Poll: How many books are u reading now?

[Monica]

I really try to stick to one at a time, but often get ahead of myself :) I'm reading two right now: "Lucy Sullivan Is Getting Married" & "Memoirs of a Geisha"

[Lori]

I am currently reading 3. Circle of Grace, Lisy's Story, and Summer Can Be Deadly. Usually am reading 3 or more at a time. Depends on my mood what I want to read. Very electic in reading and music.

[Seth]

I usually have one "train" book that has to satisfy my "reading in public" requirements* and something I'm reading at home, plus maybe a non-fic or two I'm in the middle of at home, and often a second or third fiction at home that got interrupted to read something brand new.

And if you ask me about a book that I haven't finished, even if I haven't touched it for years, I'll say I'm reading it, because as far as I'm concerned I might have just put it down yesterday. I'm not great with the whole "time" thing.

* A good "train/bus" book--form me--must be narrative (I get too distracted to track non-narrative nonfic), easy to jump back into, not so engrossing that I miss my stop (or fail to notice who's sitting next to me and where his/her hands are), and not so funny or sad or angering that I attract attention. The most important parts are taking the right range of attention to read. So light sf/f and humor are good. And "easy to jump back in to" precludes most collections of short stories, since starting a story takes more attention.

[Judub]

Hello. I am new here too. I am sooo glad I found this group. It is nice to know there are a lot of people like me. I read almost all paperback fictions with the exception of cooking books, among them mostly mystery, some non-mystery fiction and a few romance. I don't like to borrow books, from library or friends. I like to keep the books because I re-read them when the mood strikes. I absolutely hate to lend books out because almost everyone who borrows books thinks that it is not necessary to return the books. I usually read 3-4 books at a time. Right now I am reading three, one at home, one for commute and one I started and put it down on the back burner. It is totally a mood thing.

[Lulu]

It's tough to only read one book at a time. I have to have a stack of books on my endtable at all times-books already read, books to read, books that are half-read, books that have a cool cover and I may never read.

So maybe I'm a compulsive, short-attention span rea....wait, what's that on the 'new fiction' shelf??

[hh]

I typically read anywhere from 3 to 7 books at a time, depending on things like school and mood. I tend to have one book that I read in bed and a book or two that I'm switching off between during the day. Usually at least one is non-fiction and one is a book of poetry (which I tend to read about 10 pages or so in a day). I also read a lot of magazines and literary journals, so in addition to my personal reading and my textbooks, there are usually 3 or 4 periodicals in the mix.

[Jessica (thebluestocking)]

Sigh. It's good to know I'm not the only one afflicted with the multiple-book malady. Usually I get so into a book that I finish it before I can even think of starting another, but I've been lagging lately. The following are the books I have started within the last few months and fully intend to complete:

1. Emma
2. Reading Like a Writer
3. Reading Lolita in Tehran
4. 1776
5. Wicked
6. Sophie's World
7. The Vintage Book of Contemporary American Short Stories

I need some stamina karma.

[Doreen]

I have about 5 going right now

[Clayton]

Only two at the moment here. That is a surprize when I think about it since I am usually reading 4 or 5. I have Tim Moore's The Grand Tour in my car and read it whenever I am stuck waiting to pick someone up or arrive early somewhere. It is taking me a while to get through it as a result, but very funny. Just finished Binchey's The Copper Beech because a friend recommended it. Now starting I'll Take Manhattan. Saw the cheesy made-for-TV movie years ago and felt like wallowing in a bit of 1980's guilty pleasure. LOL

[whichwaydidshego]

I have dozens I'm in the middle of and will eventually finish... But as for actively reading, that'd be four. I'm also listening to an audio book over and over, so I suppose that'd be five.

I generally carry two or three with me so that I can choose depending on my mood. That obviously implies, correctly, that my books are usually from different genres.

There are occasions where I pick up a book - or a series - and can't put it down, devouring it. But in general I nosh.

[pop]

Actually, I'm not reading any by other authors. I'm writing five, editing one, and sending the first off to the publisher with my ideas for artwork and stuff. That's all I can manage at the moment, other than critiquing online.

I have all day to do this, as I am retired due to injury. I'm totally immersed in my writing right now. I have about ten books by others waiting to be read, I'll get to them someday.

[Foxthyme]

Does anybody else love to read cookbooks? I'm reading a couple. Takes some time to peruse. You can salivate too much if you read them all the time.

I'm also steadily reading through Lois McMaster Bujold's Vorkosigan series and I am so satisfied. I stopped reading sf/f to read more 'serious stuff' for some time. Blah. I've gone back to what I love. No regrets.

Some short story books on the go, too. Philip K Dick, Ray Bradbury, Dragons of Darkness...

