Dan's Blogvent Calendar - December 3rd

Hey guys, and welcome to the third entry in this twenty-four day self-imposed blogging initiative. Today's entry isn't about games, so if you're not keen on reading about non-game-related stuff, feel free to skip this and come back tomorrow, when hopefully I'll have a little something to say about A Link Between Worlds.

I love the written word. Coming from a blogger, that sentence probably doesn't surprise anyone, but I don't just love to write - I love to read as well. Sitting in the comfort of my room with a book in my hands and a mug of hot chocolate beside me is one of the purest pleasures I know. Unfortunately, my slow reading speed and my collector's tendency have resulted in me accruing a lot of books in recent months that I haven't been able to dedicate reading time to. In addition, I have a lot of books that I haven't yet obtained, but which I'm keen to get hold of, even though it means adding them to that ever-growing literary pile of shame (yes folks, what's true for games is also true for books in the case of this humble blogger).

At the end of October I bought a monthly subscription to Audible, the digital audiobook service run by Amazon. The rationale behind it was to try and overlap my 'reading time' with other parts of my day - with an audiobook, I can engage in the story on my journeys to and from work, or when I'm grinding out levels in whatever RPG I happen to be playing. So far, the plan is working pretty well. My first choice of download was Stephen King's The Stand, a book I've tried to read a few times, but the size of which has daunted me enough to force me to keep putting it down. Thanks to the audiobook, I'm now a mere six chapters from its end (a little under five hours of listening remaining), and I can honestly say it's let me experience a book I probably never would have made it all the way through otherwise. It's not my favourite of King's works - it takes far too long to get going, and the substance of the story is spread way too thin for my liking, but the characters are some of my favourites from amongst the King novels I've read, and as the story approaches its climax, it's really starting to move on a-pace.

I already have my next listen lined up for when I finish The Stand - a recent novel called Company of Liars, by Karen Maitland. Billed as a 'historical thriller' set in Medieval Europe, It's not a book I would have thought about reading under regular circumstances, but figured that this new initiative isn't just a means of getting through the books I already know I want to read, but also a great opportunity to try new things I wouldn't otherwise have taken a chance on. I'm looking forward to starting to listen to it in the coming days, just as soon as I finish travelling with Stu Redman, Fran Goldsmith, and the mysterious Dark Man Randall Flagg.

That'll do for today's Blogvent Calendar entry, I think. I'll close by saying that if any of you have any recommendations, books that you've read recently and think I might enjoy, please throw them my way. I'm primarily a fantasy and sci-fi reader, but I'm open-minded enough to accept any recommendations. If I like the look of it, and it's available on Audible, then it might just end up being next month's listen. Thanks for reading guys, take care, and I'll see you around.

Dan

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Currently playing - The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds (3DS)