Title: The Year of Reading Dangerously (Goodreads)
Author: Andy Miller
Published: Harper Collins, 2012
Pages: 252
Genres: Non-Fiction
My Copy: Hardcover
Buy: Amazon, Book Depository, Kindle (or visit your local Indie bookstore)
It is no secret that I am a fan of books about books; I especially enjoy a bookish memoir. The idea of reading and learning about someone’s bookish life is fascinating to me. Let’s be honest, I blog about books because I think I have an interesting bookish journey to talk about and I want to capture that for posterity sake. I would love to learn how to write a bookish memoir, so I read anything I can get my hands on. I have even written a post asking for recommendations for books about books and I am always on the look out for more.
I am not sure how I discovered Andy Miller’s memoir The Year of Reading Dangerously: How Fifty Great Books Saved My Life but I do remember being really excited about it. I ordered the book and it sat on my shelf for a little too long. With a holiday to America planned, I packed the book in my suitcase and was determined to read it. Turned out Simon Savidge from Savidge Reads started talking about this book about the same time and now I look like I was just following him in an effort to be as cool as he is.
Andy Miller worked as an editor at the time of writing this book (I assume he still does) and found himself only reading for work. On impulse he picked up a copy of The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov and something just clicked for him. He set out to read ten books, which he called The List of Betterment, which consisted of books he has once lied about reading or felt he should read. This list obviously expanded over the course of the year but it was his starting point into rediscovering a passion for reading.
My discovery for reading was not unlike Andy Miller’s except mine involved Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, the 1001 Books Before You Must Read Before You Die list and it wasn’t a lost passion. I loved this book, I was so happy to read about all the awesome books Miller was reading in the course of the year. While this memoir is not healthy for my TBR and judging by Andy Miller’s glowing praises for Absolute Beginners by Colin MacInnes, I really need to get onto this novel first.
My only problem with this memoir is that Miller didn’t spend enough time talking about my favourite novels, like Frankenstein by Mary Shelley and Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky. Iwas happy to see that The List of Betterment not only includes canon but also involves books like The Essential Silver Surfer Vol. 1 by Stan Lee. It is just good to see a memoir that doesn’t just involve highbrow literature. He even considered calling this book How Fifty Great Books (and Two Not-So-Great Ones) Saved My Life referring to Dan Brown.
There is so much to talk about within this memoir, especially when talking about the fifty books mentioned in the book. I’m hoping that I can find some more great bookish memoirs to follow this one. The Year of Reading Dangerously is essentially a book about connecting with great books and the positive effects reading has on a reader. I highly recommend the book and I hope the Andy Miller will write a follow up about his continuing bookish journey.
I just about picked up this book at the library yesterday. Now i think i’m going to have to go back and get it. I think we all love books about books, so this one seems promising. And if I read it now we can still discuss it while it’s fresh in your mind.
hurry up and read it 😛
I just about picked up this book at the library yesterday. Now i think i’m going to have to go back and get it. I think we all love books about books, so this one seems promising. And if I read it now we can still discuss it while it’s fresh in your mind.
hurry up and read it 😛
I love the sound of this. I’ll definitely be keeping an eye out for it.
If you haven’t read them already, Nick Hornby has a few collections of his column out. It’s a monthly column that he’s been writing for years, in which he covers what he’s bought, what he’s read, and what led him to do so. I really love them. They’re essentially book blog in physical form. The first one is called The Polysyllabic Spree.
I keep meaning to read The Polysyllabic Spree, maybe I better order it.
I love the sound of this. I’ll definitely be keeping an eye out for it.
If you haven’t read them already, Nick Hornby has a few collections of his column out. It’s a monthly column that he’s been writing for years, in which he covers what he’s bought, what he’s read, and what led him to do so. I really love them. They’re essentially book blog in physical form. The first one is called The Polysyllabic Spree.
I keep meaning to read The Polysyllabic Spree, maybe I better order it.