A lot of Roald Dahl.
This is for a few reasons: I checked a lot of his books out of the library and I am making a minor goal to read all the books I checked out of the library last Monday because they are all books I've been meaning to read. This mini-goal is inspired by my MUCH BIGGER goal to read a lot more this year. I know that sounds like an indefinite number, because it is. Specifically I would like to read somewhere between 80-100 books this year. THAT number was inspired by a Stephen King interview when he said he reads 70-80 books a year, AND ALSO because I am a firm believer in the if-you-want-to-write-you-must-read-voraciously school of thought. And I only read about 45 books last year.
I know that that number sounds puny to some and massive to others, but for me it falls into the about-average camp, in that I usually read about 50 books a year. And it just is not cutting it, people. I've discovered as I've gone along that if I do not spend all my spare time on the Internet SUDDENLY, magically, my schedule frees up a lot of time. An embarrassing amount of time. CURSE YOU INTERNET (but seriously you are great for research and whatnot so don't go away entirely, but also, curse you) (but thanks for helping me figure out who plays Captain America because it was really bothering me).
Anyway. Back to Roald Dahl. The reason I read a lot of his stuff is because most of it is very short and it bolsters my numbers dramatically. Go ahead and judge me for this. It's okay. My theory on this is that if I read a lot of books very quickly at the beginning of the year, I am giving myself some wiggle room to read more densely-written things later on, things that will not take me an afternoon to read.
HENCE I have finished roughly nine books since the beginning of the year, and if I manage to finish all of my library books it will be something more like fourteen or fifteen. This sounds all very lofty and look-at-me-what-a-fantastic-reader-I-am but mostly it is a result of immense shame because I looked over my list of books I read last year and realized that I did not finish one single solitary book in November. NOT ONE. In NOVEMBER. What was I even DOING in November? Nothing. That is what.
ANYWAY as for Roald Dahl! I read The Magic Finger, George's Marvelous Medicine, and Fantastic Mr. Fox. I had never read any of this before, the only Roald Dahl I read as a child was Matilda and The BFG--I don't know what I was reading back then that I missed him. Harry Potter. A lot of the Fudge series by Judy Blume. It's a shame really, I would have loved his stuff as a kid. Really I love his stuff now. My favorite of those three was Fantastic Mr. Fox so if you have not had a chance to read that yet, do so. There were descriptions of food and he called everyone darling (spoiler, I suppose--I am not very good at recognizing what is a spoiler and what is not so I apologize in advance) and they decided to build an underground village. It was splendid.
SO. What about you all? Reading goals for the year? Or none at all? Have you read Roald Dahl? Love him? Hate him? What's your favorite of his books? And what books did you not read as a child that you really should have because you love them now? Inquiring minds want to know!
