Tsundoku

[ceptimus]

Is the condition of acquiring books and other reading materials, but letting them pile up without reading them.

Tsundoku - Wikipedia

I thought this might be a useful, possibly previously unknown, word for members.

Maybe we could post lists or photos of our unread books?

[Crumb]

You first?

[JoeP]

I think I have a copy of Ulysses somewhere. As far as I know no one has ever finished it. Do books you've started but not kind of quite finished count?

I got a satisfying pile of books for Christmas but they don't count as I haven't acquired any new books since then.

[ceptimus]

It's a difficult question - the unfinished books one.

I think that books that you've made a genuine attempt to read - just for your own interest - but given up on because you didn't find them interesting enough, don't count. The reason for giving up could be that they were badly written, or the plot or subject weren't interesting to you.

But books that you've leafed through, maybe read the introduction or first chapter, and then put to one side because you're too busy, or you have another more interesting book that "you want to read first", or similar, do count. Any book which you put down with some vague idea of coming back to continue later (perhaps much later) definitely qualifies.

And books that you "ought to read", as part of a study you've been assigned by your school, or employer, or your own opinion of "this would be good for me", also count. Even though you may find the book boring, if you feel that you should be reading it if you only had the will power, then it definitely qualifies as tsundoku.

And, of course, books that you've bought, but not even looked through yet, qualify as tsundoku after some passage of time, which I shall arbitrarily set at three months. If you buy more than three months worth of reading matter at the same time, then you're probably already guilty of tsundoku, and you certainly are if you then go on to buy extra books while there are still several previously bought books in your queue.

That's my ruling Now, who's going to go first?

[Crumb]

[Ari]

Fucken Walden is my Tsundoku, it still wanders around on my bookshelf despite having tried and failed to read it multiple times now.

[Crumb]

Ok fine...

Shelf1 small.png
Attachment 11810
Attachment 11811

Roast me.

[LarsMac]

Originally Posted by Ari

Fucken Walden is my Tsundoku, it still wanders around on my bookshelf despite having tried and failed to read it multiple times now.

One of many so called Classics that, if you didn't actually read it as part of a class assignment in school, you will never find the time to read.

Most of my books are in boxes in the garage because in our new home, the daughter filled up the bookshelves with her collection of knick-knacks and pieces of woodworking left behind by her hubby when he passed.
The only books I have access to, just now are the ones on my Kindle.

I could do a screen snap of the the list, I reckon, but, eh. don't get to read many of them, lately, either.

[fragment]

Does my collection of "read this later" browser tabs count?

[JoeP]

browser tabs, browser bookmarks, links saved to files ...

[Crumb]

Am I the only one who reads physical books anymore?

I guess I forgot a shelf...
Attachment 11813

[ceptimus]

Here's five I picked from my bookshelves at random. There must be at least another twenty that qualify.



The two technical books there I've had for over thirty years without reading.

The three novels are from an "Essential Collection" box set I bought, probably only fifteen years or so ago. There's also A Passage to India and A Clockwork Orange in the same set that I don't remember starting.

Six from the same set don't qualify as Tsundoku. I'd already read Animal Farm, and read To the Lighthouse just recently. I also read quite a bit of The Heart of the Matter, but gave up before finishing, and the same for Lady Chatterley's Lover. I don't remember if I finished One Hundred Years of Solitude - I certainly don't remember much about it, but I know I read at least the first part.