Indeed I am, although I don't have a lazy, hazy summer ahead of me. (Don't feel sorry for me, though, I have just landed my dream job and will be starting in the middle of June.) An NPR radio program alerted me to an author I thought I might enjoy, Jane Gardam. I just came home with her Queen of the Tambourine, and if I like it, she has several more waiting on the shelf. I also have Vikram Seth's A Suitable Boy and William Styron's Sophie's Choice, both large tomes. I am also making my slow way through Ulysses. Not exactly light reading, but very enjoyable.

I also plan to browse through some magazines, something I have not done in quite a while because of time constraints.

I haven't made a list yet, but I do know where it will come from: the TBR pile. I have to whittle this down, and summer reading time will help. The one book I know I'll read for sure (and the only one that will come from the library if I stick to the plan) is the new Stephanie Plum, Fearless Fourteen.

Siobhan, congratulations on landing that dream job!

thyrkas-that is a beautiful book-I read it about every other summer. I predict it will not take you as long as you expect-and that some summer chores will go wait while you become entangled in Anne and Sally's lives.

I too will be trying to reduce the dangerously leaning pile of TBRs stacked in front of the book shelves!

I leave for a week's holiday in England on Friday so I am all excited about that. Apart from that, my whole summer will be spent here at home so I plan to do lots of reading. I really have to get serious about the TBR pile. It's toppling over and my DH is making comments.

Step one:
* Turn off one-click at amazon
Step Two:
* Reduce library visits to once/every two weeks
Step three:
* Quit job to read books (I wish).

Lemonhead,

re: quit job to read books......

I have a little variation on that book "When I am Old I Will Wear Purple". When I am old I will live alone with my books. At the moment I'm living with my husband, 4 teens/young adults and one 3 year old grandson so you can see why I am looking forward to living alone!

Ah yet, ere I descent to the grave
May I a small house and a large garden have;
and a few friends, and many books, both true,
both wise, and both delightful too!
Abraham Cowley

Had dinner with my book club last night, and we all agreed that the best part of the day is when we are alone with a book! Not one of us has a TBR pile of less than 50.

Aaah - I truly love this forum and the bibliophiles who post here! Not only has it provided me with many marvelous titles for my own TBR pile - (one that I have given up hope of EVER diminishing - although I do like lemonhead's plan!)but it also validates my reading addiction so delightfully. Since I was first berated for always taking a book to family functions and slipping away to a quiet corner, I've felt that the best part of my day is when I am alone with my book(s)- but with a husband and 3 kids that is so rare. And I too look forward to the time of an empty house and time enough to read. If I would ever voice that sentiment to my loved ones, I'm sure I would receive wounded and confused looks. It is SO nice to know I am not alone in the world. lol. (BTW - anyone else here really identify with the Twilight Zone episode titled,"Time Enough at Last"?)

bwilliams-

"berated for always taking a book to family functions"

I once went with 4 other couples on a house boat trip and THEY rented a boat with skis. I told them I didn't want to ski that I would rather read, thank you very much, but, oh no, they pestered me and pestered me until I got up on the skis. I got up on the skis after 2 attempts while they other people took many, many tries and a couple couldn't get up at all and then I said, "satisfied?" They left me alone after that. LOL

That's another thing about readers-do WE insist that everyone does what we want to do, and annoy them incessantly until we get our way? NNNNNNNNNOOOOOOOOOO. We let them go do whatever it is they want to do.....nobly giving our blessing while secretly celebrating that they are going away and leaving us alone! Heaven forbid someone decides to stay behind and keep us company!
I take a book to baseball games. Well, I take a book everywhere. Currently driving 150 miles round trip two or three times a week to help parents in 80s move-I am amazed at the number of traffic delays on interstate highways. But am I kerflempt? No-it's extra reading time.

Kerflempt! What a wonderfully expressive word. I am going to keep that on file for future reference. Thanks, cc!

glad to know I'm not the only one who reads books during traffic delays. I never leave home without a book and almost never without my knitting. I doubt I will ever get to my TBR bookcase (yes, you read that correctly) as the library keeps me so well supplied with all the latest books. I admit to some guilt over the state of my house which is always "picked up" but not "sparkling". How can housework compete with reading?????

And I thought I was the only one with a TBR bookcase with at least 300 books.....

While I haven't made my summer TBR--never do "plan" ahead--I do have my reading list for work. My mom and I always laugh that when we get together, we often end up reading. Love going to the beach with her; once the children are in bed, we settle in with our frozen drinks and share books, reading till our own bedtime.

You know what? My mother faithfully cleaned her house every week for the 50 years they lived in it-and when they moved out last week-the house was dirty.

I have read hundreds of books over those years...and you know what-they've stayed read. So which is a better use of time?

We leave in a couple of weeks for a short break to West Wales.
Over several years we have rented the same flat which is 'family friendly', useful in the days when the children could play with the games and videos left there, plus the buckets, spades and shrimping nets. Its appeal for me has been the excellent choice of books left by the owners and added to by other visitors.
This year we are taking another flat so have no idea if anything extra will be provided.
I'll have to go through the several piles of paperbacks collected over many years and choose half a dozen.
I don't take library books with me as sand, sea-water and possibly (probably) rain don't mix.

Summer reading you say?? Ahhh, I'm trying to get through the spring pile right now....plus my town library is moving to a brand new shiny facility and have promised such delights....fireplace and reading nook, separate little ones reading area...and MORE books! Can I wait? No! My must read pile is now sitting at 98 library books piled up around my house...that is only the library books and how I know is the head girl told me I had beat her current take out record of 91...but she promised she'd close the gap by the weekend. I always carry about 3 books in my car....all old paperbacks in a variety of subjects because then DH will have a book to look at on his own and leave me in peace with mine!

bwilliams, I saw this Twilight Zone episode only recently. Here's a link to it as CBS has these shows online now. Although I'd watched this series as a youth, I had never seen this one before this.

Here is a link that might be useful: Time Enough at Last