THE JAMES MASON COMMUNITY BOOK CLUB discussion

Gail wrote: "LOL. Yes perfect shelving space. (It would also require less cleaning if it was occupied with books!Therefore more time for reading. Yay.)"

I think we all must be alike.........stashing books all over the house. Don't forget the car.....I always keep one in the car for those times when I am waiting for someone....but never when driving, although I have a friend that does that. I can't believe he hasn't wrecked but I won't ride with him!!!!

Gail wrote: "Lai my house is like yours, I have books everywhere. I have books everywhere. Hmmmmmm that fridge space is starting to look good! :)"

LOL.Yeah, come to think of it, since my fridge is always empty anyway...:)

Kari wrote: "My house as well. Do not forget the oven. lol"

LOL. Speaking of the oven, i couldn't bring myself to literally throw books in the trash even if they really suck. So I just put them in a box and give them away to public libraries.

Jill wrote: "Gail wrote: "LOL. Yes perfect shelving space. (It would also require less cleaning if it was occupied with books!Therefore more time for reading. Yay.)"

I think we all must be alike.........stash..."

I have about 3-5 books in my car as well. I hope your friend shakes off that habit of reading while driving...

I usually read one book at a time. Sometimes though I'll take a little book with me if I'm going somewhere and just want to read for a few minutes, and leave the bigger book at home. But If a book is incredibly good, I can't put it down, and usually finish it in one day.

Kari wrote: "I cannot throw books out either. We often do a large buy and there will be some books that were well loved but are unsaleable. I always keep a big box of freebies outside the store for readers or..."
Kari......I found that when I listened to books on CD in the car, I was not paying attention to my driving.....I don't do it anymore unless I am a passenger.

I generally read one book and listen to another on audio. The two formats are different enough that I generally don't confuse the two, as long as they're different enough. (I recently read a mystery featuring a young boy & listened to one with the same type of main character, and had a heck of a time figuring out who was who & what was what! I was constantly confused.)

I was a refrigeration tech for 25 years, which meant I spent copious amounts of time in my service vehicle...and I loved audio books. First cassette books and later books on CD. Never wrecked...I did occasionally have to listen to segments over again however.

I tend to start multiple books, maybe a fiction, a nonfiction, or maybe one at home and one in the car as I'm waiting for someone. I will have as many as 4 or 5 started at once and then settle in and finish them one at a time.

I am so happy that I am not the only one who suffers from OWN TOO MANY BOOKS TO EVER READ IN ONE LIFTIME-ITIS
I just feel a sense of comfort know that whereever I look- there are books!

I know, I've said before I love being surrounded by books. Did I say that the place we moved is A LOT smaller than where we were? My book shelves are all 2 deep now...try finding a given book in that situation.

So, you can store books in the oven??? Maybe if I only actually use the microwave....

I always say I hope God allows me to live long enough to read all my books, probably not a fair request as I keep adding to them.

So selfish. Learn that trick Kari & pass it on to us. :)

I am lucky I live in a very large house. There are book shelves in every room. I love it. I have run out of room on those shelves of course, but it is nice to have them anyway. The previous owner was obviously as obsessed with books as I am.

A friend of mine says about book shelves..."if you build them they will come"...in my case they tend to come with no regard to whether I have shelf space or not. :)

Before I started reviewing, I was known to read up to three at a time and did very well with keeping the characters and plots where they belonged. However, because I am now reviewing others works, and working on my own stuff too, I read one at a time. It's not to say I still can't do that, but I get so caught up in plots and such that I forget to do my own writing. LOL.

I agree with that. My writing has been in/on "hiatus" for a couple of years (I was doing something that made writing almost impossible) and I'm just "re-starting". I find that I can't really work on for example an urban type fantasy while reading something radically different... The mind doesn't cooperate.

I usually read between three and five books at a time (sometimes even up to seven). I have one on my night stand that I read every evening (something like a fantasy, or anything else a little slower), one for in my bag for a quick read, and a few more that just lie around the house. I just can't seem to choose which book I want to read first, so I read them all at the same time.
Trying to cut it down though, this way it takes way too long to finish library books :)

I have to know what is OWN TOO MANY BOOKS TO EVER READ IN ONE LIFETIME-ITIS?, there is no such thing as too many books.

