Monday, May 7, 2007

Perusing my TBR list

I should not have done it. Should not. Look through my TBR list, that is. Do you ever get that paralyzing, anxiety-ridden feeling that you are just never going to read all the books you would like to in this lifetime? It happens to me just about every time I look at my TBR list.

First, I just glance through, with the aim of picking out a book or two to read in the coming weeks. So many great titles. How could I not have read The Book Thief, by Markus Zusak, yet? What am I waiting for? I start dreaming to be caught up in the imagery of Moloka'i by Allan Brennert. Never mind the countless hard-to-obtain novels I have left unread by authors from other countries: Red Poppies by Alai, The Map of Love by Ahdaf Soueif; The Way to the Cats by Yehoshua Kenaz; Perfume by Patrick Suskind; Koolaids by Rabih Alameddine. That list goes on for about two pages.

Then there's the author's I have read once, and have yet to delve into more of their works. Authors such as Virginia Woolf; Arundhati Roy; Barbara Pym; Haruki Murakami; Jose Saramago; J.M. Coetzee; Philip Roth; and Chinua Achebe.

And the non-fiction. Oh, sometimes it feels as if you are the bane of my existence. Oh, I love you, but why do I find it so hard to pick you up? And in the meantime, the pile grows and grows. Collapse by Jared Diamond; Overcoming our Racism by Derald Wing Sue; The Abandoned Generation by Henry Giroux; Palestine in the Time of Jesus by K.C. Hansom and Douglas Oakman; The Bookseller of Kabul by Asne Seierstad; Tales of a Female Nomad by Rita Gelman; A Shameful Act by Taner Akcam; What Islam is All About by Yahiya Emerick; and Marie Antoinette by Antonia Fraser.

And that is only a sampling. Dios mios!

6 comments:

Happy Reader said...

I do! I do! I often feel anxious when I think of how many books I have yet to read and if I would ever be able to read them all! Some of the books you have mentioned are in my TBR pile too. No idea when I would be able to get to them though...

Lisa said...

Ditto ditto!

Literary Feline said...

You captured the feeling so well! I love being surrounded by books and knowing that so many are right at my fingertip if I want to read them, but when I think of what to read next . . . So many scream at me to "Pick me! Pick me! Pick me!" If only I could read them all at once!

cessie said...

Same here...but I try not to think about it too much. In the past months I have had limited time already so it's not easy to finish my books anyway. Loved this entry!!

Wendy said...

Oh yes...I'm right with you! In fact, just today I was making nice neat stacks of all my TBR books - categorizing, running my fingers over their beautiful covers and trying to figure out how to create an extra few hours in every day so I can read more!

Bookfool said...

I have more than just a terrifying TBR list; I have piles and shelves and stacks all over the place. I can't imagine I'll live to read them all. So, yes, I can relate!