M. Suzanne Terry

Day 16 – Library Book Club

October 17, 2021 by Suzanne

As much as I love book clubs, you’d probably think I would have joined one of the ones at our local library years ago. But as much as I love traditional book clubs (where you pick and read the same book together), I already have those in my life. So while I was still tempted, I knew that picking one more group with quasi-assigned reading wasn’t really what I wanted.

Enter the Rise and Shine Book Club.

Once a month, this group meets to talk about books. The difference is that there is no one book that we’re reading. We discuss a different genre every month (this month was horror, of course), and the library staff member who leads it gives recommendations in that genre. The rest of us are welcome to recommend books as well, and we all go home with a new list of things to add to the TBR list.

As an added bonus, when we attend in person, we get to take some of the advance reader copies that the library receives to review with us. The stack above is my haul from just two months of in-person meetings. I do love free books.

This book club is how I discovered Hollow Kingdom and the reason I picked up You this month. We’re discussing magical realism next month, and I can’t wait to discover more new treasures.

If you want to start a book club but don’t want the pressure of choosing one book that everyone will read or don’t think your bookish friends will want to add one more responsibility to their monthly schedule, this may be a good structure to try. You still get to get together and talk about books you love, and you can do it without expectation.

I love talking and writing about books – in any structure.

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Day 15 – 5 Books About Books

October 16, 2021 by Suzanne

I am finishing You tonight because a) it’s spooky season and this book definitely qualifies and b) it was recommended by the librarian who runs the public library book club which is tomorrow. I am enjoying it a lot, not only because this narrator is well-developed but also because he works in a bookstore. I am a sucker for books about books. Or even if they’re not really about books, feature books to a significant extent.

I have more of these books on my TBR list than on my finished list, but here are five that I have read and recommend:

Dear Fahrenheit 451 by Annie Spence – I would like to write a book like this someday. It’s a fun premise – writing letters and breakup notes to books that have influenced her life. I love any book that makes me feel like I’m having a conversation with the author, and this one did.
The Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde – This book/series is one of my favorites. I may mention it a lot this month. It’s set in a fantastical world where people can actually enter books and alter them. The writing is so clever.
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society by Annie Barrows and Mary Ann Shaffer – A mysterious book society? Sign me up!
The Little Paris Bookshop by Nina George – I think most book lovers have dreamed of walking into an unusual bookshop with a seller who can make the perfect recommendation. Full of literary adventure, this books takes the idea to another level.
The Bookshop on the Corner by Jenny Colgan – The title of this book is confusing – I suppose that a bookshop in a van could be on the corner but it could also be around the corner or out in the middle of a field. Anyway, the curious nature of the title doesn’t detract from my delight in the story at all.

One day, I’m going to have a shelf that’s all books about books.

These days, I’m writing about books.

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Day 14 – Favorite Children’s Books

October 14, 2021 by Suzanne

I’ve always been an enthusiastic reader. When I think about my favorite children’s books, though, I don’t necessarily think of ones that I read when I was an actual child. My favorites in this category are often divided between then and now.

My parents and grandparents read me a lot of Little Golden Books. The Tawny, Scrawny Lion is the one I remember reading over and over again once I could read on my own. I would “teach” my granddad how to read using the well-worn copy at their house. Once I graduated to chapter books, I tore through several series – Little House on the Prairie, Nancy Drew, and The Boxcar Children. I loved Beverly Cleary’s Ramona books, but honestly? I identified more with the big sister, who is obviously not the hero of the story and a person merely tolerated rather than celebrated. I preferred her Ralph S. Mouse series. I tried The Chronicles of Narnia and The Hobbit, but I was a more serious child and didn’t have a lot of patience with fantasy elements.

Until Alice.

