Saturday, November 22, 2014

Bookish Thoughts...

On lexile numbers. In what universe does The Diary of a Wimpy Kid deserve a higher lexile number than Harry Potter? Lexile numbers, which rate the "readability" of a book, are supposedly determined by a computer analysis of sentence length and structure, word frequency, syntax and complexity. So please tell me how the Wimpy Kid books rate lexiles ranging from 950-1050 while the Harry Potter books rate only 860-960? Open either series at random and compare the two side by side and tell me which is a better-written and more challenging read! I've always thought lexile numbers were arbitrary and stupid...now I have proof.


On rereading.  Lately my library books have been coming between me and the books I own. See, there are books sitting on my shelves that I love and really want to reread, but there's always a stack of library books that I have to read first. It seems that books with a due date take precedence over books that I own and can read any old time. And I don't know what to do about it. Not going to the library is not a viable option (at least not for me); but never having time to reread my favorite books isn't working either. I should just limit the number of books I check out...which sounds good in theory, but when I'm actually at the library all my good intentions fly out the window and I end up filling my library bag and coming home with more books that I meant to. So, what's the solution? I have no idea. It's a bookish dilemma I haven't quite figured out yet. But I'll keep you posted.


20 comments:

  1. I have the same library problem! Moving to a place without a decent library closer than 45 minutes away would seem to be helpful, but then I discovered I could check out e-books at any time of day or night. Maybe we can make a pact with each other to go library-book-less for a month or something.

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    1. That's a good idea. It'd be hard, though. But maybe then I'd actually get to those books I own that I want to read. :) I'm in if you are.

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    2. Let's do it! How about January or February? Either should work for me, but I'm really quite open. Should we invite others to join?

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    3. Let's do it in January. Start the year off with a clean slate. No library books for one month. (We can read all the books we get for Christmas!) And if you want to invite others to join in I think that would be fun. I'm kind of excited about this. :)

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    4. Sounds good! I will make some kind of button and announce the plan on my blog some time in December, then in January start reading from my shelves.

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    5. I already have a mental list of the books I want to read in January. :) A library leave of absence--I can't wait. Thanks for doing the button; I'll do a post about it, too, and link back to your blog. Happy Reading!

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  2. I love my library, and I have a current stack in progress! The problem is that I get so many books from NetGalley that I have to try, too, so re-reading always ends up taking a back seat.

    Not that I'm a big re-reader, but there are just some books that require more than one visit for so many reasons. If you discover a solution that works for you, do let us know. :)

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    1. I'm working on it but so far I still have a growing stack of library books sitting in my room that need to be read before they're due...and when I take them back I ALWAYS check out more. It's a vicious circle. :) But like Lory suggested, maybe I'll try going one month without any library at all.

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  3. I've had a similar problem with library books lately. There are so many books on my own shelves that I want to read (both unread books and re-reads) but I never seem to have time for them. I'm determined to somehow make more time for re-reads next year!

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    1. Me too! It's just hard when there are so many new books that I want to read. I have a serious library addiction that I might have to try and break this next year. :) Good luck with your re-reads!

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  4. Add me to the list of those with library problems! I had some that I'd requested, but put on hold because I was reading other things. The holds all expired at the same time, and I had a stack waiting for me. I do want to read them - just not right now. The last couple of week, I have just returned books through the drop-off slot, so I won't be tempted to check out still more. My TBR stacks at home are out of control, and I'd like to focus on getting them whittled down.

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    1. I hate when ALL your holds come in at once and there's no way to read them all before they have to go back. That happens to me a lot. And I know what you mean about TBR stacks getting out of control. I'm trying to whittle away at mine; good luck whittling away at yours!! :)

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  5. I solved that problem by not having a library card! :-)

    Kind regards,

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    1. That's definitely a solution. :) I'm not sure I'm ready for that drastic of a step...mostly because I can't afford to buy all the books I want to read. Thanks for stopping by!

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  6. I've always had issues with quantifying reading--I don't even like to rank my favorite books--but there is so much more to readability than common words and standard sentence structure. And what value is imparted by such a system? I can't imagine books really being chosen based on their lexile ranking.

    I tend to use my library to get books I don't have and may not want to hang onto--I get on waiting lists for bestsellers that intrigue me, and then feel I have to drop everything when it's finally my turn.

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  7. The library problem is so real! Our branch is small so I usually request from other branches and limit myself to holds. I don't wonder off into the actual stacks to be tempted. :)

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    1. Smart girl. (But I still get in trouble when I request too many holds and they all come in at once.) That's why Lory and I have decided to put the library itself on hold for one month in January...so we can finally read all the books we already own. :)

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  8. Sounds like I am losing my library pal for January! Eeek! I totally understand the desire to re-read, though. I finally "gave myself permission" to re-read even if that library book was sitting over there nagging me. Believe me, the pleasure of the re-read far outweighs the push to finish the library book. Savor your January plan :) I think I might try to re-read a book a month or something...stretch out the fun a little bit. Good luck!

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    1. I'll be reading from my shelves all of January...no library at all. (I'm actually kind of excited about it. I already have a list of books I want to read.)

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