the one woman book club: the series

Happy New Years to my few yet faithful readers. I suppose that this is the time when we're all supposed to be reflecting on the past year and coming up with a list of things under "self-improvement goals" and claiming them as our resolutions for the new year. Now, I'm not usually one to make New Year's resolutions (Because I'm lazy. not because I don't have anything to improve upon. Believe me, that list is lengthly.) but there is one thing that I've resolved to amend in 2007 and that's my reading habits. When I sat down to compose my recent "year in review post" I took a little inventory on the number of books that I read to completion this year, and I was a bit ashamed of myself. Since only 32% of adults report to read books every day, my poor reading habit apparently puts me in with the majority of Americans, but that's not exactly the group I'd like to associate myself with so I'm vowing to change that. Originally, I toyed with the idea of setting the goal of reading one book a week, but quickly abandoned it since that's a goal that I fear I won't be able to reach. I also figured that one book per month wasn't really much to brag about, so I'm currently aiming for two per month. I figured that to keep myself honest, I'd incorporate it into the blog somehow by doing quick little book reviews or something - otherwise I fear that this hobby might be abandoned along with past goals of learning to drive a stick shift, learning to play chess, and teaching myself to play the guitar. So, I guess the reason that I'm boring you with all this is because you should be expecting a bi-weekly "what I'm reading" post series from me. Please be kind with my selections - I'm fully aware that people will judge me based on what I choose to read and also based on what I haven't already read - but I promise to always be honest. If I decide to read Little Girl Lost, for example, I'm not going to lie and say I read Great Expectations or something. I also know that there are several of you out there who are much better versed in the contemporary literary scene, so suggestions for what I should read next will always be welcomely received.

My first selection of the year will be Nick Hornby's A Long Way Down, the premise of which is that four strangers unexpectedly meet on the top of a fifteen story London building on New Year's Eve, all with the same suicidal intentions. I'm hoping they don't jump.