The Polysyllabic Spree

On a recent trip to Half Price Books, I picked up The Polysyllabic Spree by Nick Hornby. I like Nick Hornby's other books, so I figured I'd pick it up, especially after reading what it's about: according to the cover, it's "A hilarious and true account of one man's struggle with the monthly tide of the books he's bought and the books he's been meaning to read." This is a phenomenon with which I am familiar. I have a ton of books on my shelves that I've bought because I intend to read them, but never seem to have the time. Furthermore, when I do have the time, I often find myself unmotivated to read some of them, or decide to reread a book I've already enjoyed once instead. Thus, this book seemed like a great idea. I bought it, and began reading it a couple of nights ago.

One consequence that I hadn't anticipated (although I probably should have) is that it's already added three books to me "to read" list, and I'm only on page 45. But it also inspired me to start this blog. In particular, there was a passage in the book where Mr. Hornby is talking about how he cannot recall any details about the Charles Dickens' Great Expectations states:

And I realized that . . . with just about every book I consumed between the ages of, say, fifteen and forty, I haven't even read the books I think I've read. I can't tell you how depressing this is. What's the fucking point?

While Hornby goes on to extol the virtues of forgetting the details of a book a few months later (the book is a compilation of monthly essays,) I was well aware of how I could enjoy re-reading a book several years after first reading it. While I could often remember the bones of the plot, and the "punchline" as Hornby describes it, I also shared his disappointment at not remembering details about books that I've read. Even worse, I hate remembering a book that I've read but being unable to recall the title or author.* Thus, I decided to start this blog, where I'm going to not only talk about the book(s) that I've just finished, bought or begun, but also to document the books currently residing on my shelves, in boxes in storage, or on my bedside table. I hope to document the books that I've read, what I remember about them, whether I liked them, to whom I've recommended them etc. Hopefully I'll be able to keep up on it, it's a simple enough, and enjoyable enough concept, but updating two blogs daily is a goal that I'm uncertain I can keep. But we'll see how long I can keep it up.

* There is a book that I read on vacation over 10 years ago while on vacation in England, about a human child who is marooned on a planet and raised by aliens who we later discover were formerly slaves of the human race. I remember really liking this book, and have looked for it for years, but have had absolutely zero success finding it. And it still irritates me.