I'm All Read Out

I fear I am in a literary slump. Currently I have several books on the go: Young Stalin by Simon Sebag Montefiore, I'm Not the New Me by Wendy McClure, The Tales of Beedle the Bard by oh, you know, and Don Quixote.

Two nights ago, tired of all of these books, I picked up Gina Showalter's The Darkest Night, the first in a trilogy of ancient Greek warriors cursed with the personified demons of Death, Violence, Pain, Lust, and I can't remember the last one, but I'm sure it's a doozy.

Yeah, I know.

Sometimes you just need fluff, though. I have been pushing myself so hard to read so many diverse things, that I just snapped. I haven't touched a library book in days, and I haven't so much as sniffed at the challenge list that I created for myself in December, apart from the half-hearted attempt at Montefiore's tome.

I don't know what it is, but I'm kinda read out.

Do you ever get that way? Do you ever push yourself so hard to read so much that you need to step back for a minute and rest your eyes? I do. Perhaps that's why I read so many books at once; I need to have a variety of books in order to match the mood I am in.

I don't apologize for liking fluff. And no one should have to. Genre fiction, trashy books, whatever you call it—sometimes they are the best remedy you can ask for.

I expect I'll get my mojo back soon enough. It's not like I've stopped reading entirely. The Darkest Night is half through already and The Darkest Kiss is waiting on my shelf, next in line!

Photo source: tabrandt

Canadian Readers, Where You At?

Well, you aren't reading my blog, that's for sure. Chances are, you aren't reading much of anything. A recent poll commissioned by Canada Heritage of 1,502 people over the age of 15 revealed Canadians read an average of 17 books a year. 12 percent don't read at all.

I know none of this is surprising. Anyone with a television can tell you that reading is a dying hobby, if he bothered to turn away from the warm glow long enough to do so.

What’s surprising is that fifty percent of the people polled couldn’t name a single Canadian author. At all. Not even Margaret Atwood or Mordechai Richler.

I realize if you poll Canadian readers you'll have much better luck, but this is just shameful. I love CanLit, and there is a lot of it to choose from. You'd be hard pressed to find a genre that Canadians haven't written in. That's what makes CanLit (indeed, Canadian culture even) so inclusive—because we live in such a large country that includes so many different cultures, the nature of CanLit changes with its location. CanLit from B.C. is different from CanLit from Ontario, or Nova Scotia, or Quebec.

Despite this dismal poll, I think Canada has a really healthy reader culture. For instance, we have plenty of well-respected awards like the Giller and the GG's that help promote CanLit at home and abroad.

Plus, the CBC (another wonderful Canadian institution) holds a debate each year called Canada Reads. I started following Canada Reads a couple of years ago. Five books are chosen by five Canadian celebrity panelists, who are then asked to defend their choice. The week-long radio series airs on the CBC this year March 2 to 6, if you're interested.

This year one of my favourite artists, Sarah Slean, is a panelist. Previous panelists include Jim Cuddy (lead singer of Blue Rodeo), Scott Thompson (Kids in the Hall alumnus), Olivia Chow (Liberal MP), and Justin Trudeau (sexiest member of Parliament and son of late Pierre Trudeau, Prime Minister of Canada).

Canada Reads is sort of the ultimate in CanLit selection, in my opinion. It's chosen by well-known Canadians, and presented by the CBC, the Canadian media. I don't always get to read every book on the list in time for the debates, and indeed, sometimes I just don't have an interest in the book, but it's always interesting and engaging.

Despite what the Calgary Herald thinks, CanLit certainly is not dead. The fact of the matter is, people just don't read any more. That doesn't mean that Canadian authors will stop writing, though. And as long as they keep writing, I'll keep reading.


Source: Calgary Herald by way of Book Ninja
Photograph by low.

On the Eve of 2009

Happy New Year's Eve, everyone! Hope your celebrations go well, and all that jazz.

I've thought about making some bookish new year's resolutions, but I can't really think of anything other than to read more. I have joined three challenges, all meant to get me to read more, and I think I will; even if I don't read all of the books on my lists, at least I will try. I don't think the point of new year's resolutions is to reach them all; it's an occasion to set yourself new goals for the year, or remember the goals you set for yourself last year, and think about your accomplishments from the previous year. Once you pick yourself up off the floor from New Year's Eve, that is...

Maybe that's why New Year's Day is such a perfect day for reflection? If you've done the night before proud, you're lying in bed anyway. So once you've slept off that hangover, you've watched enough movies to make you go blind, you can start thinking about the year ahead. What's in store for you? What are you planning on doing? Who was that guy from the night before?

On a related note, I had a most extraordinary day yesterday. I had a haircut appointment at 6:00 o'clock that evening. Having arrived about an hour early (why drive all the way home and then go back downtown, right?), I went to the Toronto Reference Library intent on grabbing a book and reading for the forty-five minutes, instead of window-shopping. Yorkville is lovely, and there are many wonderful shops (I'm looking at you, The Cookbook Store), but it's like taunting a starving dog with a big marrow bone—just plain cruel.

I didn't miss the window-shopping at all. The Toronto Reference Library has an extensive graphic novel collection. I was in heaven. I picked out Jimmy Corrigan: The Smartest Kid on Earth (book 1 in my challenge reading list!) and found a table (with a cute guy already there, no less...reading's great; reading in the presence of a hottie is even better, though).

I didn't get to finish my book. Wasn't even a quarter of the way into it when I had to go, but I knew I would be back. So perhaps this is a new year's resolution? Or maybe just a plan: I'm going to go back to the library on a weekend in January, and I'm going to spend the whole day there reading. My favourite Mexican restaurant is across the street as well. I'm considering splurging and having lunch there or perhaps capping the day off with dinner with a friend there.

If nothing else (other than reading more), I plan on doing that more often in 2009—enjoy days with myself. I know it seems silly to have to plan them, but I think we all do. We're accustomed to making plans with other people, but not with ourselves.