An Orson Scott Card, Red Prophet, that I've stalled out on and will get back to when I'm done the entire Bujold series.

[Chad]

ten-ish.
It really depends on your definition of "reading right now" I am reading a couple of commentaries that I check in on once a week or so (on Isaiah); a few books of essays (G.K.Chesterton, In Six Days) that I just read when the mood strikes me; a few psy and philo books (outside of school assignments) that I make a little progress on every now and then (CLEP devlopmental psychology, Trauma and Recovery and political philosophy) when I feel serious or curious about the subject; a book of short stories (Tolstoy)for when I feel like escaping reality; a social commentary (God's Politics); and two books on personal growth that I check in on daily (Made for Love and the Jesus Creed). Is this an illness. It feels like it at times. I don't know how many of these I will finish. I'm guessing maybe half of them. Ten seems to be number for reading at one time, historically that is where I hover. Finish two and shelve three means go buy five. I don't do it on purpose, it is just the right number for me I guess.

[Brooke]

right now I'm only reading 3:
~Spook by Mary Roach
~Eats, Shoots and Leaves: The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation by Lynne Truss
~Why Do Men Have Nipples? Hundreds of Questions You'd Only Ask a Doctor After Your Third Martini

[Lynn]

I'm kind of reading four.

Statistics: Concepts & Controversies by David Moore

Biological Anthropology by Craig Stanford

Humanity by James Peoples

The Soulless by LG Burbank

I'm only about a page into The Soulless & the previous three are textbooks so I have to read them. :) I'm actually enjoying Humanity though, as cultural anthropology is fascinating.

I usually just read one or two at a time.

[Rachael]

I only read one book at a time, because I would get confused. LOL

[Kate]

Let's see:

Are Men Necessary,

Why Men Love Bitches,

my two girl-power reads, that are actually quite mentally stimulating. Well, the first is at least, Margaret ODowd is a smart lady.

Also,

Sarum,

Blink, The Power of Thinking Without Thinking

The Sixteen Pleasures

so, 5. I'm currently reading 5.

[Ashley]

I'm reading two books at the moment:

1. Between Us: A Legacy of Lesbian Love Letters" edited by Kay Turner
2. Out of Love by KG MacGregor

[Llama]

I just finished two books so right now I am only reading 4 books -
David Copperfield - Dickens
Star Wars: Outbound Flight - Timothy Zahn
Sisters in Fantasy 2 - Susan Schwartz & Martin H. Greenberg
The Journey of Faith: Hebrews 11 - Rob & Lisa Boyd

[Fenixbird]

Hi My name is Teresa & perhaps I am a book buying addict!! LOL At any rate, since I have opened at least 6 books & started reading (including one both on cassette & in paperback--a Newberry Medal winner of course!) at least a little bit of each one, I suppose in fact I am a re-addicted reader! what are my 6? Well--of course not all are even on my latest list (totalling 68 already) of "To reads," compiled only a short 4 weeks or so after getting referred to this site:
(1) We the Students** (Supreme ct cases relating to students) ..was on loan...willl definitely seeking my OWN copy!! LOL
(2) Prozac Nation on my "to read" list "discovered where?" (by Elizabeth Wurtzel) Here on goodreads! LOANED to me by a friend lightening her book load prior to an antipated move!! (can i relate?)
(3) "The Giver," by Lois Lowry*** (Newberry Medal award winner)....junior high school (young teen) recommended age group
(4) (to be continued)
(5) Mars & Venus on a Date by John Gray (Excellent!! on my to re-read list when my good friend German Barb returns it!....She just met someone..and aye carumba! Did she NEED THIS BOOK!)
(6) Royden Brown's Bee Hive Product Bible: Wondrous Products from One of Nature's Most Productive Creatures (Paperback) **this was a recent "find"....and is an amazing scientific case in support of royal jelly & bee pollen (etc) as incredible & rejuvenating food supplements!!
(7) Oh my GOD! 7th? Of course Yahoo news had to feature the incredible very recent Nobel Peace prize winning author DORIS LESSING..WHO I HAVE NEVER READ!! Soo...i found a dozen of her books at my local USED book store....(Bookman's) here in Arizona......I picked up the English one? Title??
(8) DUNE sci fi "Re-read" like Dude the sexiest most sensually written book I ever read as a teenage girl!!

What did I forget??? Hmmmm. Do textbooks count? Oh...and of course(!) I am in search of (still) my mentor teacher's recommendation to his 7th grade class, "Ghost Cadet," by Elaine Marie Alphin.

