Today Bry and I were driving out to Fashion Place Mall when I saw that Border's Bookstore was closing their store and having a 40% - 50% discount sale. I squealed with joy and pulled into the parking lot. I am a book junky and have been reading as early as I can remember. I started collecting books when I was about four years old and would memorize the words page by page and create new stories for the characters in the book, recreating my own story. By kindergarten I was full speed ahead and reading fluently . One of my favorite things to do is to go to Barnes and Noble and spend hours browsing through different books. I like everything from trashy Chelsea Handler reads, to cookbooks, to fiction, to autobiographies, and those nutty self help psychological books. I have books at my home in New York shoved into hallway closets, bins under my bed, and shelves in the bathroom. I have a few tubs filled with books in my current basement, and I continue to buy and read more. My issue with books is that I think they have feelings. Today I was feeling bad for the books that were still on the shelves waiting for someone to buy them and appreciate them. I feel bad if I don't finish a book because I think it's feelings will be hurt. I fall in love with the characters of novels and find myself thinking of them throughout the day and missing them when the book is finished. (There is one book I haven't finished reading - "Eat, Pray, and Love." I tried and tried to get through this book but couldn't stand the main character and her whiny disposition. I even tried to watch the movie, which by the way, I never watch a movie before reading a book, and I couldn't even get through the movie). Today I could have spent HOURS in Borders but with limited time, and other things to do, I had to browse quickly. I had a huge stack of books in my hands and kept justifying my adoption of these books by their 50% discount. I ended up purchasing five books today for a total of about $85.00.
One book that I purchased today is "Act Like A Lady, Think Like A Man," by Steve Harvey. I started reading this book out loud to Bryant in the car as we ran from errand to errand and even over dinner, asking him "Is this true? What would you say, think, and feel?" automatically violating the book. According to Steve Men are SIMPLE. One of my main draws to "Act Like A Lady, Think Like A Man," is that I have a few single friends that are dating and meeting guys, and friends going through serious breakups. And myself, who has once been there. I have also been intrigued by the processes of the opposite sex, and now I have it all written out for me. From THE MAN, himself. A book I've read before which is similar to this is "He's Just Not That Into You." A movie was made about this book and I didn't care too much for it, but then again, I rarely, I care for movies made from books, especially well written ones.
I have read TONS of books, but a few books that stand out in my mind are "The Kite Runner" and "A Thousand Splendid Suns," by Khaled Hosseni. I so bad wanted these to books to be real. For the longest time I refused to watch "The Kite Runner" when it came out on video but caved when I heard raving reviews from friends. I HATED it. The movie left out several major parts that the book portrayed. The depth of the movie was certainly not what your imagination was allowed to explore by reading the book. Other books that I really enjoyed were "Something Borrowed" and "Something Blue" by Emily Giffin. I also enjoyed "A Million LittlePieces" by James Frey but automatically disliked it after I found out that James Frey lied in the book to make it more "sell able to the public." Oprah had him on her show twice. Once to talk about how great the book was, the commend him on his experience and courage to write about it. Then again, to call him out on his bullshit. I couldn't believe how fast I had fallen in love with James Frey to find out that the fish he caught was inches bigger than the original fish that was caught. I read several Mark Twain books in College because Mark Twain wrote his books in a study located on the college campus that I attended.
Most of the books I read, I find out about through other avid readers. I have my geeky book junky friends that I will call when I am in need of a good escape. Several of my colleagues are also big readers, and you have to love the Oprah Book Club. I should join a book club - maybe a new hobby to explore???
And please, if you have anything good to recommend, do so. And if you ever need to borrow a book or a good recommend, I may have something up my sleeve.
