I read far less on this summer break than I ever have on a holiday. Hello small children. Holidays have always been synonymous with books for me, particularly when I used to work in magazines. In fact, during those years, holidays used to be specifically a mag-free zone. There were two reasons for this. Firstly and most obviously, I associated magazines with work. I needed to shift gears.
But also, when I was editing, my concentration span was very short. About the length of your average article. After about 900 words I lost the plot quite literally. it was only on holidays that my concentration span expanded long enough for a book to hold my attention.
What was unusual about this holiday is that I didn’t read a novel. I read non-fiction. There were a couple of books I started but didn’t finish (Malcolm Gladwell’s What The Dog Saw and also The Outliers – still dipping in and out of those) but the book I did read cover to cover was Elizabeth Gilbert’s latest release, Committed: A Sceptic Makes Peace With Marriage.
If you – like me and about a billion others – really enjoyed her last book, Eat, Pray, Love then you will have been waiting for What Comes Next. This is it. But it’s different.
Sure, there is still her lovely conversational tone and much soul searching. But there’s a lot of other stuff as well (gee, reading that last sentence? Book reviewers don’t have to watch their backs – their jobs are safe from me).
Top Comments
I dont think it's new? I read the book ages ago.
I thought I should read "the girl with the dragon tattoo" before I saw the DVD. After hearing mixed reports and people give up after 60 odd pages I decided I would not give up till atleast 1/2 way through. I chewed through the first 80 pages then OMG it happened, and I flew through the rest of the book. I was like a cat on a hot tinned roof until I got the second book which I devoured in two days then again frantic till I got book 3 finished. I can relax now there is no more, the author Steig Larson has died in real life and his writing genius is lost. I am glad I stuck out the first. Cant wait for movie 3.