I'm a minimum of two books at a time, can be more depending on how many library books I have waiting to be read.

There may not be any such thing as too many books, but there is definitely such a thing as OWN TOO MANY BOOKS TO EVER READ IN ONE LIFETIME-ITIS. I am a perfect example. I am about to turn 77; I have more than 150 on my Kindle and probably as many if not more on my bookshelves. And I keep buying! I read about 80 - 90 a year, so unless I can stop buying, I doubt very much that I will live long enough to read then all. However, I still remember the words of one of my favorite columnists, now deceased, "I am rich! I own books I've never read."

Peg wrote: "There may not be any such thing as too many books, but there is definitely such a thing as OWN TOO MANY BOOKS TO EVER READ IN ONE LIFETIME-ITIS. I am a perfect example. I am about to turn 77; I h..."

Funny you should say that Peg, because whenever i have to fill out my Statement of Assets and Liabilities, i am always tempted to put on top of the list My Precious Books! :)

Mike wrote: "A friend of mine says about book shelves..."if you build them they will come"...in my case they tend to come with no regard to whether I have shelf space or not. :)"

How true, Mike. We turned our den into a library with floor to ceiling bookshelves.......guess what? I still have stacks and the shelves are doubled up. I am surrounded by books. It's like being with a group of old friends.......books are such good companions.

I agree Jill. Being surrounded by quiet thoughts, high adventure, philosophical advice, and so much more...

It is so nice to be surrounded by like minded people. In the real world I am considered a bit of an oddity because of me reading habits. :)

ditto to all the above
its so hard to explain to those not enamored of books why we love to have so many- as previously stated- they are wonderful companions - provide relief form everyday life and its trials - a good book, a dog and a cup of tea! the stuff dreams are made of!

Can I include my cat??? ;) C. S. Lewis once observed that he couldn't find a book long enough or a cup of tea large enough.

Mike wrote: "Can I include my cat??? ;) C. S. Lewis once observed that he couldn't find a book long enough or a cup of tea large enough."

yes on the cat!
love that quote!!!!

Love the quote, Mike and I'm with you on the cat.

I can so relate to that Mike. I have come across a number of people in goodreads who complain about the length of books.!???? As far as I am concerned the length is not important. If the book is good you just want it to keep going.

My cat is named bulldog so he covers both :)

My cup of tea is currently empty :(

I must confess, I tend a little more toward iced tea...American South you know.

Definately one fiction book at a time. If a story isn't captivating enough that it's the only world I want to be in than what's the point in wasting time on it?

Agree with all of the above, although I have stopped explaining to anybody why I love books so much. It's not just that people think you're weird because you read but also because you are not spending hours watching tv. As for people who complain that the book they are reading is to long did they not notice the size of the book when they picked it up.

I'm a one book at a time reader, because I can read kind of fast, I can get through two books a day etc and they're usually 200+ pages, so theres no need to read a couple of pages in one book, and then skip to another, and it might be my serious OCD coming into play, because once I open a book, I have to read it to the end lolz...I do however BUY more than one book at a time, only because of my reading habits, but I have yet to read more, I'm more of a writer than anything (not a professional one unfortunately lol).

Mike wrote: "I must confess, I tend a little more toward iced tea...American South you know."

Im with you on the iced tea, Mike. But lately i have taken to drinking hot green tea! Wish i can find Mdme. Ramotswe's bush tea here!

I've not found a green tea blend I like (avoid Lipton's green Tea at all costs)...but (another confession)I do like the chilled Green Tea Citrus beverage Lipton makes.

I always have several books going. Typically I have one sacrificial book that I won't be giving to anyone else to read, that I can read and stink up while I have a cigar. (This is usually a law book, since no one else around here would want to read those.) Then I generally have one going on my e-book reader, and another on my nightstand for reading before bed.

Did any of you green tea drinkers ever read Sheridan Le Fanu's story "Green Tea?" :-) (It's pure fiction, of course!)

Maybe I'm safe....so far the only Green tea I regularly drink is a commercial blend of tea and citrus?????

I'm aware of the story but haven't read it. I am now in a search through the library's collection for a book that contains it...

Some how this is a yes and no question for me. I usually have one ficton book/ebook that I read and I think of it as the book I'm reading. I won't start any other fiction until that one is done. I will however listen to an audiobook at the same time while working or doing chores.

