Friday, April 23, 2010

Read, Remember, Recommend: A Reading Journal for Book Lovers

The ultimate organizing resource for book-lovers.

This is a fun resource for list-oriented types and the memory challenged.  Six sections - brightly color coded - help you keep track of what you have read, what you thought of it, and what you want to read.

Section I - Awards and Notable Lists:  I think every fiction list ever compiled is included in this section - from the famous Pulitzer Prize to the lesser known Janet Heidinger Kafka Prize for Fiction by an American Woman to lists from the American Library Association and even Target. Plus some blank forms for making your own prize-worthy lists.  Each page includes space for you to mark if the item is owned, recommended, TBR, or to purchase. 

Section II - To Read:  Pretty self-explanatory - a place to list title and author, record any notes, and mark if book is owned, to be purchased, etc.

Section III - Journal Pages:  Pages for title listings of books read and date completed, plus pages for more in-depth notes such as "reason for reading", "comments and thoughts"  and notation for book, e-book or audio.

Section IV - Recommendations:  Use this list to record books you'd like to recommend to others.  In the middle of reading a book, ever think "Mom would love this.  Gotta rememeber to tell her about it."  But then when she asks you what good things you've been reading, you go completely blank?  Now you have a place to jot it down so you won't forget.

Section V - References and Resources:  Info concerning online book sites, blogs, bookstores, publications, social networking sites, etc.

I am usually the total opposite of organized and I'm not sure how dedicated I'll be to keeping up with this journal - but I love the concept and I'm determined to give it a try.  It could be an incredibly useful tool for blogging if I can get my books in a row, so to speak, and use it.

3 comments:

  1. I liked this a lot. It is not ideal, but it is helpful.

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  2. See, I think the only part of this one that appeals to me is the compilation of lists in the first section. I tend to put about three things into the rest of it and then abandon it. :-P

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  3. Kristen - Unfortunately, that seems to be where I'm at. I keep carrying it from room to room, or from home to office, planning to update it, but it never gets done. This may be a total fail for me. - Tami

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