I'm Torn

 The yard outside my window looks like a kaleidoscope with yellows and oranges in constant motion, forever changing. The yard has been raked but the winds have brought more leaves, falling faster than the rake can handle. I should be outside working on the yard but instead, I am inside with my nose stuck in a book.

    I really should say “books”. My reading frequency fluctuates, it ebbs and flows and right now, I’m experiencing a bit of a flood. Don’t think I’m complaining though!

    Ann Marie had recently dropped off a book she thought I’d enjoy. Written by Anna Quindlin, it is an excellent book about writing. Titled “Write for Your Life”, it stresses the importance of putting your thoughts down on paper. The idea runs through her book that things such as letters and cards, things which have written on paper will survive much longer than the texts, e-mails and tweets we compose daily.

    I am also reading a book by John Berger called “About Looking”. This book of essays is a little bit deeper than Anna’s book. I tend to read a chapter and then think about it for a while.

    There are two other books I am in the middle of; I have been reading them for a couple months. They are interesting but whenever another book comes along, they tend to be set aside. One of them is about the origins of papyrus and paper and how they have changed the course of history. Titled “The Pharaoh’s Treasure”, by John Gaudet, I find it interesting to learn about these products and how they were made, but it really isn’t a “page turner”. The second one is called “Dirty Old London” by Lee Jackson. This book tells about how Victorian London worked to control the filth that was overwhelming the town. Animal waste, along with human waste combined with the dirt and dust of the roads and manufacturing was a real health problem. (Not to mention a laundry problem!) A very well written book but like “The Pharaoh’s Treasure”, when another book comes along, it is set aside.

    My most recent trip to the library netted me two more books to add to the list. I recently read “The Book Woman’s Daughter”, by Kim Michele Richardson which tells the story of a young girl in the Kentucky mountains who takes on her mother’s job as a pack horse librarian, supplying books to the people in the depths of Appalachia. One of the books she gave to someone was “The Golden Apples of the Sun” (1953) by Ray Bradbury. This is a collection of short stories. I had read it decades ago and since the name crossed my path, I ordered it from the library so I could read it again. My local library had a copy for me within a week.

    I also picked up “Do Androids Dream about Electric Sheep?” by Philip K. Dick. (1968) I came across this book in another book I had recently read. I’ve read other novels by this science fiction author before and so, it's time to read another of his works! Like the other, the library had a copy for me in no time at all.

    I’ve mentioned the books I’m currently reading. When I picked up these last two volumes, I made a terrible (?) mistake. I read the first short story in the Bradbury book. Now there is a new conundrum in my life, do I continue reading it or set it aside until I’ve finished the others? Decisions, decisions!

    I’ll probably read all of them together; I often choose to read the book that happens to be nearest to me at the time!

    Some of the things I enjoy so much about reading are how one book will lead me to another and how easily one can remind me of another. Even if it is a single sentence, it might take me into a story I’ve read months, or even years ago.  Reading is a never-ending journey through the thoughts and experiences of others, people I come to admire and often look forward to their other writings. I never know where I might end up as I open a book!

    So, if you’ll excuse me, I have work that needs done here, and I’m not talking about raking!