book diaries

book diaries, 2006 to present

It all started with a blank journal, and a love for writing down memorable lines from books.

 

book quotes, circa 2006-2007

Then, in the second half of 2008, I was inspired during a monthly book discussion by fellow book club member Marie to keep an actual book diary.

first book diary entry, on "The Historian" by Elizabeth Kostova

I started to write down not only my favorite lines from books, but also my thoughts during and after reading, as well as interesting trivia encountered along the way. At the end, I gave each book a rating, ranging from 1 to 5 stars.

book rating system

I also started to keep track of the books I acquired and the consequent expenses, and made a summary at the end of every month.

monthly summary (left & bottom right) and
book acquisition list & expenses (top right)

And because I love lists lists lists, I also wrote down my reading targets for the year.

book list for the Flips Flipping Pages Reading Diversity Challenge 2009

I also made a year-end summary and, for the past couple of years, a list of my top reads for the year.

top 10 reads for 2010

Browsing through my old book diaries, I was amused to realize that I am fond of genealogies. :) The most difficult and convoluted family tree I have made thus far has been for the Julio-Octavian family from Robert Graves' "I, Claudius". If only I knew about the one on Wikipedia beforehand. :P

family trees through the years

I used to ask friends for lined journals for Christmas, but now I've stocked a handful on my own for future use.

 blank journals

Keeping a book diary has allowed me to relive the experience of past books read, without having to read the book again.

And now, a new entry awaits...