So many books, so little time

“It is what you read when you don't have to that determines what you will be when you can't help it.” ― Oscar Wilde

I love books. This is no surprise to anyone who knows me even a little bit from any phase of my life. When I was in elementary school, I used to walk into doors while reading The Babysitters Club and Nancy Drew. In junior high, my greatest rebellion was reading V.C Andrews and Stephen King while devouring Sweet Valley High as a sugary snack. In high school, my taste matured, and I started reading the classics voraciously. 1984, Brave New World, Fahrenheit 451, Lord of the Flies, Heart of Darkness, Catch-22, Animal Farm, the Grapes of Wrath, the Catcher and the Rye, the Outsiders, Gone With the Wind and many others sustained me through my own unremarkable high school experience.

As a child, my main goal in life was to be invisible so that I could read uninterrupted. I would hide in places I couldn't be found to read in peace. I would wake up in the middle of the night, head to my comfy arm chair, prop my feet up against the wall and read until I got busted, usually by my mom whom I believe to this day never really sleeps. 

The one thing I resent about being an adult is that it doesn't leave me enough time to read. As a wife, I feel guilty indulging in the innately anti-social activity of reading when I should be interacting with my spouse.  I am forced (by my conscious, not my husband) to watch TV because it is something we can do together. As a mom, reading feels selfish when I should be doing laundry, dishes, cooking, taking Stan out to pee, or playing with Aidan. I assuage this guilt by reminding myself that reading in front of Aidan sets a good example and shows that reading is something to be done for pleasure, not just school.

Luckily, Aidan is also a huge reader. I love when he follows me around the grocery store with his nose in a book. When he finishes books he leaves them on my nightstand so that I can read them too. Then later we discuss Magic Puppy, Diary of a Wimpy Kid, or Captain Underpants at great length. My favorite part of every day is reading Harry Potter out loud to Aidan for 30-45 minutes. We are currently on Book 5 at the part right before Fred and George drop out of Hogwarts (the best scene in the worst Harry Potter book).

Aidan reading Diary of a Wimpy Kid

In case you are at all interested, this is what I've enjoyed reading lately:

The Book Thief - Yes, me and every other person in the world has read this, but if you haven't, I highly recommend it. It's similar to many other WWII books except wonderfully narrated by Death and with some remarkable characters like Hans Hubermann and Rudy Steiner.

The Fault in our Stars - When my friend Anna mentioned this book she described it as "a hilarious book about kids with cancer." Since Anna is not a sick and twisted person, I had to assume it was genuinely funny. And it is. Certain scenes in the book had me crying laughing and reading passages out loud to Robert. If you have not read this already, hurry up and check it out of the library at your earliest convenience.

Why Does the World Exist? - This book by Jim Holt is billed as an existentialist detective story and is the best pop philosophy book I've read since The Philosophy of South Park. If you've been missing brain-bending mental stimulation, go read this book and thank me later.

The Dog Stars - I'm in the middle of reading this book and I have to say that it is really starting to grow on me. Everyone loves it so my expectations were sky high, but, in the beginning, I had my doubts. The writing style is intentionally choppy and, for the first 25 pages or so, I found that a little distracting. But I've persisted and am starting to see what all the fuss is about. Read this if you like Cormac McCarthy or other such post-apocalyptic fiction.

Do you also resent the lack of reading time allocated to adults? What books do you love? I'm always looking for my next great book!