I am considering a challenge for myself, in order to "keep the dream alive," as they say. I don't want my newfound (or should I say, renewed) thirst for knowledge to fade away, and to make sure that doesn't happen, I am going to read. Really, really read.
I have shelves and shelves of nonfiction books, chiefly on American history, that sit unread, though I have a deep interest in the topics they represent. Many of them, I picked up as souvenirs from various historic sites and museums I have visited. Of course, purchasing a book at the museum store, instead of a mgnet or a shot glass, makes me quite the intellectual. As I said before, few of these books explore events after the American Civil War, but I'm fairly certain that my desire to know more extends beyond the twentieth century (or before the twentieth century, to be correct).
So my challenge will be this: Once my class has officially ended, once I have scored the exams and turned in final grades, I am going to embark upon the adventure of reading one nonfiction book per week. I may be in for a rude awakening, considering I have a very busy almost-nine-month-old, but I always have at least a couple of hours each evening between her bedtime and mine. And, upon reading these books, I also intend to write about them, here, to ensure that I am actually learning something. An ambitious challenge, but at least I won't have to look at those books with guilt, having not read them. Also an ambitious challenge because I prefer fiction oh, so much more!
I'm not sure what my first selecton will be. Unfortunately, more pressing on my mind are 25 papers about the Civil Rights movement. Work first, learning later...
