The list to end all lists

Last night I found myself messing around on goodreads. I had just downloaded the app and I was looking through their lists of commendable or popular books so I could start adding to my list of what I've read and it got me thinking. What if I was to compile a list of books I've read and I mean all of the books. What would such a list even look like, my thoughts would be ridiculous because even now with less time on my hands, I am an avid reader. I know for instance that I've read close to 300 books in just under two years. I'm using this an example because I started working in a bookshop in May 2012 and we're allowed to borrow books but we have to sign them in and out so I actually have a list of what I've read during that time and no I'm not counting picture books but I do read all the new ones as they come in. 

I'm going to hazard a guess and say it would probably be in the thousands but there's far too many for me to ever remember without a little help. 
It got me thinking about whether I'd really include everything I'd read or would my inner book snob kick in and start editing for me. For instance would I really want people to know that I've read fifty shades of grey ( and hated every word), the entire twilight series, a fair portion of James Patterson's back catalogue ( I only stopped when it became blatantly obvious he  was no longer writing any of them himself) and a whole lot of popular fiction.
At one stage in my twenties my liking for popular fiction was such that my sister used to tease me mercilessly for the terrible titles and book covers of what ever I'd be carting around ( I will always have a book of some description in my handbag) and I have no idea why I read so many. They were essentially the same plot every time to the extent that on more than one occasion I accidentally read the same book twice because it was re-released with a new cover and while the plot sounded familiar, I couldn't say for definite that I'd read the book until I got about half way through .

That's the thing when you are a bulk reader like myself ( in that I read  few titles a week ), only some books stay with me. When someone asks me if I've read anything good recently or sometimes what I've been reading and I draw a complete blank. Well I've definitely been reading books, that much we can be sure of but unless something is brilliant or terrible, It's probably not going to stay with me. I'm sure I've probably forgotten more books than I remember reading but because of my constant need to be reading something, not everything I read is going to noteworthy or memorable. Some people take a break once they have finished a good book but I'll pick up something light, a bit of popular fiction or a young adult novel which I will say is for work (that will be half true) but really it's like a mental palette cleanser. Cleaning out my brain so I'm ready to read something worthwhile but it all goes on the list of what I've read.

I don't know if goodreads is going to help find this list, I know the book shop I work in only has a fraction of the Laura Library ( books read by Laura, it would be both scary and awesome if this was a real place) and from what I can tell goodreads has a good mix of the truly terrible and the obscure as well as some books I've heard of and read. I found it somewhat depressing upon briefly scanning the most popular list  that it seemed to be largely made up romantic fiction and the fifty shades spin offs or mummy porn . So perhaps it will be never ending because I'm not likely to take a pause on reading until I catch up. 

In the meanwhile, I will pretend I'm not 32 and the dream I had of having my own library containing everything I've read on one side of the room and everything I'd like to read on the other might actually happen some day. Oh well a girl can dream  

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

The darker side of romance

Help, I think I'm autistic

Sometimes I open my mouth and my mother comes out ..