BTT: Evolution

Booking Through Thursday is a weekly meme hosted here:http://btt2.wordpress.com/.

This week's question:

Have your reading choices changed over the years? Or pretty much stayed the same? (And yes, from childhood to adulthood we usually read different things, but some people stick to basically the same kind of book their entire lives, so…)

Reading, just like any natural process in this earth, is an evolution. You start from the most comfortable and when that becomes banal, you go seeking for new challenges.

I started with books that are thin. Easier to read. Remember those Sweet Valley Kids and Twins? Then I graduated to Sweet Valley High and SVU, then to the thicker novels: Johanna Lindsey and Sidney Sheldon. As time passed and on my way to reading maturity, my tastes changed and I look for novels with more substance and hook. I evolved into a book snob and would not read books with shallow plots no matter what they say that it is a fun read. About a few years back, I tried to balance my reading list by adding a few non-fiction books like those of John Maxwell.

Recently, I want to challenge myself to read the books of Leo Tolstoy: Anna Karenina (Penguin Classics) & War and Peace: Original Version to name a few. I remember when I was in high school, my professor (God bless his soul) would push us to read the books of Leo Tolstoy, Ernest Hemingway and other classic authors. I think I've mention in my previous post that he gave us this list of 100 books to read. We asked him how come the books of contemporary writers, like Sidney Sheldon are not included in the list. He then harangued us and called Sidney Sheldon crap. Hahaha... but back then I'd rather read Sidney Sheldon than Leo Tolstoy. I've never read one single book from that list (even until today) because I think it will take me one year to finish one book. I'm still boosting up my confidence to even touch one of those books. Okay, that was too over acting, because I have The Picture of Dorian Gray lounging in my bookshelf and the book was part of that list (and yes I've never read the book).


One thing that never changed though: books that are way too explicit still don't have a place in my reading list. Again, when I was still in high school, some of my friends would push me to read Harold Robbins. Ick Factor to the highest level. Read one and never again.


I thinks others would agree that our reading preference have changed over time. Change is inevitable.


What are your thoughts? Feel free to share.