Audio's are usually re-reads for me so I don't have to give it a lot of attention. If it is an audio I haven't read before, I find myself standing motionless in the hall, usually with a basket of laundry, so intralled in the book I've gone into a trance state... So in those cases I'm only 'reading' that one book.

And there is also non fiction or humor or self help books. I can usually have one of those going at the same time as a fiction or audio. However I can only read these when I'm in an 'in between' time.

And of course they don't have a volume with this story....

Mike, it's contained in the anthology Great Tales of Terror and the Supernatural, if that helps! There are no doubt a lot of other anthologies that have it; you can identify them by using The Short Story Index (if your library has it), and get one of them by interlibrary loan.

Werner wrote: "Mike, it's contained in the anthology Great Tales of Terror and the Supernatural, if that helps! There are no doubt a lot of other anthologies that have it; you can identify them by using The Shor..."

Green Tea is available online at http://ebooks.adelaide.edu.au/l/lefan...

Thank you, I have bookmarked the page and will try to get to it this afternoon.

Werner, I know. I found the titles of a couple of books the story was in...but the public library didn't have a collection with that story...actually that was probably predictable. I like some horror/weird writers so i did send for a collection of his work. I'm surprised I'd missed him. I may of course find that I've read some of his stories and just didn't remember the name.

Mike wrote: "I've not found a green tea blend I like (avoid Lipton's green Tea at all costs)...but (another confession)I do like the chilled Green Tea Citrus beverage Lipton makes."

Don't like Lipton's either. Im drinking Sencha Green Tea by Gold Leaf, not sure if you have it there. I can send over some boxes if you want. :D

Werner wrote: "Did any of you green tea drinkers ever read Sheridan Le Fanu's story "Green Tea?" :-) (It's pure fiction, of course!)"

No, i haven't come across the book, but now that you've mentioned it, i've added it up to my to-read list. Im also looking for the Book of Tea by Kakuzo Okakura.

Thank you Lai. I went on line and found it. I will look around Nashville for it, if it's not local I can order it.

from amazon
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How'd this topic veer off to tea? ;-)

I'll put it back on course. I read one book at a time, and I write one book at a time. Often, when I'm writing, I even have to stop reading, mystery books at least, since they interfere with my thinking about my own mystery. I'm a very serial person who seeks closure, so I read and write from start to finish and only go through one story at a time.

I am certainly a one book at a time reader. I truly want to savor what the book has to offer. On the bad side however, I do not stop reading a book I dislike because I always think it will get better. Sometimes you win and sometimes you lose!!!

Sawyer wrote: "I have a set of rules I follow - I set aside a historical fiction, a mystery, a classic, a non-fiction history, and a "giveaway", which is a romance from my regrettable 80's days. I can't just get..."

Perfectly stated Sawyer!!! I try to keep the 2-3 books I am reading at same time - from very difeerent genres- just look at the books I'm Reading in my profile. I have more books then I could readif I had 10 lifetimes- but there is just a nice feeling of having so many nearby

I'm the same way...which only highlights the humor of continuing to take books out of the library....

I buy (or acquire as gifts, or from BookMooch) more books than I probably should, and more than I'll probably get to read in my lifetime, at the rate that I read. Depending on my mood and reading commitments at the time, I both read from this inventory or check out books from the library where I work. But there's a big difference between the two groups: I only buy books I know the library doesn't have, or that are in genres it doesn't emphasize for the collection. If a book is on the library shelf, I figure that I have no need to own it personally.

I am a bit a an amalgamation (is that a word) between Werner and Mike- The thrillers I read are always taken out of the New Arrivals section book of the library- the classics- the 28 Terry Pratchett books I now own- as well as many recommended books from our Members (Edmund Crispin) I buy- same with the fantasy epics- and expecially the 19th Century classics- These I all buy- often from Amazon at used prices or at a local bookstore- hard to explain the mindset I have- but I read an authors work- and just know I want to own the rest -perfect example- George Mcdonald Nichols- bought the Flashman books as well as 4 others he wrote- havent read one yet- but really nice to look at them lined ip in my bookroom- just waiting to be picked up and transport me to ANYWHERE BUT HERE!!!