I’m a bad, bad, book slut.
When it comes to reading material, I’m promiscuous and fickle. I get a few pages into one book, then callously abandon it when another, more intriguing title catches my eye.
Sometimes I take on two, even three at a time.
I feel no shame.
I take no responsiblity for my wanton ways. I blame my love-em-and-leave-em-ness on the internet. Before Amazon — hello, middle-aged people? Does anyone remember that long-ago era? — when I had to actually go into a bookstore to buy a book, I was much more likely to finish what I started.
Then came Amazon, that virtual, literary brothel. How exciting to browse so many tempting titles! How intoxicating to have them all available, at the click of a mouse! How special I felt to have the Amazon Madam suggest slickly-packaged works just for me!
I found myself ordering more than one at a time. With tomes stacking up by my bedside, it was all too easy to discard one for another. Instead of sticking with a book during a less-than-perfect chapter, I found myself lured by the promise of an easier, breezier read.
Then along came the iPad, and with it, iBooks. Like an addict devolving from escorts to erotic masseuses to cyberporn, I spiraled to depths I never thought possible. Forget that archaic mouse! I could summon exactly what I wanted with the tap of my finger! I was no longer at the mercy of the Postal System; books appeared instantly before me! And worst of all: there were no actual books to clutter my bedside. I could hide the extent of my compulsion even from myself!
My cyber-library shelves are bursting with iBooks I don’t remember buying. What is this one about, again? Ewww, what on earth made me think I would want to read that tripe? And this one, here…did I even read the first paragraph?
I can’t remember the last time I finished a piece of literature. My inability to commit to one author, one book, at a time, from start to finish, has left me literarily bankrupt.
I believe I may have hit bottom.
So I am pledging, one day at a time, to read the following books in my iLibrary, in this order, to completion:
I Thought It Was Just Me – Brene Brown’s book on women and shame. Apropos, is it not?
Wild – Cheryl Strayed’s memoir about the 1000-mile trek that helped her survive the loss of her mother. Her triumph over poverty and loss of family connection is inspiring.
The Unfair Trade – Michael Casey’s examination of the corrupt financial practices that led to the downfall of the middle-class. That would be me!
Now…if I can just ignore the siren call of Anne Lamott’s latest — available for pre-order!!
What about you? Are you faithful or fickle, bookwise?
And, hey — what are you reading right now?
DON’T TELL ME!!!!!!
I’m not just a book slut but a book whore
I’ve also found the perfect way to feed my need to read for free…. now if I could just read and review the 400+ book I have been approved for so the publishers still like me and keep approving my requests for more books… at least I’ve been slowing down my requests for more books.. only 19 this month so far 
You found a way to feed your habit for free??? You’re my kind of book slut.
I read so much that I have to curb my habit. My iPad is a scary problem since I can download just about anything, anytime, anywhere. I just finished Neal Stephenson’s The Baroque Cycle (three 1500 page novels) and am almost done with Spillover, about zoonotic diseases. Next up: Cloud Atlas. If I don’t have at least one or two books on deck, I start to have an anxiety attack. I also reread books I particularly like. My daughter has this habit as well. And Tracy, getting books for free and writing reviews is a genius way to garner free reading material. Kudos.
You just finished three 1500-pae novels? That’s some attention span!
See, now, I do feel guilty when I leave one lover (sorry, book) in the lurch and move on to the next. (But I still do it…) Still find it really difficult to abandon a book completely, although some of the eBooks out there are beginning to make it easier.
Gabi, you are clearly a higher class of book slut than I.
I Am an Incorrigible Book Slut by @divorcedpauline http://bit.ly/Qi3ybz#Reader #Reading #AmReading #Bookslut (It’s a hashtag!!! Ha ha)
Really, who knew? I thought I made it up!
I love your voice in this post. Hilarious. And I think you may have started something with this ‘book slut’ concept.
Also, just started ‘Devil in a White City’ and it’s pretty darn good. My feminist studies/queer theory brain wants me to pick up a copy of ‘I Thought It Was Just Me’ – interested in getting your take on it when you’re done.
Devil in a White City? That sounds interesting…uh-oh…
I am really bad this way! I will abandon a book much more quickly than I used to – I blame it partly on, as you mention, the easy availability of something different and the apparent ADD I’ve developed because of social media. No matter, I still read plenty and have some fantastic books to recommend to you if you’re interested!
So funny — I wrote a post about books and reading today, too! I have figured out that inattentive book reading is restricted to the Kindle — I tend to not finish novels and become easily distracted. I stick to memoirs and non-fiction on it. I need the real book — the paper novel — to really get into it, and right now I’m dropping John Irving (Kindle) and delving into Michael Chabon.
Devil In The White City is excellent, about a serial killer operating in Chicago during the World’s Fair. One of my favorites. And yes, Pauline, I have a pretty crazy attention span for books. Although I will admit, with shame, to being unable to get through Infinite Jest. I guess that makes me a lightweight!
A book whore? Definitely. I read at minimum, one 300- 500 page book a day, with days off reading up to 5 (and I work 75 hours a week). Thank goodness I read over 400 pages an hour. THANK YOU KINDLE FOR YOUR FREE BOOKS. I finish every single book I buy. Books are an expensive habit, but so worth it.
I’d say you’re a book stud.
I am guilty of the same. I have had I Thought It Was Just Me on my nightstand for over two years and have started it several times without finishing.
I have found a picture of you reading your eBooks, and am re-blogging this on Monday. So sue me.
Uh-oh…