I was enthralled with Alice in Wonderland, and I don’t think I’ve ever recovered. To this day, I will read anything remotely related to Alice. My favorite episode from the first season of Once Upon a Time is the one that features the Mad Hatter. I played the Dormouse in our high school one-act play production (I, of course, was brilliant and adorable). This story fed my young imagination in so many ways and instilled in me a lifelong sense of curiosity about possibilities and wonder.

Looking back on stories I read and was told, I feel nostalgic fondness for things like Winnie the Pooh and fairy tales, but I am pretty sure these memories have more to do with television and Disney movies than the actual books. I’m still drawn to the stories, though (and Christopher Robin still made me cry).

I have especially grown to love fairy tales. I will read any fairy tale retelling. I guess most of them are presumed more appropriate for adults (as are the original fairy tales), but as a child, I might have liked them better than the saccharine, musical versions presented to me. Don’t get me wrong – I like a lot of Disney movies. But I would have found the comeuppance Cinderella’s stepsisters received in the original much more satisfying, even as a young child.

Working daycare during undergrad introduced me to other children’s books, but so many have come out since then I’m not sure I can narrow it down. One of the authors that always reminds me of my daycare kids (who are grown folk who can rent a car and probably have kids of their own by now) is Sarah Boynton. But Not the Hippopotamus is my favorite, and there are a slew of other board books that are perfect for toddlers and two-year-olds.

There are so many great children’s books out there. Which ones are your favorites?

I’m writing about books all month!

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Day 13 – Poetry

October 13, 2021 by Suzanne

My gut reaction when anyone mentions poetry is “I LOVE POETRY.” Which is true, for the most part. I really love poets, though. Many of the poets I know are sensitive, intuitive, empathic people. They are disappointed hopefuls. They see how good the world could be if we would just [fill in the blank]. They are not necessarily happy but often wish they could be. They really wish the people they love could be happy.

I think you need at least a little bit of all those things to write poetry. Well, to write good poetry.

To be clear, I am not a great judge of good poetry. If someone strings a phrase together in a way I enjoy, I like it and call it good. Some might argue that is the standard, but I’ve been led to believe it’s not.

The poetry I love usually springs out of pain and/or beauty the poet finds in their personal experience. See Donika Kelly’s The Renunciations. Jeanann Verlee’s Racing Hummingbirds. Terrance Hayes’s American Sonnets for My Past and Future Assassin. Mary Oliver’s Winter Hours.

I like writing poetry, but I feel ill-equipped to write it well. I have taken courses and am working my way through Oliver’s A Poetry Handbook, but I still feel shy about the poems I put out most of the time. I wonder if that’s just part of the process and so maybe I shouldn’t worry so much about it but just keep writing. My worry doesn’t often listen to “should,” though, so here we are.

Do you like poetry? Do you have recommendations? I’d love to hear them!

I love books and writing about them.

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Day 12 – Where I Read

October 12, 2021 by Suzanne

Where do I read? A better question might be – where don’t I read? I will read standing in line at the grocery store.

But if I’m settling in for a nice, long reading session, I want it to be comfortable. Cozy, even.

I start by selecting a chair.

In my current apartment, I have three main places where I enjoy reading for an extended period of time. The chair pictured above is set up to be my official reading chair. It reclines, but not so much that I can’t still enjoy a drink while I read. There is a bookshelf on one side and a window on the other, and it usually has a lamp behind it to ensure good lighting at night. During Christmas, however, that corner is the best space for the tree, so the chair and the lamp get moved. This year, the lamp never made it back over there, so this has become the morning reading chair (when I can take advantage of a lot of natural light).

The big red chair in my living room is usually just where I eat and/or watch TV. But it has also become a reading chair simply because that’s where the lamp has been this year. It’s not within arm’s length of my current-reads shelf, but it’s comfy enough, and there is a ottoman in front of it. So while settling in takes a little more effort, it works well once I do.

