Berrycakeness

Last night was book club night, and I had only managed to read half of the book. I won’t mention the book, as it would only do it a disservice, and the fact that I haven’t finished it is a reflection on me, not on the book. I took a moment to think about why I hadn’t finished it, as I have had plenty of work/life balance for the past few months, and no real reason why I didn’t have time to finish it.

Then I remembered – it’s not you, it’s me. I am completely dictated by the weather and my mood.

It’s easy to forget that when it’s Winter, as it feels like it’s Winter for so long. Glimpses of Summer showing itself during Spring make one excited for Summer vibes, reading whichever latest fun novel has hit the charts.

So the book in question is, in my little head, a book for the end of autumn. It’s not cosy by any means; it needs a comfort blanket to get through. I promise I will finish it, as I don’t like leaving well-written books unread, but it may remain unfinished until November.

My other thought was that the content is so heavy that it needs chunks of time spent reading it, not just the odd chapter here and there. Once I left the page, I had to reread to get started again, and sometimes that meant going back a chapter.

Again, it reflects more on my reading style and not so much on the book.

It’s similar to how I ingest music. Although I am completely dictated by mood, and weather is a bonus search term I can throw in if I’m unsure of what I should listen to. I have a playlist that I return to daily, my “Top songs of 2022”, which hasn’t let me down for the past few years. Then I flit between albums, I can listen to Cher, whatever my mood, Prince when I’m moody, Tina Turner for a bit of drama, George Michael and Aretha Franklin when I’m in a party mood (individually and together), Etta James when I’m in a Sunday mood. David Bowie for the feels, and at the moment, a Spotify playlist named “Hot Country” for waking up and getting started in the morning.

I’ll switch out that last playlist based on the time of the year, and I’m not sure why. Country is January – April (although on very hot days in the summer, it will make an appearance), A mix of “Feel Good Summer”, “90’s RNB” and “2016” will rotate throughout May – September. From there until the end of the year it’s the art of the dramatic, from Meatloaf to Bonnie Tyler, and then it’s the C Word.

The difference is, I won’t leave an album unfinished for too long. Once I start, I need to finish within the day. I guess if I were reading books that take 45 mins to read, I’d also read a book a day. Albums can be stories in their own right, so does that mean I could listen to a Meatloaf album every day and say I am reading a book daily?

Not sure adding “Bat Out of Hell” to the Bookclub reading list would do me any favours.

Peace out xoxo