[[deleted user]]

I pretty much read one book at a time and listen to a book on a tape. However, there are several books that I started and left on hold and read in between finishing novels. Right now I'm reading Lisey's Story by Stephen King and The Road by Cormac McCarthy is on deck. I have a couple of short story anthologies that I am picking away at and a book called Uncommon Fathers which is a collection of essays. I don't like to physically read two fiction novels simultaneously.

[Katie]

It is so good to see this many people that are in the midst of reading so many books at once like I always seem to end up doing! Here's what I am currently working my way through:

1) Double Cross by J. Patterson
2) Without a Map by Meredith Hall
3) Death du Jour by Kathy Reichs
4) The Final Detail by Harlan Coben
5)You Have to Kiss a Lot of Frogs by L. Graff
6) Judge & Jury by J. Patterson
7)Thriller edited by J. Patterson

I'm finding 3 & 7 very tough to get through so I've been working on them forever...but I never like to give up on a book, even if it can't keep my interest enough to be done with in two days!

[Jennifer Lynn]

I'm in the process of reading 6 YA novels for a class I'm taking.
The Black Tatoo
The Luxe
Heat
Three Little Words
Vampirates

I've started the Black Tatoo and The Luxe, two VERY different genre. Had started Heat a year ago, but will have to start over as I don't really remember much of what happened. The other two I've just glanced at. Of the two I'm reading I keep one in the car and one by the bed since those are the two places where I actually have time to sit down.

[Lorie]

Hi, My name is Lorie and I am a Biblioholic. :)
I am reading 4 right now.
1~ Emma by Austen
2~ Pandora's Daughter by Johansen
3~ The Cricket in Times Square by Selden
4~ The Ode Less Traveled by Fry

Oh, and I just got Winter Prey by Sandford, so I'll be reading 5 by this evening.

I'm usually reading at least 3, sometimes 4 or 5. I facilitate an adult Classics book discussion and a parent/child book discussion, so there's always one for each of those. Plus one that I leave at work to read on lunch and breaks and one that I carry in my purse.
And then there's the non-fiction title that I work through when I am in the mood. That's The Ode less Traveled for now.

[Matthew]

Right now i am only ready one Book;

1 the rise of theodore roosevelt.

i wanted to take a break at the mid way point but was too engrossed to do so. However, i am constantly ready periodicles and articles relating to my job, and recently i picked up my copy of
The Wolf; The Ecology and Behavior of an Endangered Species by David Mech.

[Llama]

Currently this is my list, but it may change as I can get into one genre and not feel like getting into another right away
1.The Queens Fool
2.The Virgin's Lover
3.Just Jane
4.Star Trek - Power Hungry
5.Star Wars - Ambush at Correlia
6.Star Wars - Assault at Selonia
7.Star Wars - Showdown at Centerpoint
8.Fairest
and from there I am not sure, but again this is list may change several times over as I have 100 books in my room waiting to be read.

[Ann]

I just read one at a time, if not I tend not to finish them. I love to get lost in the book I'm reading I don't want anything to interfer with that.

[Jennifer]

I am reading 7 books! I fall asleep reading and wake up with a few crumpled up in bed around me.

[Katie]

Oh, dear it's getting worse! Even though I'm trying to focus on two that need to be back at the library by Thursday, my group read, and another I've been dying for & finally got, I have read at least something in the last week in 12 books! They are:

1)P.S. I Love You by Cecelia Ahern
2)Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman
3)New Moon by Stephenie Meyer
4)Something Blue by Emily Giffin
5)The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield
6)Void Moon by Michael Connelly
7)At First Sight by Nicholas Sparks
8)Sam's Letters to Jennifer by James Patterson
9)Promise Me by Harlan Coben
10)You Have to Kiss a Lot of Frogs by L. Graff
11)Death du Jour by Kathy Reichs
12)Portrait in Death by J.D. Robb

[Dan]

Just one. Skulls in the Stars by Robert E. Howard. If I try to start a book while I'm reading another, I frequently abandon the first one.

[Minnie]

Right now I am reading "The Complete Peanuts 1955 to 1956" interspersed with "Shakespeare" by Bill Bryson and if I'm a little bored there's "Duma Key" by Stephen King and for a little light relaxation Jodi Picault's "Salem Falls". I am a shameless multiple book reader, keeps me from getting bored. However, I do finish them, if they're worthwhile. Many many years ago I used to believe once I had started a book, I had to finish it even if it was as crappy as hell. Mercifully I have matured!

[Annie]

Right now I am only reading two, but am going to the library tomorrow!!! woohoooo - back to about ten at a time at least!

[Chloe]

I woke up this morning and had to laugh as I walked around my house. I have an open book sitting in literally every room. One in each bathroom, one by the bed, one on the breakfast bar in the kitchen, one on the couch, and one in the office. Subconsciously I have littered every conceivable surface with reading materials so that wherever I may end up I will have something to peruse.