The third place I read in the apartment is in the office. When I have an online meeting, I block out some time (usually 30 minutes to an hour) beforehand just in case I need to review notes from the last session or otherwise finish preparations. I’ll fill up the water bottle, make a cup of coffee or tea (or glass of wine, depending on the meeting), and then take a seat in the cushy chair (that I moved out of the living room when I was working from home all day) at my desk. I hardly ever need as much prep time as I set aside, so as I happen to be in my library, it just makes sense to spend the rest of the wait reading. I often find myself lingering there after the meeting is over to finish the chapter I started.

In addition to choosing a chair, I also make sure I have several books stacked nearby in case I start reading one and decide I’m in the mood for something else. Before I begin reading, I like to have something to drink – at least a bottle of water but also usually a warm beverage of some sort – on the table beside me. I put a blanket within reach just in case I get chilly once I get still for an extended period of time. Once I’m there, I can read for hours.

Do you have a particular place where you prefer to read?

I’m writing about books and reading all month.

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Day 11 – Books for Celebrating National Coming Out Day

October 11, 2021 by Suzanne

It’s National Coming Out Day, a day to honor the experiences and stories of LGBTQIA+ folk and to advocate for representation of queer identities in media, books, TV, etc. To that end, I have several recommendations. After all, what better way to celebrate than with reading?

In no particular order:

Will Grayson, Will Grayson by John Green and David Levithan – A fun premise and some very sweet moments. An exuberant celebration of friendship and love and the importance of finding people with whom you can be your full self.
How We Fight for Our Lives by Saeed Jones – This is the first book I read in 2020, and if that didn’t set a tone…I love this beautifully written memoir.
The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller – Gorgeous retelling of The Iliad (you should read it even if revisiting Homer doesn’t sound appealing).
Carry On by Rainbow Rowell – Be still, my fannish heart. Rowell took the fictional series her main character geeked out over in Fangirl and made it into an actual series that exists so that the rest of us could squee along with her as Simon and Baz’s relationship developed. Tomorrow, the box set of the trilogy releases, and the holidays are coming. I’m just saying.
I Wish You All the Best by Mason Deaver – I just finished this one on Friday, and as I type this I’m sitting here getting teary over this heartbreaking and hopeful story. I really do wish the main character in this book all the best. They deserve all the good things.
Darius the Great Deserves Better by Adib Khorram – I started this one last night. I was already rooting for Darius since reading the last one (Darius the Great Is Not Okay), so I’m looking forward to this next chapter in his adventures.

Obviously, there are way more books that center or reference coming out stories than these, and apparently my list is skewed in a generally (although not completely) masculine direction. Looks like I have some more expanding to do. Here’s a good list to start with for all of us.

Happy National Coming Out Day!

I’m writing about books all month.

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Day 10 – Not a Competition

October 11, 2021 by Suzanne

I’m pretty goal-oriented, and there is an almost inevitable touch of competition embedded in that trait. I try not to let it spill over to my reading life, though. It’s too important to me to to reduce it to some type of race.

When I set my reading goal for the year, part of the thrill is the challenge of reading more than I’ve read in any prior year. Not because that somehow makes me better or wiser or whatever. It doesn’t. I simply get excited at the thought of finding even more time to do one of the things I love most.

Sometimes when I talk about the books I’ve read recently (which is often – just try and get me to stop – it’s a lost cause), the person I’m talking to will say something like, “I’ve only been reading this one book for the last [insert arbitrary length of time].” As if that’s not JUST AS EXCITING. In fact, the longer it takes to read something, the more impact it’s likely to have, so I definitely want to hear what you have to say about it.

Whether you spend five minutes a week or five hours a day reading, my only concern is this – do you enjoy it? Because that’s the whole point.

Reading is one of my favorite pastimes. It’s fun, relaxing, informative, engaging, etc. I read to learn and to be entertained. I read not only to unwind but also to connect with others.

The goal I set each year is not an arbitrary number, but it’s not a competition, either. It’s a wellness meter. How much time I spend reading (and thus how many books I finish) is a direct reflection of how I’m doing. When I’m not reading, it’s usually because I’m either too anxious, depressed, or over-committed to have the time and/or the focus to do so. When I’m not reading, I’m probably also not writing (or doing much of anything creative, for that matter).

