Sunday, January 3, 2021

The Reading List

So, I just finished book # II.3622, the 3622nd book in my second (current) reading list: THE WORLD OF CRITICAL ROLE by Liz Marsham, a book about a livestreaming D&D group. 

A year ago at this time I'd just finished up 1177: THE YEAR CIVILIZATION COLLAPSED by Erich H. Cline (II.3548) and TOLKIEN'S LOST CHAUCER by Jn M. Bowers (II.3547), which I reviewed, following these up with a re-reading of THE LAST BOOKS OF H. G. Wells ('The Happy Turning' and 'Mind at the End of its Tether'), II.3549.

Twenty years ago today I was reading Dick Francis's SECOND WIND (II.2281) among a string of John Bellairs/Brad Strickland books (II.2273, 2276, 2278, 2279, 2282).  

Thirty years ago I was reading and re-reading some Wodehouse, e.g. THANK YOU JEEVES (II.1432) and CODE OF THE WOOSTERS (II.1433), preceded by Pratchett & Gaiman's GOOD OMENS (II.1430)* and followed by  Hughart's EIGHT SKILLED GENTLEMEN (II.1434), a gift from my friend Taum.

Forty years ago today I was finishing up Spenser's THE FAERIE QUEENE (I.478), parts of which I read while selling tickets at the local drive-in theatre; followed by the Mutabilitie Cantos the next day, then Wm Blake's THE BOOK OF URIZEN (I.480) and Wilde's THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST (I.481). I cd read more in those days. Still, the two lists together come to more than four thousand books in forty-five years, which I suppose is not too bad. 

And now, on to #3623 & #3624.

--John R.

*which took twenty-nine of the intervening thirty years to finally get filmed


UPDATE: I originally misplaced the page that tells what I was reading twenty years back but have now found it and inserted a paragraph into the piece where appropriate. --JDR


1 comment:

Paul W said...

I don't have the ability see what I was reading precisely 10, 20, 30 years ago, but I have been recording what i have been reading each year. At first I just posted it on Fb but for the last two years I posted it on my blog. I found it fascinating, and equally fascinating to see others lists, and where things do and do not overlap. https://historytruefeigned.blogspot.com/