And yet, yesterday, I bought a new book and read it immediately.
To be fair, it wasn't an entire book. I read a particular series by an author. I've invested years in this series; even as the author's style has changed in a way that I don't especially enjoy, I'm still very much invested in the characters and their growth and curious as to what will develop next. I began collecting the books in high school and I have a nice progression of cover art through the different publishers, paperbacks, and hard covers. I pay brand-new-book prices when a new title is released, I'm so eager to read the next installment.
This author also writes shorts within their larger story world, which are then included in collections with works by other authors. Some of these collections are even specific to certain retailers.
If I were an author whose work was included in a collection that prominently featured the name of a well-known author (thereby leading someone to purchase said collection when they wouldn't otherwise purchase my stand-alone work), I would probably be thrilled. Maybe that person would read every story in the collection, and enjoy mine, and feel prompted to seek out my other works. That would be excellent!
As a reader of a specific series, this drives me crazy. Mostly because at one point, years ago, one of the 'regular' books in the series referenced something that happened in one of the shorts...Which I hadn't read, because I hadn't thought these one-off stories would impact the greater arc. I was wrong. Yes, explanations are given to catch-up the reader if they haven't read the shorts, but the details within those shorts are important! Since that revelation, I have begrudgingly purchased collections containing these shorts, only for these shorts, because I don't want to miss anything in this story world.
That is how I found myself standing in a bookstore, purchasing yet another book. The author's name called to me from the front cover, announcing that within this collection resided a short story taking place within the world of the author's larger series. I didn't want to buy it; I had been lamenting to Sasquatch about my overwhelming to-be-read pile earlier in the day. But I flipped to the story and the opening lines did their job. I absolutely needed to know what happened. I read half the story while standing in the bookstore arguing with myself. Ultimately I purchased the collection; those authors deserve the sales.
I finished reading the story as soon as I got home. And I'm glad I did. Things occurred in that short story that will definitely impact the series, and I cannot wait to see how it unfolds. Eventually I'll pick up the book again and read the other tales within the collection, but for now it is tucked on my bookshelf as a far-in-the-future endeavor. Because right now I'm just not devouring books at a reliable pace. Sometimes I feel sad about that, knowing the worlds that are waiting for me to dive in and enjoy them. But the books will be there when I'm ready, when I have the time and energy and focus. That's the fantastic thing about books.
What's on your to-read list?
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