I probably had more free time in 2020 than any other year in my entire adult life, but I didn’t even come close to my yearly goal. The first month of that year that I only read one or two books the whole month, that was the only sign that I wasn’t doing ok and needed to seek help that I, in that particular state, was able to recognize.

By contrast, right now I am 16 books ahead of schedule on my goal for this year, and I’ve been reading about the same number of books every month. Which DELIGHTS me, because it means that not only has my ability to focus been fairly consistent but also that I’ve not been too busy to make time for the things I enjoy.

I don’t know what reading means to all of you (although I’d love to hear it – drop a comment if you’d like), but it’s part of how I make sense of the world and my place in it. It’s not something to just be crossed off a checklist or used to feed some weird delusion of superiority. It’s not a competition.

For more of my musings about books, click here.

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The Joy of Shelfies

October 9, 2021 by Suzanne

There is something about sitting next to a bookshelf – especially one of my own – that I find simultaneously invigorating and soothing. It must be the fond memories of the books on it that I’ve loved. The anticipation of those I’ve not yet read. The inevitable, distinct smell of a collection of books that vary in age, how many hands have touched them, and how far they’ve traveled. My bookshelves are great roommates.

A few years ago, my 31 Days series was a celebration of shelfies – pictures taken of my bookshelves. Like the books on them, each shelf tells its own story.

Like the one pictured above, with the whimsical pig bookend holding up books I’ve had since childhood. It captures the reminiscence of Scholastic book fairs and the special visit from John R. Erickson, creator of the Hank the Cowdog series, to our small town elementary school. Technically I wasn’t in elementary school anymore at that point, but my mom made sure I still got a signed copy.

Or the one below, that holds some of my favorite serving pieces as well as the bulk of my foodie/cookbook collection. Everything I know about being a good host came from someone who used to own one of those pieces or from the wisdom shared in one of those books.

The next picture is another cross-section of my life. The little plant that could, a cutting from my friend Sarah in a planter that my mom just knew I had to have. Larry McMurtry’s most popular novel as well as the one we read for Follow the Reader (also nurtured/led by Sarah). Part of the latter half of my fiction collection, including books from some of my favorites – Louise Penny, Haruki Murakami, Toni Morrison, Ann Patchett, Joyce Carol Oates. Just thinking of these authors makes me remember where I was when I discovered them and what their books helped me through.

When I have a larger library, some authors are going to get their own shelves. Meanwhile, I’ll arrange my Isabel Allende collection however it will fit. She is the reason the As already get their own shelf, when most other letters of the alphabet have to share. The Bs are quickly catching up, though.

The shelf that holds most of my nonfiction is probably what you saw behind me if you’ve had a Zoom meeting with me in the last year or so. I don’t have quite as much nonfiction, so there are also children’s books, stacks from authors I like who write both fiction and nonfiction (but I feel like they would miss each other if they were separated), and books from my academic years, which are mostly nonfiction but with a sprinkling of poetry and short story collections (some, apparently, in German). As with most of my shelves, I also have small pieces of art nestled between, in front, and beside the books.

The look and smell of my books is what makes any place I live feel like home. You could probably learn a lot about me by spending some time perusing them. Maybe that’s why the first place I go when I’m left to my own devices in someone’s home is to their bookshelves. I always learn something I love about the people who live there.

I don’t just love looking at books – I also love writing about them! So that’s what I’m doing this month.

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Day 8 – Five Favorite Bookish Apps

October 8, 2021 by Suzanne

As I mentioned yesterday, I attribute part of my ability to read as much as I do to the use of different media. I have five apps on my phone through which I read, but I have other bookish apps that I use just as much (if not more). Today I want to talk about the five I probably use the most and why I like them.

