How BookTube Changed My Stupid Life

I mentioned:
CriminOlly
youtube.com/@CriminOllyBlog?s...
My Dopey Discord
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[@PowerAvocado]

I'm Polish, 42 years old. I haven't read books during the third and the fourth decade of my life. Several years ago I started to learn English just to understand the whole world better, science etc. I started to read books to improve my English. Now my English is good enough to read novels for adults and I've fallen in love with literature but I can't imagine myself to read more than one book per week. It's a good balance between passion for reading and keeping it pleasant. I mean, if I've read more it wouldn't be relax but a chore.

[@M-J]

Lovely video, Michael. You perfectly described addictive behavior in a casual talk. I’m so glad you are here, your dopey channel is a fave, and I hope we are all still talking BookTube as friends 10 years from now. 🤗 - MJ

[@saintdonoghue]

I still say the 500 Book Challenge has alternate solutions! Foremost of which: get rid of 2000 books. Presto! No more space problems at the Manor!

[@troytradup]

Or, just read those five hundred books before you buy more. There is nothing inherently noble about endlessly buying more books.

[@saintdonoghue]

@@troytradup Not inherently noble, true - but definitely fun! Mike went to the Brattle Bookshop, for Pete's sake, and only bought books for other people - because according to the 500 Book Challenge, he has too many books! Surely a way to solve 'too many books' while also preserving the fun of book-buying would be to DUMP a few thousand extraneous books?

[@Lake-Reads]

@@saintdonoghue This is why I got me an Ereader, I get to endlessly fill the thing without physical spacial consequences and when I get to something I REALLY like on there I'll get aphysical copy, but then again if we are talking about used copies and remainders which are cheap as dirt then the temptation is there. But you are right, getting rid of some stuff is really the key.

[@amritasengupta5251]

Book collection and reading books are two very different hobbies. 😢😢😢 Let's not judge people.​@@troytradup

[@Johanna_reads]

Loved the dude-bro Marcus Aurelius clip! 🤣 I need to get to Amber Chronicles! Glad you’re here, Michael!

[@snowysnowyriver]

My life has certainly changed in the last couple of years since I started watching your channel Michael! My TBR list quadrupled!! 😱 😂 😊

[@nunyabizness6595]

That thumbnail is hilarious!😂😂😂

[@lock67ca]

The one thing I've learned in the time you've been on KZbin is...I really don't like e-readers. Sure, you can carry around 10,000 books in your pocket, but it's just so much more satisfying having a bookshelf (or shelves) full of books. Our laundry room has become something of a Little Free Library, so I'm constantly rounding stuff up and putting it out there when I need to make space.

[@BookChatWithPat8668]

Michael, your videos are WONDERFUL, and you exude kindness and a spirit of good humor and fun. I look forward to your videos every week. You are one of the best out there. Thank you again for all that you create and share. 😊

[@snowysnowyriver]

🎯💯

[@carolinec3951]

Michael, I do LOVE your dopey channel! You add so much creativity to reading. Everything you do is all in. I think it’s your infectious enthusiasm that makes people enjoy watching. I also enjoy your discussions like this one and your vintage author highlights. I’ve learned about so many new OLD authors. Thanks!

[@PeculiarNotions]

I second this.

[@CriminOllyBlog]

I’ve found that I’ve had more of a mindset shift with the RWYO challenge this time. I really do care less about buying books than I used to I think

[@GentleReader01]

It’s working that way for me too. I’m at 150/500, and delighting at the riches here already.

[@CriminOllyBlog]

@@GentleReader01 Fantastic!

[@holzausgabe8812]

Thank you for the greatest of dopey channels.

