Bookworms~ How many books are you able to read at 1 time?

let me explain clearer. i mean how many can you switch back and forth to, without getting them confused. like read book A for a day, then book B for a day, then book C for a day,etc.

i find i can only do 2 at a time. anymore and i'm like "what happened to so and so? oh wait that's the other book" then i have to go back a few pages a re read that to figure out.

how many can you do?

Two sometimes three. I've read 35 books so far this year.

Kevin

I would guess 5-7

I've always got some books on the back burner just because some of them are so large that they're not "one-sitting" reads; I'm still revisiting Teddy Roosevelt's Autobiography and the 1,200 page magnolith The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich.

Don't forget to visit the Recommend A Book thread!

StarHalo said:

1,200 page

Don't forget to visit the Recommend A Book thread!

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yikes, that's a huge book.

biggest one i've finished so far was about 350 pages.

i have one book, it's about 600 pages about the story of a Chinese woman who grew up when communism hit China and she tells how her and her family struggled through it. then another one is about 500 pages of a guy who was a soldier in Vietnam war and got captured and put in an NVA camp for several years and he tells all the stuff he went through. as far as i know, those are the 2 biggest books i have, so i'm saving them till last


yup, i recommended a book about 2 weeks ago on that thread!

If I have to, 5-7, haven't done that in awhile. I have been able to read 3 chapters from each of my 6 textbooks at one point while I was in school and be able to retain it until the weekly tests pass. That was roughly 10 years ago and I'm not confident I can still do so today. I keep it to 2 at most unless I have to read more.

I average about two full length (400-500 pages, give or take) books per week, if my schedule allows. I rarely have more than 3 or 4 going at one time, and so far I haven't had any issues like what you describe. However, it depends a great deal of what you are reading, rather than just the number. For example, the "A Song of Ice and Fire" volumes by George R.R. Martin have literally hundreds of names to keep track of, even if you discount the nicknames, first name/surname mash-ups, and family symbols. If I actually tried to keep track of three or even two books like that at once, I probably couldn't do it. But I read almost purely for entertainment, so basically I just ignore all that and can still enjoy the story, and over time (the set is several books and the shortest so far is like 800 pages) you really get to know the important characters anyway, without exerting the effort.

It is well known that humans are quite lousy at multitasking, and people consistently overestimate their abilities to manage it...honestly if you are reading two books at once, you're doing just fine, and you'll probably retain the information better anyway. Good to know there are still avid readers out there!

Frijid said:

yikes, that's a huge book.

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I've read most of the 2,200 page Zondervan NIV Study Bible, just sitting and reading it straight through like a novel, skipping a book here and there; no real retention that way, though it is still to this day the most informative book on any topic I've ever read, it's at least half footnotes. Highly recommended if you want something better than the Gideon's from your last hotel stay..

Most guys read the war novels from their respective generation, I know too many great Iraq and Afghanistan books..

My book queue extends to the library; your local library does inter-library loans where you can get any book from any other library in their local/county system, but you may have to wait until someone returns the book you're asking for, or for it ship from the other location. I have a couple next-in-line books from other libraries at the moment. And you should check to see if your library has Kindle books - the Kindle software is free, and it's free to borrow the Kindle book. If you're reading this, you already have everything you need to select and start reading a library book right now.

Just as with my women, I'm a one book at a time kinda guy.

(Keeps my mind from running wild with plot twists from a bunch of different books all at once.)

Only one at a time here. I'm also a regular patron of the local library. Seems kind of silly to buy them when they're there for the taking.

Geoff

Mostly one at a time if for fun. I tend to read quickly, so a 1,200 page book might be a one (Weekends, etc) day read anyway.

If the book is good, I just want to see what happens, so I just finish it.

I read Wool the other day for example in one sitting, on a Nook. I took a few days to read the (5 books?) Game of Thrones series, also on the Nook (That was my first reading on a Nook, my kid works at Barnes & Noble now...I get a "break" there.)



If for work/research it could be a few dozen as I build cross references, etc.

Flying Turtle said:

Only one at a time here. I'm also a regular patron of the local library. Seems kind of silly to buy them when they're there for the taking.

Geoff

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True. But some books are worth owning.

Others are considered too controversial or "Wrong Thinking," and not available at a typical public library. In such cases, no choice but to buy them.

Monocrom said:

Others are considered too controversial or "Wrong Thinking,"

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Such as?

A brief jaunt through my library's search engine turns up pretty much every controversial book I can think of; De Sade, Abbie Hoffman, Fifty Shades, Tango Makes Three, etc..

I generally am reading 3-5 books at a time these days; it was more, when including the works written by my students, when I was teaching.

StarHalo said:

Such as?

A brief jaunt through my library's search engine turns up pretty much every controversial book I can think of; De Sade, Abbie Hoffman, Fifty Shades, Tango Makes Three, etc..

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No, no . . . Those are controversial but not dangerous. (Should have clarified that point. My apologies for any misunderstanding that might have caused.) Hoffman's "Steal This Book" was a downright silly and funny read. But I only recently took an interest in it. I'm sure that in its time, it was considered dangerous. But that time has long passed. Hoffman didn't even come out of hiding until fairly recently when all of his old enemies died of old age. He did attend the re-creation of Woodstock where he apparently tried to stir up political / revolutionary feelings. he was either ignored or laughed at by the much younger crowds.

Let's face it, an army of angry women are not likely to go rioting in the streets or individually commit atrocious acts after reading something in "Fifty Shades of Grey."

Hm, Anarchist's Cookbook? Black Medicine?

StarHalo said:

Hm, Anarchist's Cookbook? Black Medicine?

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Back in the Dark Ages, they were dangerous. In this "enlightened age" of the internet, the info. in those books can be found online. (Wonder how many folks blew themselves up following the recipes in The Anarchist's Cookbook.)

Monocrom said:

(Wonder how many folks blew themselves up following the recipes in The Anarchist's Cookbook.)

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George Hayduke's revenge books were way more entertaining anyway. I can't think of any particular book that would start rioting though..

Yeah, but some of Hayduke's tales only can be done if you circumstances permit. For example, the one with the obnoxious neighbor upstairs who was dealt with when an apartment above that neighbor became available . . . and someone forget to lock the door. Downstairs neighbor happened to find out.

As for rioting, it's more about the fear that those in power have that if others read the book, it could lead to rioting in the streets. It's about those in power believing that a book which encourages "wrong thinking" could cause the citizenry to riot.

I try to only read one at a time. I can generally power through one fairly quickly so no need to be reading multiple ones at the same time.