Thoughts on books

Starting sometime in junior high, I used to record what books I read every year. I even recorded the number of pages because I reasoned that reading four 100-page books was obviously not the same as reading one 400-pager. Books have always been important to me, and recording what I read was in some way showing them reverence. They mattered, they counted, they were recorded in my personal history.

I think I stopped recording this list at some point in college. I can’t quite remember when or why. It was probably a combination of reading so many books as a Literature major that it just seemed a bit unnecessary and also recognising that by keeping these lists, I wasn’t proving anything to anyone. Post-university, I have continued to read often, although I will sometimes go through spells of a few months where I can’t seem to get through more than a book or two, either because of my work hours or a temporary diversion of interest.

The last year or two, I haven’t felt very inspired about what I have chosen to read. I have tended towards books that illustrate the cultures of the Middle East or India in novel form so I can read a proper story and yet still learn about a completely different perspective (Brick Lane, Come Back to Afghanistan, The Islamist), or I have reverted to the classics (Oliver Twist, Arabian Nights). I will also pick up anything about wine (A Hedonist in the Cellar, A VeryGood Year, The Science of Wine), or I will focus on finding other books written about an author I have previously enjoyed (Paulo Coelho, Khaled Hosseini).

Despite my inspiration woes, I have been reading. But I haven’t read many books lately that I just LOVE. In the past few years, from memory (since I don’t have a list), I would say my the most enjoyable books to read were Shantaram, Eat, Pray, Love, and The Kite Runner. But I don't know that these all would stay on my nonexistent top 20 list. Another book I read in Costa Rica and really enjoyed was The Time Traveler’s Wife, mostly because it twists your mind around past, present, and future and the possibilities of simultaneously existing across them.

My relationship with books has also changed over time. I used to cherish them, devour them, protect them and display them. I used to make notes in columns and record favourite quotes in a journal for just that purpose. But something changed over the course of multiple moves, travelling around the world, and trying to be less attached to material things and I now find them more disposable. (Don’t worry, I don’t actually throw books away, but usually find new homes for them with friends when I am faced with a periodic culling).

These days, I prefer to get books from the library than buying them. When library use is impractical, I am happy to swap books with other travellers or friends or buy them used. I think my shifting attitude towards saving books is akin to my attitude about wine - they are meant to be shared. Tasting a wine will always be an entirely personal and subjective experience, as in one’s experience of reading a story, but in both instances you want others to experience that taste, that emotion, and so we talk about wine or books, and we pass them around. A book will not improve with age in a cellar, and a bottle of wine will bring no joy if not opened.

As I continue to travel and have quite a bit of time to read, I welcome your suggestions for must read novels--the kind of books that, in your opinion, everyone should read. Post them here or send me an email.