[@robertlynn7746]

I love your channel Michael! Because of you I read Robert E Howard, H P Lovecraft, Arthur Conan Doyle, H Rider Haggard, Edgar Rice Burroughs and many others. I picked up a book this week at a thrift shop, "The right hand of doom & other tales of Solomon Kane" by Robert E Howard and I thought, "Michael would love this book". That happened with many books by all the authors listed above, as well as H G Wells. You have definitely influenced my reading tastes and I appreciate it and thank you ❤️

[@Six-Shooter]

I feel your pain, Michael. With just starting my Western channel, and having my busy life and other hobbies not just reading. Best I can do on average is 2 books a month and westerns are short reads most times. I won't even reach nearly half of what you can read by the end of the year, but since I started watching booktube only a couple years ago, at first I would compare myself to others also and give myself impossible reading goals for myself and stress about making sure I read so much a day or finishing a book in a number of days or within a week. Now, I don't care, cause it took the joy out of reading and now I just go at my own pace and will just be posting reading updates when I've read enough and have something to talk about. Whether that takes a week or a month or two. Who cares, there shouldn't be any pressure to read. It doesn't make you a better person or anything so why care?

[@Six-Shooter]

I also now only buy westerns. Everything else I read unless it's Bond, Jack Ryan Or Bourne I won't buy physically now unless it has become a favourite. I won't stop buying westerns though. No matter how many I have I haven't got to yet. I still have a lot of time to read them all

[@angelica351a]

'MKV' is the best 'booktuber' out there. Rhonda dressed up as Holmes was my favorite.

[@potatopower2144]

You changed my life by introducing me to Robert E Howard, Lovecraft, Moorcock, Clark Ashton Smith, and many many others. I didn't enjoy reading very much, before discovering your channel, but actually I just didn't enjoy modern literature. 🫡

[@thehashisheater]

seconded!

[@midnightgreen8319]

That's a fantastic list of authors!!

[@d.r.martin6301]

I always enjoy spending a bit of time at the Manor with Michael. And this visit was one of the best.

[@stretmediq]

Growing up in Louisiana my grandparents had a huge home library stuffed with books no mortal could possibly read in two lifetimes and I miss it more than I can say. Most of it was sold off when they died and in the process a lot of the books I acquired as a kid were lost forever. So I am slowly reconstituting it because I have to be surrounded by books. It's like oxygen I have to be able to just take a breath and run my hands over the volumes on the shelf until I find one that suits me whether I've read it before or not. Granted because of my job, I'm a paramedic, and because of the weather right now I'm so busy I sometimes only have an hour or two to sit down and read but I still do it even if I lose sleep over it

[@JohnM-cd4ou]

After doing a 50 book challenge I recently updated my reading goal to a 20,000 page challenge so I can reward myself equally for reading regardless of the length of the book.

[@M-J]

Love that idea! 👏🏻👏🏻

[@kenward1310]

Watching booktube's fun. Watching people talk about reading. Who knew? Anyway, always look forward to your vids. Thank you, sir.

[@MysteryandMayhem-gr7nn]

Great video, Michael! This was very heartfelt and really shed some light on why booktube is a good thing to so many. From now on "Dopey" is analogous to "Brilliant." Take care! 🙂

[@GrammaticusBooks]

Awesome video MKV! I always admire your ability to opine on any topic with perfect speech in an entertaining fashion. My rule on whether to buy a book or not is: If I can walk down to the local library and they have 12 copies of it, then it's generally speaking not a book I'm interested in owning.

[@michaelk.vaughan8617]

That sounds like a wise policy.

[@HeyYallListenUp]

I liked the thumbnail for the video. It was good to hear your thoughts. Overall, joining booktube has been a positive experience for me too.

[@ObscureBookAdventures]

I’m in full admiration for sticking with it.

[@Unpotted]

Great description of this common condition, Michael. Are we book collectors or just readers, or both? I used to get all my books from the public library because I worked there, so it was inexpensive and convenient. When I took a job at a special library, I started buying my own books, but only in paperback, and I gave them away when I finished reading them. Then I moved from my apartment into a house in another city, where I didn’t have a handy pack of book hounds to devour my discarded scraps, and they began accumulating at an alarming rate. Because I commute now, I can read a book almost every week day on the train. I’ll have to deal with it all eventually, but houses sure can store a lot more books, especially with a dedicated reading room that grows into a home library. Please don’t worry about how fast you read. Comprehension trumps page count. I’ve found that by slowing down, I enjoy the story more and retain it longer. You should find that the more you read, the faster you are. Meanwhile, we all enjoy your videos when we poke our noses from between the pages. 😊 Looking forward to next time. 😺✌️

[@stevenmoto8737]

June on the Range changed my reading (which I came across in January). Just finished Soldier Blue - The Virginian next. The Ox Bow Incident is in the post. Thank you

[@jbriaz]

It’s refreshing to see someone on BookTube talk about it positively instead of stating negatives about it. It is generally so good and that we should appreciate!

