My reading progress the past couple of weeks could best be described as lethargic. I continue to read The Sot-Weed Factor, but at an incredibly slow pace. I'm enjoying the book, and am eager to see what happens, but I find myself maybe reading ten or twenty pages each day. If it was Animal Farm, that would be okay, but this book is 800 pages long. At my current pace, I won't finish this book until February. Late February.
I've decided that I need to re-dedicate myself to tackling this read. When I was reading Infinite Jest, a book I wasn't enjoying, I set a goal of reading 50 pages every day. I wasn't able to keep that pace, but it did serve as a motivational tool for continuing to read. With The Sot-Weed Factor, I'm a little over 200 pages in, with just under 600 to go, so I've decided to try the same thing; reading 50 pages a day. This should have it finished in two weeks. It won't be my best performance, but I'll get through it.
When thinking about why I've been reading this book so slowly, I've decided that reading through a list of 100 books is a little like sailing from the North Pole to the South Pole. Currently, I'm reading my 49th book, which puts me near the equator and in the dreaded doldrums. Like the sailors of the past, making it through the doldrums is no easy task and forces one to work hard, lest they come to a stand still. I'm stuck in the doldrums right now, content with how much I've read so far, but still with so much to read. I have to keep working or I'll never reach my goal. I don't want to be the guy who read 48 of Time's list of 100 All Time Novels.
Now it's off to my reading chair; the couch!
I am starting Book #12. I was talking to a family member about one of the books that was over 800 pgs and was saying how hard it was to get through the book. They responded with why don't you just stop reading it and read something else. Now, I am not on #49 like yourself, but I have always been someone who needs to complete things. Even though I wasn't enjoying the book I still felt the need to finish it. I only started back in Fall of 2010 so I am pretty far behind. Good luck on the mission!
ReplyDeleteI've thought of stopping, or at least taking a break from reading a book, but in the end, like you, I want to complete this the right way.
ReplyDeleteI've almost finished The Sot-Weed Factor, and hopefully after that I can get back on pace.
What are you reading right now?