I read four books this week. I feel that is pretty good. Two of them fit the sex part of the readathon and embody the whole #letsgetiton hashtag, the other two were fun reads which touched on sex but were basically light easy YA reads which were quite refreshing after the NA binge I’ve had in the past few weeks. I enjoyed all the books which I’ve read, it’s been an enjoyable week, although I did start to get worried by the middle of the week that I just wasn’t reading book which fit into the #sexmeupreadathon theme, and I also wasn’t reading many of the books on my reading list. Then I remembered that this is meant to be for fun and that I’ve never been able to stick to set schedule on reading, so why stress?
It’s been a fun week with some great posts over on the Sex Me Up Readathon page. I’ve discovered bloggers whom I might never have heard of without this and it’s been refreshing to say the least. It was so nice to read posts from people I don’t read all the time, and to find bloggers who don’t stick to the same YA books that I often see on blogs (not that I’m complaining, but variety is the spice of life) so it has been refreshing.
This week has also made me think about myself as a reader. I know what kind of reader I am. I am a binge reader that gets completely absorbed in a book, a world, a series, or a genre. I am all or nothing with my reading. I binge and I read quickly. I f a book lasts more than a couple of days I feel my attention waning. I am not a planner, but an impulsive reader, I get a book in my mind and I have to read it. These are not the things I’ve realised, it’s more my views on readers and reading that have changed. I know I can be quite a judgmental person when it comes to reading and books, I try not to be, I am making a conscious effort to remember not to judge a person by the books they read. I’d dread to think of the conclusions people might reach about me if they did that to me. It’s certainly something I have gotten over now, but when I first began reading again a couple of years ago, when I’d finished uni, I was quite judgemental, even of myself.
This week I’ve read some fabulous posts by numerous people and they have all reminded me of one simple thing. I should not be embarrassed about what I’m reading, and I shouldn’t care or judge what others are reading. We all have genres and books which we enjoy to read, even if others don’t like them. We should not have to hide books we read for fear of being judged by others. I happen to enjoy new adult books, despite the clichés, the oft predictable storylines, and the sometimes poor characterisations and relationships which appear in them. I don’t mind people knowing that. I am also a sucker for romance novels, like the ones which would not be bodice rippers, but they are definitely of the steamier variety. I’m okay with people knowing that. I often tried to hide it, but I don’t know why anymore.
I have also realised that these books which I am reading, there are plenty of other people reading the same things, I am not alone. Since I have spent such a long time being a bit embarrassed by what I read, as it is not serious and highbrow, I forgot that others read the books that I do. Probably because I did not talk about these books to others, so they could not mention their thoughts or if they had read them too. Anyway, it has been nice to see others reading the books I have not previously mentioned to others. To remember I am not alone in the books I read and get to discuss them with others.
Anyway, I hope you have all enjoyed the readathon and that you have remembered that sex is not a thing to be embarrassed by, and that a healthy attitude to sex is needed, something I think is often forgotten.
Posts
Social Icons