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Well, that took a bit of doing, but another one of my goals has been accomplished: There are now no books in my collection with an "Unknown" author. I looked the missing authors up via various sources, and filled in missing names and ISBNs, as well as uploading some covers. This will ripple out to anyone who has any of the books I changed in their collection. That's one step closer to being able to keep your collection accurate and to eliminate duplicates. The program administrators have some programmatic steps they're going to be taking on the issue of duplicated titles, and that will impact some of you; it should only eliminate actual, identical titles (ISBN matches are key). The question of alternate editions is not being ignored, and people will not "lose" those books or have them changed to anther edition of the book. This is an ongoing process to make the Living Social database more complete and accurate. Any changes that you find that need to be made that the program doesn't allow you to make, you can bring to my attention (I'm a Moderator) or report via the button in each book's record. The only true way to eliminate all duplicates in your collection is still to comb through it manually, but the newer "Manage" tab makes it a LOT easier than it was before. I did my collection before that key was available, and it was fairly arduous, but I feel better knowing that the number I'm representing is pretty accurate (Oh, I'm sure I missed a few; I eliminated several duplicates in my author searching). Is it that big a deal? Well, I guess that depends on the size of your collection; the larger it is, the more opportunity you have to duplicate a book. I've seen wild accusations at some of the top readers that they're off by 50% or even 2/3, but that's VERY unlikely, if not ridiculous. I was off by a few percent, and I feel that was mostly because of the speed at which I built my list. I doubt that it's much different for any of the other readers. There are mistakes out there, to be sure, but I know quite a few of the top readers, and they're honest mistakes of which they're unaware. On the flip side, the larger number makes scanning your collection harder to do. It's up to you whether or not to do it, but do be aware that Visual Bookshelf is making efforts on their end to help out. Please ask any questions you have, any time. If I don't know the answer or can't directly fix the problem, I WILL pass it on to who can.

Mark, It made me smile to see your comment about the amazing book store in Fayettville. Not for any reason more than that I'm from Arkansas and I forever get tired of comments about our "lack of education" and all the other stuff. While I know our most recent infamous resident shows that there are in fact people of intelligence (even if self control is circumspect) to come out of the state, I still get a little bit of pride when I hear others who have fond experiences there. It was often difficult to drag my parents into the store on Dixon Street when we were visiting my brother at school for your exact reason...no more room at my house nor in my car to drive it home. Wasn't the city simply beautiful though? :) I'm glad you're back and I hope that something will be done about all the abuse and harrassment by certain people to top readers soon. Thank you for all you do.

ADVENTURES IN NOT READING

It wasn't something I wanted to do. To make a long story short, I got ill, which got worse, then they started throwing medication at me that made it hard for me to concentrate.... this was followed by surgery, in which I developed complications that lasted for another couple of months along with more disorienting medication. So, for several months, I just couldn't focus enough to read much of anything, and had to forget anything that required concentration. I was having trouble finishing a crossword puzzle. It sucked, in the vernacular, and sucked loudly.

However, I did learn some things from the experience:

-Reading really is an integral part of my life and my daily routine. I missed it, and the days felt out of balance with the regular exercise of my mind.
-Not surprisingly, in spite of the variety of things with which I COULD fill my time, I was bored; bored and frustrated every time I looked at my "currently reading pile", which is usually five or six books.
-I found that I didn't WANT to read when I wasn't in a position to enjoy it and do little things like remember what I just read. That was just too much, and after a while, I had to "give in" for those reasons. I bit my lip and realized that I'd just have to have patience.
-I have less patience than I thought, at least when it came to having my books "taken away". I was not a good sport about it.
-Without the mental stimulation and break from other aspects of life, I found myself out of balance, feeling irritable and like days were wasted, even when I had things to point to that might prove otherwise.
-I didn't watch any more TV or movies than I normally do, and that was one of the bigger surprises. I do enjoy certain shows, I like documentaries, and love a good movie. This would have been the easiest thing with which to fill the time and get my dose of information and storytelling. However, I guess I get as much of that in visual media as I'm inclined to want, and prefer to experience a goodly amount of it from the printed page.
-The times during the days when I would ordinarily have been reading, I simply spent as "quiet time" and sat with the cats (my usual book companions, along with my spouse, who's also a heavy reader). Thus, I "saved" the time and didn't lose it to other things. I had no new pattern to break to get back to my old one as far as my reading time was concerned. Once I finally started to feel better, I phased back in to using the time to read again.
-The same thing didn't work with my writing time (I have a number of projects, including a book of my own), and I'm having to start all over again to regain that discipline. But that was a lesson unto itself: Writing is work and requires discipline, reading is not and does not. I really do read because I love to, and not out of some sense of obligation.
-Now that I'm getting back up to speed, I have a new appreciation for something I mentioned before: the exercise of the mind. This is terribly important to me personally, but I think is for anyone (admittedly, I just don't understand people who don't like to read; however, I suppose they're not the only sources of mental stimulation. I still think they're the best). I was more acutely aware of the loss of that exercise than I was the physical exercise that I was also missing. I felt lazy and confined by the process.