[Aside: While I do have Audible and Kindle on my phone, I didn’t list them here because I’m trying to wean myself off Amazon, which is not easy because many of the indie writers I like to support only sell through Amazon currently and also because Amazon owns so many things.]

Goodreads – Yes, I know – owned by Amazon. And I’m open to alternatives, but I haven’t found any that can come close to everything I have through Goodreads. Most of the tracking I do, I do through this app. Because of Goodreads, I can tell you every book I’ve read since 2012. I also have a gargantuan TBR list stored there. Best of all, I get a lot of recommendations from people I’ve met through various walks of life – online friends from fandom/writer groups/book clubs, face-to-face friends, coworkers, friends from grad school, writer contacts, and a unique group of like-minded readers whom I met through the app itself. It’s social media for readers, which some days, is the only kind of social media I’m into.
Scribd – Through this paid subscription (currently about $10 a month), you can choose from their large selection of ebooks, audiobooks, magazines, short stories, essays, etc., and there’s no limit to how much you can read or save to read later. I don’t find every book I want to read there, but it’s my frequent go-to for book club selections when I have already exhausted my book budget for the month and there is a waitlist for them at the library. Or when someone else puts a hold on a library book I’ve started and I can get it to them faster by finishing the book on Scribd. I also use it to keep track of specific TBR lists (e.g., my books about joy that I’m reading this year). As with most subscriptions, there’s no guarantee that any book that is available now will always be available, but I use the app enough that it definitely saves me time and money in the long run.
Kobo – This is my “ultimately replace Audible and Kindle” app. It offers the same kind of subscription for audiobooks (1 credit for a monthly rate), and you can either have an ebook subscription (all you can read for $10/month) or you can purchase the ones you want to keep individually. It gives you a list of titles that you can get for free (and also lets you prioritize your favorite genres), and each purchase also earns points toward free books. If I ever purchase another ereader, it will be through Kobo. I feel like it’s trying to be every reading app I love but in an even more organized and user-friendly way. It seems like it’s here to stay – so much that some of my fave indie authors have worked their way over to also sell through Kobo, which is exciting.
CloudLibrary – This is the ereader/audiobook app that our local library uses, so it’s the one I use. My current selections through CloudLibrary are the audio version of a print book I’m reading at night because I’m at a part that is very exciting and I have errands to run this afternoon, which will delay my getting-home time and I don’t want to wait until I get home to hear what happens next, my current lunchtime book, and the next book in the Phryne Fisher series because the library doesn’t have a print copy. It’s free through my library login (also free). Selection, of course, varies according to what the library purchases. It’s worth checking out which ereader your library uses (I also like OverDrive and Hoopla but don’t use them very often).
Libib – Y’all. I have a lot of books. So many that when I’m out and about at bookshops or library sales or garage sales that I find myself veering toward when that stack of unwanted books looking for a home catches my eye on the drive-by, I don’t always remember off the top of my head what I have and don’t have at home. Especially if it’s by an author I particularly like (and thus compulsively buy). So I am cataloguing my collection, slowly and surely, through Libib. You can also keep track of the music, games, movies, etc., you own, if that interests you. The free version does limit you to 5,000 items, which is plenty at this stage of my collection (really, if I ever need more, I should just quit my job and become a library). Also, you can share your shelves with others (useful for people who browse bookstores on my behalf). If my home ever catches fire, this is what I’ll use to rebuild my collection/annoy my insurance company (because priorities).

Do you use these apps? Others? What do you like about them?

I’m writing about books all month!

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Day 7 – How To Read More

October 7, 2021 by Suzanne

Step 1 – Always have at least one book with you.

So…I read a lot. I read every day. I also read quickly. Sometimes I slow it down a little when the poetry/prose is really good, the same way I take smaller, slower sips/bites when I want to savor a particularly delicious glass of wine or a decadent meal. But I spend several hours each week reading, and my normal reading pace – where I’m still getting all the details, as I don’t consider skimming reading – is fast. So it’s not unusual for me to finish 12-15 books a month.

