~BOOKLUST Rules

I have decided to read every book in Nancy Pearl’s Book Lust and More Book Lust AND Book Lust To Go. Here are the guidelines I am trying to follow:

1. I will only read the books listed in bold (or listed in the index – the same thing, hopefully). NOTE: this first rule has gotten me in trouble. A Study in Scarlet is not indexed in any Book Lust book but it is part of The Complete Sherlock Holmes and since Scarlet is considered a complete novel it deserves it’s own review.
2. I will adhere to the “50 25 page or first chapter rule” (if by 25 pages or the first chapter, whichever comes first I haven’t gotten “into” the book I will put it down and call it “attempted”).
3. I will write a “review” of each book to “prove” that I’ve read it. I use the term review lightly because my goal is not to criticize the author (or Nancy for her choice), but only to indicate my partaking of the words as I have read them.
4. I will allow myself “outside” reading (non Book Lust choices) of only magazine subscriptions (like Runner’s World and FoodNetwork). AMENDED TO ADD: I will be reviewing Random House/LibraryThing books on occasion. Those titles take priority over BL Challenge titles. If you notice, this is a rule I break all the time.
5. I will not “read” cookbooks, but rather glance through them, reading the introductions and “how-to” pages (bonus points for trying a recipe).
6. I will try to read the book rather than listen to an audio version or watch the video interpretation. Amended to add: UNLESS I am training for the Just ‘Cause 60 mile walk! Scratch that – I can listen to two audio books per month while I drive to work, train for Just ‘Cause and travel.
7. I will try to get all books from libraries if I do not already own them. Support your local library, please!
8. I will not keep library books past their due dates and renew only once.
9. If I have to purchase any books I will check used bookstores and small independent bookstores before trying the chains or big guys like B&N. Support your local bookstore, please!
10. I will not spend more than $200 total on books. I don’t know how I came up with that number but so be it!
11. All books purchased will be donated somewhere else (unless I really, really love them).
12. I give myself permission to skip over the books I read prior to the Book Lust Challenge, as long as I remember the plot, most characters and/OR the ending. I still have to post a brief blog.
13. I give myself permission to reread some of the books I’ve already read OR see the movie version as long as #12 applies.
14. In regards to poetry I will read only the individual poem(s) recommended and not the entire collection (unless indexed).
15. In regards to short stories I will read only the individual title(s) recommended and not the entire collection (unless indexed).
16. If the recommendation is “anything” by so-and-so (in regards to poetry or anything else) I will read one anthology/collection/book of poems of my choice by said recommended author.

10/23/07: I came up with a way to decide when some all books will be read. (I was getting bored with trying to chose books at random.) I decided to look up “National (fill in the blank) Month.” National bicycle month. National dog month. National gardening month. Like, for example, November is National Adoption Month and Nancy has a chapter on adoption so I’ll read adoption books in November. I also looked up the birthdays of “Too Good to Miss” authors like Lee Child, Connie Willis, Robert Heinlein, and Mark Kurlansky. I’ll read something of theirs in their birth month. To further the list I looked up when Alabama became a state, when Alaska became a state, when Texas became a state etc., etc. I have nearly 95% of all challenge books organized this way. Update 5/22/2012: I have also started looking at festivals – Washington D.C. has it’s annual cherry blossom fest in May so I’ll read books that take place or are about D.C. in May…You get the point. I blather about this more on the When I Read What I Read page.

4/29/21: In my “review” I have been adding one author fact, one book trivia, what Nancy said about the book, and more recently, a playlist of the music mentioned in the book. This fills out the review a little more and gives a little more depth to the book.

So. There are the rules, such as they are. The end.