Any Literature Geeks Here?

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Lately I haven't be reading so much. In the past I'd read a book a day. The last book I read was the Imprinted Brain. That was about two weeks ago. I guess I won't be reading as many books this year.

I'd rather be able to study than have a high sex drive.

Concerta XL and me are best of friends. That pill is a wonder drug for my terrible concentration.

I went misdiagnosed for so long that it's safe to say that books helped me survive. So I will always be in their debt. I cannot even imagine a year that I read less than 100 books or have less than 3-5 books going at once. Usually what causes me to switch back and forth is whether I can emotionally handle a particular path a book is on. If it breaks my heart enough then I will need to calm down with another book for a while until I am ready to come back to it. So that and a fascination with a new book I may have acquired cause me to juggle books a lot. But it has been nice to have that peace, there is nothing wrong with needing medication, but I am glad that I can obtain peace without it.

I really don't count the books I read, I read the books I like....

and that has made all the difference.

I am not a typical litature geek...however, I cant get enough of great poetry from all ages, all gendres and all cultures . I even have some books on prehistoric poetry...very kinky I may add. The reason I love poetry is because 1) alot said in less space,
2) poets can get away saying with anything, 3) a fly has a longer attention span than I do and poems are short enough to keep my attention while deep enough to make me think for a long time. 4) poets can get away with saying anything...did I already say that???

anyway...I have a mini poetry library

jojo

I've been accused of loving books more than people. The local library is my second home, I even volunteer there sometimes. I also go to libraries all over the county...I have a thing about libraries because of the books. Books are my life.

I shouldn't neglect to mention all the stuff I read online too though...

Yes, I could be called a literature geek, especially when it comes to poetry.

I adore books. I collect some, got a few hard-to-find copies. I wish I could read 100 or so a year, usually depression slows my progress, I get distracted, or headaches overwhelm me.

Favorite styles of books: Russian lit, specifically soviet literature (but I'm still finding more and more books to learn), French existential lit (also branching into OuLiPo), and drug literature, like Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, Confessions of an English Opium Eater, Opium: The Diary of his cure, and such.

I can't make up my mind about the "classics"; I either love them or hate them.

--David

Oooohhh, I thought this thread was going to be about who has actually read the classics of literature ....

I was quite enamored of a young lady in Uni who was reading Moby Dick. I was quite impressed, but she wasn't interested in me. I have read most of James Joyce 'Ulysses', however. And of course almost all of Poe and Lovecraft.

Reading is my favorite activity, hands down. More so even than eating or sex. I was lucky - my mom was a librarian at a community college and brought stacks of books home for me to read from an early age.

I can't fall asleep at night without a book to read. I honestly think I would have gone insane by now if I couldn't read.

I'm a book whore. I'll read anything. I just go to the library and pick out books at random, and part of the fun is that some are very, very good. I love discovering great writers.

count me in! though I can't appreciate modern lit which requires emotional understanding (read Jodi Piccoult or cultural authors.) To me they lack intellectual substance. Used to be a Bernard Shaw fan, Aldous Huxley and still am into Charlotte Bronte's Villette. The last has emotional understanding but it is individualistic.

Hey LukeInFlames:

I adore OuLiPo, but to be honest, I need to read more of 'em. I've read Queneau's "The Last Days" and "Exercises in Style"; I actually just ordered a copy of "Zazie in the Metro". [I've sorta read "Cent Mille Millards de Poemes"]

I've read a tongue-in-cheek article by Georges Perec titled "Experimental demonstration of the tomatotopic organization in the Soprano". Basically, it's written as a scientific study about throwing tomatoes at opera singers--it made me laugh. Again, I just ordered some of his short stories.

I enjoyed Calvino's "If on a winter's night a traveler", but as a whole I found it lacking. Worth a read. [I need to read more Calvino].

While not strictly OuLiPo, Alfred Jarry's "Ubu Roi" and Amos Tutuola's "The Palm-Wine Drinkard" have similarities to OuLiPo, and both are quick-fun reads.

As far as my favorite, It'd be Queneau. There's just something about the language that he uses that is, for lack of a better word, seductive! I'm really looking forward to reading more Perec.

What have you read by Queneau and Perec? What would you recommend? Do you read them in the original or translated? Also, how did you first get into OuLiPo?

Wow, I'm pleasantly amazed that you've read them!

--David