I have several reader friends who set yearly goals and encourage their followers on social media to do the same. When their check-ins are posted – “How are your reading goals going this year?” – I often refrain from commenting. There’s a good chance that it would come across as braggy from me, and that’s not the point of reading. That’s not how I feel about reading. Because if you set a goal for reading 25 books this year, and you have finished 20 of them, you are doing great. If you set a goal of reading 12 books this year, and you have finished 1 of them, you are doing great. I bet it was a really good book. Any amount of reading is great, and I’m happy for you!

I do enjoy beating my own record, though. A little healthy competition with my ownself is fun for me. Also, there are so many books I am interested in that I want to get to as many of them as possible before I die.

If you are interested in upping your own reading goal or just finding time to read more, there are many tips on the internet for how to do so. Everyone’s life/schedule is different, so some of those tips will work for you and some of them will not. I have two jobs, I make time to work on my own short stories or novel, and I’m active in my art community and church (plus – I have all those book clubs). So if I want reading to be a integral part of my life (and I do), I have to intentionally set aside time to do it. Here’s how I make time to read:

I always have a book with me. If I’m trying to finish up a book for a discussion that’s happening soon or a book that’s due at the library in the next few days, that book is in my bag. Or I intentionally choose the ebook copy so that it goes everywhere my phone goes…which is everywhere I go. Which leads me to…
I read via multiple media. Home decor to me is buying another bookshelf. I love the feel of a printed book in my hands. When I’m at home, that’s usually how I read. It’s part of my nightly ritual. I also love the convenience of ebooks and audiobooks, though. I have five reading apps on my phone, so I’m never at a loss for something to read no matter where I am.
I schedule blocks of time to read. That trick that I learned in college where, for every hour spent in class, I scheduled 2 hours outside of class to complete the reading/homework? I just kept doing that after I graduated (albeit on a smaller scale). In addition to my nightly 20-30 minutes, I have at least 2-3 hours every week that I specifically set aside to read. That is, I put it in my planner as an actual appointment. Do I have plans tomorrow night? Yes, I do. I plan to finish the book due at the library on Saturday.
I have reading marathons. Sometimes, a few hours a week are just not enough. About four or five times a year, I hunker down for a whole weekend (or as part of my vacation) and read like it’s my job. Sometimes I participate in an organized online marathon such as Dewey’s Readathon or the 24in28 Readathon [Aside – this is where not being snotty about whether listening to audiobooks is really reading (IT IS – do not get me started – or maybe do get me started. Maybe that will the topic of its own post this month because I have strong opinions) comes in handy, because 24 hours in just two days is a hell of a long time to be sitting down.]. But most of these reading intensives are just me vs. the TBR list. Speaking of…
I have huge TBR lists. I mark books as “want to read” on Goodreads, and I have large virtual libraries saved on all five apps. I have a handwritten book journal where I keep lists and highlight them when I’m finished. I subscribe to many email lists that send out notifications of new and upcoming things I might be interested in, and I add the ones that intrigue me to at least one of my TBR lists. I have several books checked out from the public library at any given time. I have an enormous book collection in my apartment, and it just keeps growing. There’s no way I’ll ever finish all of them, but that’s not the point. The point is that the question is never “Is there something I want to read next?” but rather “Which one of these hundreds of books do I get to start today?” That question always has an answer.
I read several books at a time. I listen to an audiobook during my commute (or almost any time I’m in the car alone). I read one of the ebooks I’ve started during my lunch break or when I’m waiting on a virtual meeting to begin. I have several books stacked by my reading chair because I’m not always in the mood for the same genre every night, and staying interested in what I’m reading is crucial for keeping it a regular habit. At any point, I likely have at least four books that I’m reading a bit of each day.

Do you have tips on how to read more? What are some of your habits?

I can talk about books for days. Specifically, 31 days.