I suppose I could go on, but the bottom line is that I discovered how much reading is a normal part of my life, by choice and desire and not just the sheer habit of it. I've also regained a bit of the excitement back, because I appreciate the opportunity to do something that I took for granted. I'm fortunate to have developed the reading habit when I was so young, the benefits over my lifetime have been too numerous to count, and it IS still a singular pleasure to pick up a book. I'm fortunate that my lifelong habit has "built in" time to read nearly every day, when it's hard for a lot of people to carve time out of their busy daily lives to read more. It never occurred to me that I took that for granted and how much I just assumed that it wasn't that hard to be a busier reader than a lot of people can be. There ARE a million things that can get in the way, things beyond one's control, and those things can frustrate anyone who wants to read more; I understand that better now. It isn't that I think less of people who read less, but somehow I always underestimated how hard it would be for them to read more. One of the things that I hope my presence and participation here does is to encourage people to read, and to read more & different things (I know I get those benefits myself out of being here. My monstrously large want-to-read list is ample proof). From here on in, I'll remember that it's somewhat of a luxury to take the time, even if you have a longstanding habit of doing it. I'm also reminded that when one does have a limited amount of time or energy to read, that the choices of what books you do pick up are harder to make. I'm reminded now of what it's like to have books pass by without having a chance to read them because that's just the way life is. I think LOTS of readers have that frustration; too many books, too little time.

Well, in any case, it's good to be back at it, and active in the community here again. I'm particularly going to try to knuckle down and make myself write more reviews. Compared to the number of books I've read, I don't feel that I have enough represented, and the whole idea of this application is sharing and interaction. Reviewing & discussing books seems to me to be the most active way to do that.

Good reading, everyone!

You just never know..... I was in Fayetteville, Arkansas and found an INCREDIBLE used bookstore named Dickson Street Bookshop. The town is home to the University of Arkansas, so it's not entirely surprising to find a bookstore of this type, but I was amazed at the sheer size of it. It's like a maze, tightly packed with high shelves crammed with books, mostly used, many rare and many in excellent condition. I could've spent days in there, not only browsing and spending far too much money on books, but also been reminded of a number of books I've read (especially in the theatre section) which I could have added to my list (oh, well, not that important). A treat, since there isn't a bookstore like it within at least 50 miles of here. Stores like this are where much of my collection (about 2,600 books) comes from, since bargains are to be had. I bought enough books that I was pushing my luck with the weight limit for my luggage on the airline. Top prize: The Encyclopedia of Ireland, a very large book which I've been drooling over, but retails at nearly $100. I got an excellent condition copy for only $25! I got stopped by my budget, of course, but was considering shipping a box of books back to myself. The problem now? (Sigh) Finding room for them in a house in which there isn't any more bookshelf space. Unless, of course, I build another one!

Glad to see you back, Mark!

FINALLY feeling well enough to get back into my reading groove! I'm headed out of town on Monday for a while, and will bring several books along to devour while I'm gone. After I get back, I will put up a post about my "adventure" in not being able to keep up with my reading while I was ill. It taught me a bit about myself and my relationship to my books.

This is still a fascinating read over 400 years later. They don't write them like this anymore; the classic "dialogue" format that one finds in classic writings such as those by Plato was not in general use. However, given the clash between the two dominant models of the order of the universe at the time, it was a perfect choice, and well "argued" on each side. Of course, the Copernican system was proved out, but the process by which it was done is an excellent example of the use of logic, and the demonstration of facts, observation and data as the trump cards over the "thought experiment" mindset behind the Ptolemaic system. In that respect, the Dialogue is an important forerunner of the modern scientific paper; it's written in such a way that it not only proves itself right, but explains how the data was gathered and analyzed, and invites others to duplicate the experiments that led to the proof. This was what gave it such lasting power, despite the Catholic Church's attempts to suppress it. Fortunately, Galileo had many powerful friends in Europe who made sure that it continued to circulate. Amusingly, well over 400 years later, the best that the Church can come up with is that they may have been a little hasty when it came to Galileo; they have yet to come out and say that they were wrong. I recommend this book to anyone interested in astronomy, logic, mathematics or scientific inquiry. The quality of the translation is impressive as well.

Really funny

Forget Peter Benchley, his son, Jaws and everything else. Robert Benchley is a REAL writer and deserves much more attention. This is a very fine collection of his work, and I'd almost call it a must-read. Perhaps not, but it may be something that a lot of people overlooked in passing by seeing "Benchley" and associating it with Jaws or Peter's other books. This book contains a nice variety of RB's writing, including some very funny stuff.

A bit of a shaky start to this no long-lived series. The first time I read it, I didn't think it was that great (on a second try, I liked it better). The characters seemed a little thin, and the story line forced at times. However, in the author's favor, the prose is pretty good and the descriptive work balances out fairly well. I found the climax disappointing, and still do, but perhaps I'm "poisoned" by having read The Lord of the Rings so many times. Many people compare the series to it, but I think it's unfair to the Shannara series. They're not quite apples

This is the last volume of the set, and it includes essays and stories that didn't fit the general headings of the other volumes, but ones that the editors apparently felt strongly enough about to collect in this last volume. The index at the end of the book indexes the entire series, so I know where to find in the volumes that I have and what I'm missing in the ones that I don't (CURSE people who go to book sales and break up a set!). The authors in the book range across a wide period of time, from the ancient Greeks & Romans to 19th century writers. It's a good book to pick up at the library (one of the few places you're likely to find one) and have a good evening or two of varied & interesting reading.

Third and last of three volumes in this series dedicated to poetry and drama, it's a really nice assortment of familiar writings, and some lesser-known classical writers whom you'd enjoy reading for possibly the first time. The volumes aren't arranged by time, but alphabetically, so if you sit down to read this book, you'll get a delightful trip around the world of classical literature. Those works that are translated are well done and quite readable. I enjoy all the volumes of the series that I own for their variety and quality. This book covers Moliere through Richard Wagner.