To my surprise, I’ve actually been on a roll reading-wise. I kicked off my summer reading Kitchen, whereby my love of Banana Yoshimoto and my interest in Japanese literature was formed.

Then I read High Fidelity, which–if you haven’t read any Nick Hornby then, let me advise you, get on it! Reading the book gave me a much greater appreciation for the movie, too; it’s very faithful to the novel.

I also made my way through Brideshead Revisited, which I loved. Or rather, I didn’t love it, until right at the very end when the substance of the whole novel unfolds before you in about five pages. Brilliant!

From there I moved on to About A Boy–another Hornby, and another great novel. I really relish Hornby’s sense of humor. I have a feeling we’d be GREAT friends if we ever met. At least, that’s what I like to tell myself, because it makes me feel good.

Up next was the 800+ page Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell, which I talked about on my goodreads account (leave a comment if you want a friend request). To give you the short-hand, I liked it, but didn’t fall in love with it.

And finally, I just finished N.P., another novel by Banana Yoshimoto.

I realize that reading six books might not sound like a vast accomplishment, but I’ve been struggling like heck to regain my ability to read for pleasure. I don’t know what happened–I think all that speed-reading I did in college must have ruined me, or something. Plus, the past two years I feel like I’ve been nourishing my much-neglected love of the cinema. But in any case, I’m thrilled to have gotten through some fiction.

I’ve been trying to compile a summer reading list, but realized that this just makes me feel tied down. I have several books on my shelf that I haven’t read yet (it’s a sickness, this book-buying thing), including the one I brought to work to start on my lunch break: For Whom the Bell Tolls. It’s very satisfying to be able to close a book and then walk to my bookcase to examine my options for my next read. I’d like to be a minimalist, except when it comes to books. I want as many books as I can possibly stuff into my house–and then some more. I want to be able to pile them up and go for a swim. I want shelves, rooms, mountains of books! (Insert hysterical, strung-out laughter here.)

So, there you have it. I’m a reader again.

Now, some happy thoughts:

–I get to go see Melanie’s band Cain and Annabelle play at a wine bar tonight!

–I get to see Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince this weekend!

–The first meeting of my book club is on Sunday evening!

–My birthday is less than two weeks away (and there are some super-fun things in store as a result thereof)!

–I still have some vacation time left, and I plan to head to Charleston to visit my aunt and go to the beach!

Ahem. Anyway. Cheers to you and happy Thursday.