[Jenny]

a group after my own heart. im glad im not the only one this happens to.
i agree that books for different moods is the basis, yet i also find that books for different rooms of the house fits the bill too.
i work at a bookstore and i swear i come home with at least 1-2 more a day. it really is an addiction...
currently been reading:
the host (stephenie meyer)
god bless you mr. rosewater (kurt vonnegut)
confederacy of dunces (john kennedy toole)
night flight (antoine de saint-exupery)
and im stressed out about finishing all the above before the new david sedaris comes out, as it will move to the top of the list then, and i will devour that one in 1 day.

[Jen]

I usually have two books going at any given time. One goes on my bedside table to help me unwind at night. The other one goes in my purse, for when I read in the living-room or when I need something to read in the car.

[Erik]

usually 4 or 5. I mix it up with quick reads, some non-fiction, etc. There always seems to be one book that interests me but that I end up slogging through. And others that I can't seem to put down. Plus I'm easily distracted every time I happen to swing by the book store.

[for-much-deliberation]

Right now I've got about 5 books on my reading list:

- The Shakespeare Secret - Carrell
- Running for Mortals - Bingham
- Marathon Training for Dummies
- Saving fish from drowning - Tan
- Four past midnight - King

[pop]

I'm reading one, a Patterson Women's Murder Club book, and writing two books. The reading is more or less on the back burner, when I pick it up, I'll probably sail through it in one sitting. I read fast, and once past the setup, Patterson's books move right along.

[Sally]

I am reading three:
The Bait of Satan by John Bevere
The One Hundred Secret Senses by Amy Tan
Escape From The Happy Cannibal by Ron Miller

[Gail]

Mmmm...I loved Hundred Secret Senses

Reading right now: Queen Victoria: A Personal History by Christopher Hibbert

A Clubbable Woman by Reginald Hill

Looking at: Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke
The Blindfold by Siri Hustvedt

Grimm's Fairy Tales

Anderson's Fairy Tales

[Margaret]

I only read 1 book at a time it takes a day or two depending upon the type of book that it is. Right now I'm reading HooDoo Mysteries by Ray Malbrough and I estimate that it will be about a 4 day read because it is not the novel that I thought it would be. It's about Folk lore.

[Ron]

I'm only reading one book right now. My addiction is more about buying more books than I can read in a timely fashion. I've tried to read more than one at once and I always end up strictly reading one of the two and forget to finish the other.

So right now it's just "The Mabinogion Tetraology" by Evangeline Walton.

[Suzanne]

Just one at a time. Right now, it's Water For Elephants by Sara Gruen. Not sure what's next. I have a lot to choose from,lol.

[Des]

i'm reading 1 right now-Riding the Iron Rooster by Paul Theroux.

[JT]

Currently reading:

Howards End by E.M. Forster
The Emperor of Ocean Park by Stephen L. Carter
Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh
How to Read Novels Like A Professor by Thomas C. Foster

I like having a contemporary work, a classic, and a non-fiction going at the same time. Although I've got that fourth (Brideshead) in there now because of the upcoming film...
Plus, my book club is tonight, so chalk up another one on the list.

[Lasairfiona]

I tend to only read three or four at a time since I end up really liking one or another and finishing before my list gets too big. I think my max was eight once because I kept losing the books I was reading.

[Kataklicik]

Only ONE - quite the loyalist (actually, I fail at multitasking haha). When I read more than one I tend to forget all about the less interesting one(s) and concentrate more on the one that has more ooomph. Unfair really, so, only ONE.

At the moment I've just started on Joseph Heller's Catch-22.

[Kate]

I am currently reading "The Sister" by Poppy Adams. Once I finish that, I have "Miami" by Joan Didion sitting on my coffee table, waiting to be read. I can only read one book at a time.

[Eva-Marie]

I usually stick with two at a time but I just started a third this morning. I'm reading Sickened by Julie Gregory which I'm not very far into yet, In My Skin by Kate Golden, and I'm starting Thugs And The Women Who Love Them by Wahida Clark today. That's the most I can do, I already forget even the best books shortly after I read it so I couldn't do nearly as many as some of the members on here! :) I wish I could though, wish I could read them and remember them better!

[Deanne]

Reading four books at the moment, Possession by Byatt and Jacob's room by Woolf. A rare interest in corpses by Granger a victorian mystery, and The father of forensics by Evans, which is about the life of Sir Bernard Spilsbury.
They're all different genres and only two on the list.
Find if I'm reading a book that is heavy going or depressing, that I have another more light-hearted book to balance things out.