Not a Literary Monogamist

 This post from two years ago remains one of my favorites. It's still true, and both better and worse than ever. Better in that I made a New Year's resolution to finish two books each month (usually one audiobook and one traditional or e-book). Worse in that my Audible subscription has added even more books to my TBR (TBL?) pile. 

Last month, I added "Sample Sunday" to my reading routine so I can decide which Kindle books pass the test of going beyond the sample and committing to the whole book. Add to those the magazines I subscribed to (when will I learn?) and the possibilities of books and magazines to lose myself in are practically endless--and that's without leaving my house. 

When I do leave the house, I'm actually grateful that my car is too old for subscription music services (not compatible) because that means I rarely listen to the radio anymore, opting instead to listen to a book.

The result of all of this is that I'm consuming more books (and more varied books) than I have in a long time, though, which makes me happy. For a long time, reading got pushed to the bottom of the list. Now, I make it a priority.

Original post:

Are you a single-book reader or a multi-book reader? Do you give your heart to one book at at time? Or, do you prefer to play the field, seeing several books at once, giving a piece of your heart to each but not making an exclusive commitment to any?

I definitely fit into the second category.

I don't know when this happened, although I'm sure that it evolved over time. I used to take books out of the library or buy them at the bookstore and read them one at a time, fully committing to each book for as long as it lasted. But somewhere along the way, I stopped committing. 

I think it might have begun when I realized that "too many books, too little time" was a reality check, and not just an adage. I gave myself permission to begin books and discard them, unfinished, if there was no chemistry after the first few chapters. There were, after all, plenty of other books in the library, and I'd never have time to read them all. Why go all-in with a book that was unsatisfying when I had so many other options? 

There were other contributors to this lifestyle. A smorgasbord of Kindle samples. Book club deliveries that showed up while I was seeing another book and tried to lure me away. Magazines that were, by nature, interested in just having fun for a season.

And here I am. So much reading material. I can't focus.

I can't choose. I want to read them all. 

But there's not enough time.

Cdd20 via Pixabay

Oddly enough, I'm monogamous when it comes to fiction. I think it's the characters. They pull me in and beg me to stay -- at least in the books where I get past the first few chapters. 

I'd like to say that I'll reform -- that I'll break my serial reading habit and commit to just one book at a time -- but I know there's no turning back. I've tasted the freedom of having a reading selection to cater to my every mood and, when I can easily take a wide selection of choices with me wherever I go in one simple, lightweight container, the temptation to see other books is just too great.

I've resigned myself to the idea that some of these relationships will be meaningful and others will be just flings. I'm okay with that.

And so I'll continue these pursuits, judging books by their covers, seeking both truth and fiction, in search of the perfect match.

Even if it's only for one night.