Following my Mr B's adventure at the Reading Spa (see previous post), I received as a gift, last Christmas from my lovely mum, of a Reading Year. This is effectively a subscription service of books. Yes please, with all the sprinkles please. It comes in two versions, a hard back (two-hundred and twenty pounds), and a paper back one, the one I got, (one hundred and forty-five pounds). The books are sent to you following a discussion, either by phone or email, about your preference. You also get sent a form with some really interesting, and actually quite hard questions, helping to point to your preferences in a very subtle and elucidating way.
Every month you receive a book through the door. The person responsible for choosing your books, your bibliographer asks you at the beginning of the year, if they may email you to check wether you already have the book they are planning to send you. The way they do it doesn't spoil anything. They simply send an email telling you the author, just to ask if you have read anything by them. If you suspect you might be headed towards a repeat, you can tell them which books to avoid by that author and they will ensure every book you receive is new to you.
Every month you receive a book through the door. The person responsible for choosing your books, your bibliographer asks you at the beginning of the year, if they may email you to check wether you already have the book they are planning to send you. The way they do it doesn't spoil anything. They simply send an email telling you the author, just to ask if you have read anything by them. If you suspect you might be headed towards a repeat, you can tell them which books to avoid by that author and they will ensure every book you receive is new to you.
Not only is this so special, being a small gift every month rather than just on Christmas day, but my oh my, do Mr B's make an effort presentation wise. Every book comes wrapped in "brown paper packaging tied up with string", complete with a red Mr B's wax seal. They also provide you with a bookmark which allows you to give some brief feedback and send it back, if you wish. Or you can just hoard them like I do. |
They also welcome any emails helping them know wether you are enjoying what they are sending your way or if they need to change it up a bit.
I recently received my sixth book in June. The first one arrived in January and I will receive eleven books in total. My plan is to write a review of the books I read over the course of the year and those so far, sharing the ones I receive each month to give an idea of what the year is like, bearing in mind that it is all tailored to the specific person in question. I thought therefore, it would be good to give a brief description of my preferences and some of the information I provided to Mr B's.
In short, I am an avid reader of dystopia novels, with some of my favourites being Atwood, Dick etc... I did however want to use my Mr B's experience to branch out a bit. Through my discussions at the Spa, it came to light that the thing that grips me to books is my emotional connection to the characters.
I recently received my sixth book in June. The first one arrived in January and I will receive eleven books in total. My plan is to write a review of the books I read over the course of the year and those so far, sharing the ones I receive each month to give an idea of what the year is like, bearing in mind that it is all tailored to the specific person in question. I thought therefore, it would be good to give a brief description of my preferences and some of the information I provided to Mr B's.
In short, I am an avid reader of dystopia novels, with some of my favourites being Atwood, Dick etc... I did however want to use my Mr B's experience to branch out a bit. Through my discussions at the Spa, it came to light that the thing that grips me to books is my emotional connection to the characters.
A good book for me is one where you begin to think about them when you day dream, about their reactions to events in your own life, almost like they are real and close to you. Some of my favourite books, include now, the Secret History by Donna Tart, The Tale of Time Being by Ruth Ozeki (picked this one up on the Spa day), books I would not have thought to read, ever, and certainly not dystopian. |
That being said I have a definite penchant for darker books, with fairly gritty stories. I know I have a hatred of thrillers, and a general avoidance of historical fiction though I could see that one swaying.
With that in mind these are the books that were chosen for me so far:
With that in mind these are the books that were chosen for me so far:
- The Lie Tree-Frances Hardinge
- All my Puny Sorrows-Miriam Toews
- The Gracekeepers-Kirsty Logan
- The Art of Fielding-Chad Harbach
- A Little Life-Hanya Yanaghara
In terms of the Reading Year itself, this is truly one of the best gifts I have ever received. There is no greater material joy than a book you can't put down, and now not only has my hunting ground been expanded thanks to new suggestions from Mr B's, but I receive one straight to my door every month it seems. I could not recommend this enough to any book lovers, as a gift, or simply as a new style of book shopping!