Anyway, today I want to talk about The Dusty Bookshelf and the first Read-Along I did via Storygraph. It’s technically not over yet. It doesn’t finish until the end of the month, but the book was short and a very easy read, so I’ve finished it. There’s still time for you if you’re a quick reader and would like to join. It’s here. Here’s a short, spoiler-free review of the book, in case you’re interested.
I really enjoyed that it was entirely low pressure. I had designed the Read-Along so that you could only talk about the sections as you finished it, keeping spoilers out of the forums. There were dates to aim for to complete each section, but they weren’t hard and fast rules. You could finish each section earlier or later (it was earlier for us both, in this case), and still discuss it. Not having that pressure, like a defined meeting date as with a bookclub, made it easier on my already beleaguered time. It didn’t feel like a must. It was a want. I find this a vital difference for enjoying something.
The last thing I want to do is make reading “work.”
I am thinking I might do a long form review for YouTube, but I currently do not have the spoons to script, film, edit and upload the review. We’ll see how I feel this weekend, as if I’m going to do it, I’d like to have it done and out in the world at the end of the month, so I can announce the next book in the Read-Along.
I do have the book selected and the Read-Along set up, but you’re going to have to wait for the announcement of all of that (my subscribers will know first) until the technical end of the first Read-Along.
As a thing, I really liked the Read-Along. Of course, the other reader helped a tonne. I imagine it will suck infinitely more to have obnoxious or belligerent readers in the thing. There is a remove option for them, but I don’t see a block function. Hopefully, I’ll never need such a thing. As it stands, it was good fun, and I’m glad I decided to do it.
I have a very modest goal of reading a book a month this year, and this will help keep me accountable. Hopefully I can keep it up. It’s worth it thus far.
Alright, I’m off because I have a horrific headache and staring at a screen is not helping.
Ciao!