[@DejanOfRadic]

Your sincere love for books is infectious, and the twinkle in the eye is the perfect counterpoint.....you are a gift to the book loving world.

[@davidaldinger3666]

A clue that you have too many books is that you have a row of books in front of another row of books on your shelf. I fixed that problem by moving three or four times in a couple of years. Do that and your collection thins out fast. Shelf queens are always the first to go. Pretty to look at, too big to hold, never actually get read. Next are the ones you’ve tried to read a few times and just couldn’t get into. Next are the books you realize you’re never going to even start due to you no longer being interested. Then comes the culling of your nonfiction: travel and nature guides, how to’s, cookbooks and dense historical books you’ll never read again. I still get books once in a while, but i have to read them right away or it’s wasted money. So now with the books I still have, a kindle and a library card, I can read whatever I want to.

[@LiterateTexan]

The friends I've made on Booktube has been the biggest life changer for me, too. I'm thinking about launching a challenge where you read 25 books that you DON'T already own 😂

[@user-vt3vm3xg8r]

Thank you Michael. Love your blogs.

[@ArtBookshelfOdyssey]

Maybe it’s time to open “Rogers’s Cheap Ol’ Bookstore”!

[@hughminor9369]

I love your channel. Im 68 years old and have been collecting and reading book forever. I enjoy you channel because you read the books I read and you have introduced me to others new to me. Thank you.

[@StevenEverett7]

First of all I have been reading forever. There has never really been anyone that I could talk to about what I enjoyed. I found booktube about a year ago and now I can discuss what I've read over many years. It's a great feeling. Yours was one of the first channels that I found and I really appreciate what you did for me Michael! Secondly, I've been collecting books since I started getting Hardy Boy books for my birthday. I would thing that someday I wouldn't be able to get any more so I better keep what I have. Well, now I believe I have around 10,000 books, magazines and pulps sitting around. I live in an old farmhouse and there are books in the attic, books in every room of the main floor and books in the basement. This being said, back in the early 2000s I ran into financial trouble and had to stop buying books. It was way difficult. Well, I never started buying again as I discovered that I had more books than I'd ever be able to read. So I never had to join the "read what you own".

[@JamesRuchala]

I love the thumbnail picture. Having watched the whole video now I see miserable, hooded MKV going "well I guess I'm off to buy more dumb books...sigh"

[@DavidWiley7]

Michael, what is there to put here that everyone else has already mentioned: you're an inspiration to so many, and your gung-ho approach to embracing that 500 book challenge has certainly helped to highlight the addictive approach many folks take to buying books. I hope 2024 turns out to be a very rewarding year for you, both on Booktube and off it. You deserve it, my friend.

[@BookBlather]

I think this is probably how a lot of us feel. It has certainly changed my life, in both bookish and non-bookish ways. If I were suddenly cut off from BookTube tomorrow, there would instantly be a hug hole in my life that would leave me reeling.

[@M-J]

No hug holes here! 🤗🤗🤗🤗🤗🤗

[@BookBlather]

@@M-J 😊🤗

[@troytradup]

OMG, BookTube has so fed my compulsive book-buying tendencies. But I think I'm finally figuring it out again. Great video, Michael!

[@royreadsanything]

Great video - I would echo a lot of these positives - I love the friendship, and having the purposeful activity of reading, events and sharing enthusiasms.

