Why Write About Books Now?
Why start writing about books now, after all these years? While I've tackled school reports and summaries like everyone else, I've never felt compelled to write about books just for fun – until now. I've recreationally written about other subjects – movies, travel stories, experiences with diet and exercise, and more – but books remained an unwritten chapter.
The catalyst for this was reading The Man from Beijing by Swedish author Henning Mankell. This particular book, an enjoyable murder mystery, not particularly deep or complex, left me with a feeling I felt compelled to capture. Spending three days buried in its pages, I was gripped and thrilled in a way few movies manage throughout the year. This experience prompted me to reflect on the other books I've read over the past year, and I realized the consistent impact they've had on me – sometimes subtly shifting my perspective on a subject (like how Moneyball permanently altered the way I watch baseball), other times embedding themselves in my consciousness to influence future decisions (like Born to Run's continued inspiration for me to someday complete an ultra-marathon).
It felt like a disservice to both the books and their authors to let these impactful experiences fade away. Unlike the many forgettable movies I watch, I've found that books, even those with less-than-perfect endings, consistently leave me with something valuable. At 36, I've already read hundreds of books, and the thought of them being lost to memory spurred me to action. This writing practice is my way of ensuring those memories are captured and preserved going forward.
Beginning with The Man from Beijing, my plan is to offer brief reflections – think concise thoughts rather than lengthy essays – on each book I complete. This will serve as a personal log of my reading journey, a way to solidify my impressions, and perhaps, over time, a space where others might even contribute their own thoughts. Ultimately, I look forward to building a collection of these reflections to revisit in the years ahead.
Click here for a review and recommendation of The Man from Beijing.
I’ve never written about a book before, other than the usual school assigned reports, summaries, and analyses. I suppose it would be better to say that I’ve never recreationally written about a book. I’ve written about other subjects for fun; movies, travel stories, experiences in diet and exercise and more, just not books
After reading The Man from Beijing by Swedish author Henning Mankell, I was left with a feeling that I wanted to capture. It’s not that Man from Beijing was a particularly deep or complex work of fiction, it’s a murder mystery - a genre I haven’t visited in a while. But having spent the majority of the last 3 days buried in it I had to admit it gripped and thrilled me the way so few movies are able to do throughout the year. Reflecting on all the other books I’ve read over the past year, I realized they’ve all made an impact on me, sometimes shifting my views toward a subject (Moneyball forever changed the way I watch baseball), other times sticking in my consciousness longer term to influence decisions I would make later in life (Born to Run continues to inspire me one day complete an ultra-marathon).
It felt like letting those experiences fade would be doing the books and their respective authors an injustice. I see lots of terrible movies throughout the year, yet when it comes to reading I am never left unsatisfied by a book - even if the ending isn’t especially rewarding. At 32 years old, there are hundreds of books read already only to be forgotten over time. This is my practice to prevent this from happening in the future. Starting with The Man from Beijing, I’ll briefly reflect (this isn’t an essay, let’s keep it brief) on whatever book was most recently completed. This will also serve as a running log of the books I’ve read, and maybe someday others will contribute to these posts as well. It’ll be something to look back on and I look forward to revisiting these reflections in the years to come.
Click here for a review and recommendation of The Man from Beijing.
