Am positively deluged by life. And by life I mean BOOKS. Is there anything else? Really? Because if there is, I haven't found it. Left to my own devices I'd never NOT be reading. Sleep? Such a waste of time, obviously, since I haven't been doing much of it lately. It's better replaced with reading.

I've gotten a crapload of great, great stuff (I heart all of you people!) from publishers lately, and deciding what to read first has been driving me nuts. Not just review books,though those have picked up incredibly, but for whatever random reason I've also decided it's an appropriate time to read 1,000 page books about:

Early American history:

The history of the French Revolution:

And, to round things out, the history of Scotland:

Just because. That's why.

Then, there are the book groups.

Last evening the Classics Book Group at my library discussed Crime and Punishment. What a deep, complex book. Far too much to digest in an hour and a half. I think you could spend a year on it. We talked about Raskolnikov, what made him a villain, if he was redeemed at the end, etc. Thinking himself an extraordinary person, he considered he was above the law. The person he murdered was by far inferior to him, socially. Therefore, he told himself, what he did wasn't actually a crime. Herein lies the topic of philosophy, too much to get one's head around frankly.

Lots to talk about re: his rationale, why he committed the murders, why he confessed, why on earth Sonya loved him. (Still don't get that.) Also, we dug briefly into the religious symbolism in the book, which none of us had seen as being that pronounced 'til we started talking about it and reading footnotes in our various editions.

I smell a re-read coming on.

I'm also reading, for my Nonfiction Group, When the Mississippi Ran Backwards: Empire, Intrigue, Murder, and the New Madrid Earthquakes by Jay Feldman. Interesting stuff illustrating there is actual history here in the Mid-West, but between you and me, he needed a bit more editing. Not as big a deal to me in nonfiction as in fiction, but it can be irritating. Especially the repetition. Especially the repetition. Starting the first sentence in two consecutive paragraphs with the exact same words, just switching them around, is not okay. Not. Okay.

And for the Fiction group I'm re-reading my choice for this month: The Little Giant of Aberdeen County by Tiffany Baker. I obviously liked this one, considering this is the second time I'm reading it in a year. But will they like it. Stress!

While I'm listing, here are some recent review books received:

You see part of my dilemma. The rest is scattered throughout the house, hitting the doorstep and my desk daily once again. Heavenly, yet befuddling, all at the same time.

And you don't even want to know how many books I have checked out of the library right now. No. You don't. Well, okay! If you insist. The number sits somewhere between 20 and 30. Happy now?!

Deep breath… Deep breath…

A bit of self-imposed frenzy? Maybe so. But if you're going to go there's just no better way.

Now, if you'll excuse me, it's time to go READ.