[@rifway22]

I love your pauses

[@glockensig]

I am still working my way thru all your videos....even the comic book ones.....and, as an outsider, I could see the 500 book challenge would be good for you. ( Don't let Roger see this comment)

[@anotherbibliophilereads]

This is my third year doing the 100 Book Challenge. First year, I immediately drove out to a used book store and load up with purchases. I don’t think a have read any of them yet. I do feel a slight pang with I pass over a Kindle deal, but I’m growing more nonchalant about it.

[@nightcrawler2884]

Great thumbnail 🔥💀👌

[@davidkoenig8592]

I made a resolution not to buy any new books for one year and I am doing pretty good so far. Love your channel and I don't even read fiction (except for Lovecraft)! Love to see your insight on classics.

[@CourteousKitsch]

Before Goodreads, I used to buy books as my TBR. I fully intended to read them too. But now I've got books that I bought in the Eighties and Nineties that I still fully intend to read sitting on my shelves. So the Read-What-You-Own challenge has been good for me. And channels like yours have been good for me too. My mom was the only person who shared my taste in both classic literature, historical fiction, vintage horror, and pulp sci-fi and adventure, and she passed away at 83 years young. I never thought I'd have an outlet for the eclectic taste that I have, but here you are! Thanks and here's to a great year of reading!

[@Toracube]

Booktube certainly had an impact on me. There are quite a few I follow. Each person very different. It’s taught me that the more I know the more I realise I don’t know. It certainly has grown over the years and I am very greatful. I can’t say I have had any negative experiences on it.

[@TheAtlanteanArchive]

Stephen King has his 'constant readers.' I'm a 'constant viewer' of this channel. I've been following for almost two years now and really love what you're doing here. I first found your channel while researching Robert E. Howard. You got me more heavily into his stuff and more heavily into Lovecraft as well. You also got me started on Edgar Rice Burroughs, whom I had never read before. I'm reading the Mars books now and enjoying them. Thanks a million, and keep 'em coming!

[@wouterl5316]

You have a fun channel that I enjoy a lot. Thanks for that.

[@PeculiarNotions]

"When I get a little money I buy books; and if any is left I buy food and clothes" - Erasmus

[@Yesica1993]

The funny (or maybe just insane) thing about that is that there's been times I've been so broke that I could only afford one or the other. There's been times I've bought books instead of food.

[@PeculiarNotions]

@@Yesica1993 I'm with you on that.

[@ers5072]

I went through the hoarding phase with comics. Now I am selling off my comic collection to invest in real big boy investments. I have gone back to reading regular books again and I must say that I enjoy books far more than comics. Getting back into books was due in large part to your channel and Horrorbabble. I will be retiring in Japan in a few years so now I am only buying very select books to bring to Japan with me as it is too expensive to ship books to Japan. But I will get to explore the world of Japanese used bookstores and Manga shops which I am looking forward to with great anticipation. Thanks for another great video!

[@ManDuderGuy]

Your enthusiasm and goofy charm is what kept me coming back :)

[@bernardjohnson8093]

I really enjoy your little show and look forward to each new episode. You have inspired me to read authors and books that I otherwise would not have read. Keep up the good work. 👍

[@duffypratt]

I’m look forward to when you finish, then stop by a cool bookstore, and come out with 600 books - the mother of all book hauls.

[@Darwriter]

Where buying books for the sake of it is concerned: I'm the same - but not only for books, but also pens! Recently, though, I've decided to curtail my buying habits and just enjoy what I already have.

[@bookfantastic]

25% of my thousands of books are for sale online. A nice supplemental income. I do back off buying once in a while just to get more money to flow in instead of out and to spend more time listing at least some of the other 75%. Still, I have visions of designing my own library and continuing to horde; semi-retiring so I can read more and do other stuff One of my clients has about 6,000 books -- almost all juvenile series books plus stuff like Kjelgaard and Terhune (and very few of the sports series). He keeps buying at age 77. At the same time, we are working on a plan as to what to do with these books when he passes. I just finished Britfield and The Lost Crown by C. R. Stewart. Brilliant! Going to finish the series. Written for 12 and older. The writer is an American who spent some of his youth in England. It has echoes of Dickens, Dahl, Snicket, Rowling (though non-supernatural), even Jules Verne. A very English Adventure/Mystery.

