Hit some road bumps, but ready to roll now

Wow....Ok, that was rough. I had no idea when I started this blog and this reading project how my pleasure reading activities would mesh with my very much required academic activities. Now that the winter quarter is over, time to take stock. Through most of the active quarter, this project was very doable. With the exception of a week or two when things got really busy and the reading was exceptionally heavy, I have been able to keep up a good pace. I assumed that during paper writing season, I would be slow, but still able to make some progress. After all, what is more refreshing than time off with a good book? Wrong. Producing multiple 15 to 20 page papers is intense and even when I found a good stopping place, or simply needed to take a break before going insane, the last thing I wanted to do/was able to do was pick up a book of any sort. Most days when I stopped writing it left me starring confusedly at the cieling. Even less appealing than reading was the idea of writing anything at all, even if it was a fun blog. Hmmm, so, that definitely throws a cramp in the project three times a year. I am behind schedule even more now, but as I always must remember, this is supposed to be a project encouraging me to enjoy reading, NOT something that adds more literary stress. Believe me, I have more reading deadlines than anyone really needs. So, I am not worried about being behind. And now, it is time to catch up!

With the quarter over (yay!) and the papers turned in (hallelujah!) I can now turn my attentions to the more enjoyable aspects of the literary world. And I fully intend to do so. While I had initially anticipated having the full two weeks at my disposal to read, the papers ended up dragging over into this week and an unanticipated extension to my travels has kept me running around getting things ready, so that it is already Wednesday and I have had very little time to read. I should have some time tonight, but am also packing. But then I will have several airborne hours in flight that might be able to be used for reading. Fingers crossed.

When we last left off, I had just finished James Patterson's novel, Big Bad Wolf. I had several thoughts on this book, but in the name of full disclosure, I will admit that they are starting to get hazy after all that paper writing. However, Patterson is quite established and this is an older book (relatively speaking, that is) and I am sure there is more information to be found out there. Not to mention that if you ever want to know more about a book than what I have posted, or if you need clarification, you are more than welcome to comment to that effect and I will provide what I can. Anyway, let's see what I do remember. Stats:
Title: The Big Bad Wolf
Author: James Patterson
Publisher: Little Brown & Co (which happens to be my favorite)
Date: 2003
My start date: March 2, 2010
My finish date: March 7, 2010

I will start off by pointing out that I am not the target audience for this book, at least not in my opinion. Since the story is written in the first person, I had trouble reading from the perspective of a 40something man. The narrative was slow and too methodical at points, but that is because it builds the character to be that way. However, that did affect the reading for me.

Also, there were occasions where it seemed that maybe Patterson had written the chapters out of order or something to that effect because there were tiny gaps or inconsistencies. Or even more frustrating for me, something would be re-explained as if we were just reading it for the first time. This would happen occasionally when, for example, a character or idea was introduced, but then re-introduced again later, as if he had written the later chapter first and then forgot and introduced it in an earlier chapter. But these are small things.

Patterson is one of the most prolific writers, pretty much ever. So I have to give him credit for that. And he has written some greats. This book is in the Alex Cross series, the same series in which you would find such titles as Kiss the Girls and Along Came a Spider, both of which have been made into movies. This was a typical thriller and while it won't win any prizes for extreme originality, it was mostly fun and just what it wants to be, that is, thrilling. By the end of the book I wanted to know more about the characters and actually looked into picking up another in the series, despite the fact that this is not my usual genre at all. So, I guess that says something, right?

Another tiny little factor that works in this books favor. Some people might not like this, but the chapters were micro-chapters, only spanning at most a dozen or so pages, at times only a page or two. I, however, find this helpful, especially on a busy schedule, which I certainly was that week. I am one of those people who prefers to stop at a chapter break, not just randomly at the end of any old sentance, although the nature of what I do means I am often forced to read this way, snatching whatever moments I can get. This style makes it easy to pick up and put down whenever I had a moment. Big plus for me.

So, that wraps up another book. I tried during that busy time period to work with lighter beach type reads, one traditionally girly and the other traditionally guy-oriented. Surprisingly, I would go with the guy read and could recommend this book to anyone into the thriller genre.

Ok, now, I know in the meantime I have lost and/or bored my loyal readers with my absence, but don't give up on me yet! Over the next nearly two weeks be ready for a ton of new books and updates! I am currently working with a slightly older read that has recently reappeared on the feature shelves, which takes us back to Renaissance Italy. Check back this week for thoughts on The Birth of Venus. Also on the reading list during break: The Lost Symbol, The Art of Racing in the Rain, The Commoner, Mornings in Jenin, The Heretics Daughter, and several more! Check back to see how they turn out!

One last note. I am utterly exhausted from paper writing and packing and the like. Also, I am a horrible speller and also prone to typos. Normally, I proof these posts again shortly after and find tons of mistakes to correct. But I am too tired today. Forgive me. If there are typos today, I will correct them eventually. But not today.

Happy Reading!
Sarah