Must’ve taken me seven months, but in my defense, it was over 1,000 pages long in 9-point type. Also, at the same time, I was reading McGrall-Hill’s Proofreading Handbook, Copyediting & Proofreading For Dummies (by FAR the most useful and informative), Strunk & White’s Elements of Style, the Chicago Manual of Style, the Cook’s Illustrated Cookbook (Christmas gift), and seven months’ worth of Vanity Fair magazines, not to mention starting my proofreading and writing business, and of course, blogging.
WHEW!
You’re made of stronger stuff than I am. I almost fell asleep just reading this list (because that’s what I do when I read), I cannot imagine how long it would take me to read a 1000 page book – especially with small type! Heck, I might not live long enough to finish it!
It was darn funny, laugh-out-loud funny, many times, so I stuck with it. Plus, I HATE to be defeated by a book. There’s only one I have never been able to finish, let alone get more than 150 pages in, and that’s “Gravity’s Rainbow” by Thomas Pynchon. It’s my cryptonite. I’ve tried twice.
Hah. So I’m not the only one reading several books at a time.
I have different ones in different rooms of the house plus different ebooks on both PCs and one on the iPod for when I get caught waiting when I’m away from home.
Your list looks more practical though.
Not me, usually. I’m a one-book-at-a-time person. But financial necessity forced me to set D.Q. aside for long stretches.
Oh, yeah, I was also proofing several of my friends’ writing projects for free for experience.
Congratulations!
It’s a drag when you just want to finish the darn thing.