[@stevezeidman7224]

Michael, I find you highly entertaining. I tune in for your introduction even when I’m not interested in the books you are discussing. I laugh all the time.

[@sgriffin9960]

You're doing fantastic on your challenge, Michael! ⭐ I read the first 5 books in the Chronicles of Amber many years ago and really enjoyed them! Glad you are too.

[@philologus6577]

I subscribe to several book tubers but by far I enjoy your channel more than any others. Probably because your tastes align more with mine than others. I also enjoy Roger's comments as he's so dead on.😂

[@Arven8]

Love that thumbnail. 😄 I would have a problem with book hoarding, too, if I lived in a stately manor. However, I live in a small two-bedroom house, so I am always (forgive me) throwing books out to make room for new ones. My general rule is, "Am I going to read this again?" If not, out it goes. Otherwise, books would be piled to the ceiling. I admire your perseverance with the "Read What You Own Challenge." 4 more years! 4 more years!

[@paulsnowden1852]

Hi, I very rarely comment on videos but felt I had to on this occasion. I really enjoy your channel. You and other booktubers have encouraged me to read more so thanks. However I have come to the conclusion I am a book collector as well as a reader knowing I will never read all the books I buy. But that is ok as well ate least I think it is . Cheers

[@Yesica1993]

I just didn't want you to start seeing the 500 Challenge as a chore and even lose your love for reading because of it. If it's helping you, fantastic! Keep at it! As to comparisons, I have seen that just as a Booktube viewer. I can't imagine how much harder it is for creators. In the end, it's silly. It's not a contest. We read however fast we read, and that's fine. The point is enjoying and getting something out of the books we read. Not the numbers.

[@2024FingersCrossed]

I love your channel! I just used to read Mysteries but you have opened up my reading. I have read some of your recommendations and they are great. Look forward to reading some more. Congratulations 19k 🎉

[@trunkshatake7407]

Your channel is amazing and has really in the last two years brought back my love and collection of books . Through you I’ve Discovered Robert e Howard , William s Burroughs, Ursula k Le Guin and I just bought the same edition of Amber Chronicles by Roger Zelazney . Never change and may your channel continue till the sun goes out .

[@BookishChas]

I’m so glad Booktube had so many positive life enhancements for you Michael! I’m always glad I found your channel.

[@CliffsDarkGems]

Great video Michael! Love your channel and feel your pain with the 500 book challenge. I am on about 30/100 and already feeling frustrated. My problem is that we live pretty remotely and "work" from home. Visits to our second-hand bookshop was a highlight for me not a habit, which makes it tough. I am pretty stubborn so will hopefully complete my challenge.

[@russworks2882]

I used to take the money I earned mowing lawns as a kid and spend it at used book stores. It wasn't long before it became an enjoyable part of my routine; there is something so meditative and therapeutic about searching carefully, in solitude, through the stacks. I never regarded it as an addiction, but I guess it was, in that I developed an interest in books as objects and artifacts to be held and treasured. As bad habits go, it's pretty benign (though if you read Steve Ditko's "Collector's Edition" from Creepy # 10, you'll see where this can become a problem.) I still buy books, but after a recent move in which I had to dispose of quite a pile of stuff, I now practice a lot of restraint. I haven't gotten to the point where I much like it. Get that coffee, Michael, and thanks for all the videos.

[@Kite562bookishreviews]

I enjoy you sharing your thoughts on what you read or what you're going to read. I'll admit I discovered your channel with the lovecraft content and Stephen King, I enjoy your energy in front of the camera. It's quite relaxing. It's okay to read a book slowly too; since I myself am a slow reader. 🙂❤📚

[@heidi6281]

Michael when you get to 500, send us a shout out to send you some of the newer fantasy titles that we love!! The Bloodsworn & The Empire of the Wolf for example!!

[@theblackwhitebrown]

I really like this book challenge idea. You've inspired me to do a 100 book challenge! I think it will help me in a similar way as what you said it helped you.

