the forest. I’m always interested in stories about immortality. Many of the common motifs involve the ability to be killed (Highlander, vampires) or stipulate that the immortality is only as long as the individual is rejuvenated with some sort of elixir of life. Here, the Tucks not only don’t age or get sick, they cannot be killed. Drinking from the spring is completely irreversible, and they will be around until the end of time. Which is a pretty scary prospect, if you think about it, and the dilemma is handled well here. The ending is bittersweet and satisfying. Now I want to go find a toad of my own.

Also posted on BookCrossing.

©2010 utter randomonium. All Rights Reserved.

If you’re headed to Baltimore Comic Con next weekend (August 28-29), stop by the Binary Souls / Other Dimensions table in the artist alley. I’ll be there all weekend. If you ask nicely, I’ll even draw something for you.

©2010 utter randomonium. All Rights Reserved.