19 Comments
Apr 27Liked by Sandi Rosner

How glorious to plan for a whole day of reading. I love the idea of a 'vacation day' at home. Is this an 'extra' day to your normal days off?

Expand full comment
author

Since my work is freelance, "normal days off" doesn't really apply to my life. I can take a day off whenever I want to. But if I'm not actively working on a project for a client, I'm not getting paid. There are no paid vacation days, or holidays, or sick days. I have deadlines to meet. If i have multiple projects in my queue, it's common for me to work seven days a week. No complaints here; I'm grateful to have the work and to make a living in the yarn business.

Expand full comment
Apr 26Liked by Sandi Rosner

I have been eyeing that book. My book day may very well be that day as I will be on vacation in the woods… read, eat, walk, repeat!

Another wonderful book is Margaret Renkl’s Comfort pf Crows. It’s a short chapter a week about the nature in her yard. While not suitable for a reading day, it is a delightful year long read.

Expand full comment
author

A vacation in the woods sounds lovely! I'll have to take my day at home—my calendar is just too full to travel, unless it push the vacation day out several months!

Expand full comment
Apr 26Liked by Sandi Rosner

I go twice a year to Capon Springs and Farms. Lovely.

Expand full comment
author

It sounds like alice of heaven.

Expand full comment
Apr 25Liked by Sandi Rosner

Thanks for the recommendations. Oh, I haven't spent an entire day reading a book in ages. The last time I remember doing that was when I was in grad school and read Flannery O'Connor's Wise Blood in one sitting. (I didn't even get up to pee in part because our cat was stretched out along my legs. It was winter.) Now I feel lucky if I can read an essay or short story in one sitting. It's why I love audiobooks so much. I can still "read" while getting other things done. That said, we have a nice little sanctuary (patio and garden) that is conducive to reading. I just need to sit my butt in the chair.

Expand full comment
author

I completely understand. The vast majority of my reading is done on audio while I'm knitting. But that never produces the same feeling of indolence, since I'm usually knitting toward a deadline. Nothing beats the pleasure of a physical book in the hand.

Expand full comment
Apr 27Liked by Sandi Rosner

Indeed, it does feel like an indulgence to just sit and read a printed book … which is why we (I) should do it more often 🙂

Expand full comment
author
Apr 27·edited Apr 27Author

Hear hear!

Expand full comment

Love your plan for the vacation day! I love Amor Towles writings. Thanks for all the recommendations.

Expand full comment
author

You're welcome!

Expand full comment

God that sounds amazing. I read every night. The last thing before I close my eyes. We’re planning a short camping trip this summer. But with two toddlers and a one-year-old overgrown German shepherd, there won’t be much time for reading. Sigh.

Expand full comment
author

I have the luxury of living alone, so I read during meals. My mother gave me a beautiful wooden book stand many years ago, and it lives on my dining table. I also read in bed at night, but I can usually only last a page or two before my eyes won't stay open.

Expand full comment

Oh, the book stand sounds lovely.

Expand full comment
author

It is! I tried to find a link, but it looks like the one I own has been discontinued (no surprise - I've had it for at least 15 years).

Expand full comment
Apr 25Liked by Sandi Rosner

I'm on the list for a library copy of Amor Towles latest. I have thoroughly enjoyed his other books & although I'm not usually a short story reader, I'll make an exception for him. I'll also recommend leaving by Roxanna Robinson & How to Solve Your Own Murder by Kristin Perrin. It's not often I get 2 good reads in a row. I think leaving could be a good discussion book. Oh... & The Women by Kristin Hannah was good too.

Expand full comment
author

Thanks for the recommendations! The Women by Kristin Hannah in on my list of books I want to read.

Expand full comment
founding

Everyone needs vacation days at home with books. I am one who prefers those days to so called vacation days full of activities, surrounded by crowds of tourists. Since childhood, alone with a good book has kept me informed, eager to know what important and transcendent events happened before my time or are currently shaping the future of humanity. Good books inspired me to make relevant or bold choices in my own life and to inform or inspire others via the printed pages. Now good books take me away from the doldrums brought about by surrendering to the need for assisted living in the desert, in close proximity to neighbors, some of whom I'll never really know because they may have forgotten their past lives; or hearing about the lives of others by way of the local information gatherer who can't keep inside anything seen or heard, and willingly blurts out useless confidences corkscrewed from lonely residents or indiscreet staff; the stuff that gives others who only see half empty glasses, a modicum of life.

There is nothing as rewarding for book lovers as holding a hardback or paperback bundle of printed pages full of promise. (Well, maybe good sex.) Much more if you know the writer delivers on the promise. That is what makes a good book. I know what Sandi means when it comes to writer Amor Towles: he delivers to such extent that when you finish the book you are still hungry for more of the story. Towles doesn't TELL you; he SHOWS you. He brings you along for the ride. The unforgettable ride you will want to revisit.

Good books can't be loaned around. I know from experience that they won't be returned. Among books I once loaned was a leather bound First Edition of the complete works of Federico Garcia Lorca, his native Spanish printed on what is known as onion skin paper. The borrower masterfully ignored each of my requests for a return. I was finally able to personally steal back the book from her bookshelf when I attended a party at her home. It was a planned theft. I carried a big handbag that day and restrained from consuming margaritas. Since then, I recommend books, or give them. A recent error in judgement moved me to loan a treasured museum book about Egyptian antiquities to a fellow "inmate" who often sits reading in a public space. I must have overestimated her mental acuity. When I asked nicely for my book's return, the loanee denied any knowledge about the book. Four weeks later I had to enter her apartment accompanied by a staff member to retrieve the book. She had it stacked neatly on a table with other books. How could I prove it was mine? From past experience, I've learned to strategically attach labels (printed with my name) on books I treasure enough to resist parting with them.

I can't say with full conviction that reading a book on Kindle or the computer monitor gives you that same high as smelling the printing ink and feeling the promise in the heft. But life teaches you to adapt.

A good book informs, entertains, shows and opens doors for the imagination and feeds eager minds. A good book transports, comforts, heals, is a companion from which you can't part because it feeds you sumptuous meals, decadent desserts and invigorating drinks with every page. It is like a well-trained chef who knows each spice by its scent and taste. And you don't gain adipose tissue with his or her meal. Yes! I'll take that any time.

Expand full comment