Get to Know the Editor: What Do I Read for Fun?
What do editors do in their spare time? Read, of course!
I do spend a lot of time reading for work, both in editing your documents, and in upgrading my skills, learning about different aspects of business, and navigating the giant, unmapped morass of the web/social media/marketing universe. But when I want to wind down, there’s nothing better than settling in with a physical, paper book. (My kids also want me to read them stories EVERY DAY. I love it.) What do I read for fun? All kinds of things! Light romance, speculative fiction, children’s lit, mysteries, non-fiction on whatever topics currently interest me. I can appreciate great writing in any genre, but throw some humour in there and I’ll keep coming back!
The list below is in no particular order because I have a habit of keeping three of four books on the go at once, switching back and forth as the mood strikes me, and I only just compiled the list as I was writing this post (I don’t usually keep a record of the books I’ve read. This morning was cleaning the pile out of my bedside-table drawer.) Some of the reference books on the list I just dabble in, to remember what I’ve read before. Here’s what I’ve read in the last year or so:
Fall, or Dodge in Hell, by Neal Stephenson
REAMDE, by Neal Stephenson
Tom Thomson’s Last Bonfire, by Geoff Taylor
Under Currents, by Nora Roberts (again)
To Have and To Hoax, by Martha Watters
The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs: A New History of Lost World, by Steve Brusatte
Bread Illustrated: a Step-by-step Guide to Achieving Bakery-quality Results at Home, by America’s Test Kitchen
The Diamond Age, or, A Young Lady’s Illustrated Primer, by Neal Stephenson (again!)
Sapiens: a Brief History of Mankind, by Yuval Noah Harari
Lord John and the Private Matter, by Diana Gabaldon
Animal, Vegetable, Mineral, by Barbara Kingsolver (again)
Good Omens, by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman (again! I think I’ve read this one about ten times.)
The Wind in the Willows, by Kenneth Grahame, illustrated by Ernest H. Shepard (again!)
The Witness, by Nora Roberts (again)
Sixteen Ways to Defend a Walled City, by K. J. Parker
The Hobbit, by J.R.R. Tolkein (again!)
The Flavor Thesaurus: Pairings, Recipes and Ideas for the Creative Cook, by Niki Segnit
Let me know if you’re curious about any of these and I can tell you what I liked about them.
What have you read lately?