[@kirktanka8199]

I had the same addiction to comics. Once a week I would go to the comic store. I read all of them and for financial reasons I had to stop. I know what you mean when you say it was a habit. It has been many years later, about a decade. I can not even walk into a comic store, there is just no interest since I have been away for so long. I am sure you will stop in and pick up a book or two, but the habit has been remediated. Great video. Looking forward to what is coming next.

[@carlkolchak4437]

This is not a dumb channel and when I unsubscribe I always resubscribe quickly because i LIKE this channel. And i think you are neato keeen. Well, maybe it is because I like your mummy and doggy. - My addiction is buying sci fi assortment lots of old sci fi books from Ebay. Now since I just retired I have to cut down my expenses. - What I am thinking about doing is writing down in a notebook the name of the book instead of buying it.

[@timmeyer9191]

I love your "dumb" channel. Keep up the entertaining work.

[@JohnM-cd4ou]

What time do you get up in the morning Mike? I noticed you usually upload around the time I get back from milking my cows

[@michaelk.vaughan8617]

Around 3:30 usually.

[@bigaldoesbooktube1097]

If I hadn’t of found your channel my life would definitely be different, as I wouldn’t have my own dumb channel 😅

[@TheMikester307]

I actually met, got together with and married a sweet guy that I met on You Tube! (In the comments section of a video!) This was years ago and he is gone now but it's a blissful memory! All the best, Michael! ---- Yours, mikey

[@user-yu7wc5hz7m]

Great channel - always sure to find something interesting here. Keep on posting - and thanks for spreading the word of Robert E. Howard!

[@ProseAndPetticoats]

Amazing video, Michael. You'll hit those 20K subscribers soon.

[@janicecuroso1042]

I have found living on social security has solved my book buying habit. Luckily, I still have plenty of books left to read before I die. 😊

[@midnightgreen8319]

Your favorite authors are my favorite authors. You have a fantastic channel!!

[@DanielsBibliophagy]

I can't wait for your stoicism series! The read what you own challenge has altered my brain chemistry as well. I think after the challenge I won't be picking things up as randomly and concentrate on things I really want to collect. Your channel has really gotten me pumped to start getting into American Comics. I have always been too intimidated because every time I picked one up it was always mid-story and I just felt lost. I didn't understand the concept of a "run" because I came from the world of manga, where you always start at vol 1.

[@tommonk7651]

Hi, Michael! While our reading tastes are different, I quite enjoy your channel. I have always enjoyed reading, but you and other booktubers have encouraged me to step up my reading pace and diversity. Thank you for enjoying the reading experience and encouraging others in this strange addiction we share.

[@ernestschultz5065]

People, at least people like me, tune in just for you. You're a very pleasant and quirky funny guy. If you don't count that Chronicles Of Amber as least 10 books You're crazy. Be well Michael.

[@jennsenn1979]

I found you searching for HPL content because he's my favorite. I hadn't even heard of his annotated volumes. I bought them because of your recommendation and they are stunning.

[@jennsenn1979]

I've bought a few others two, like Varney the Vampire. I really enjoy your fantasy and sci-fi content too.

[@DamnFoolIdealisticCrusader]

I COMPLETELY understand the thrill of the media hunt and internal need to just browse bookstores or any bookshelf….it’s hardwired into my brain. Just be careful if you’re ever in Nashville. If you happen to stop at McKays books, you’ll probably be renting a semi truck to drive the massive amount of books you bought for dirt cheap back home…..

[@Yesica1993]

(I love your "dopey" channel.)

[@ReeltoRealAP]

When I accidentally stumbled across your channel about a year or so ago, I soon discovered how, number one, interesting you were, and also how many books and authors I was missing out on. You introduced me to so many fantastic authors, and books that I otherwise would never have discovered. I'm from the UK, currently living in New Zealand for a bit, but your videos inspire me wherever i am in the world. Thank you Michael

[@charliedogg7683]

Upon retiring several years ago Michael, I was struck by how many books I'd accumulated over the last five decades, how many I knew would go unread and which books I would put in my reading pile. It was then that I realised I really had two collections: books I honestly planned to read and books I probably wouldn't but which I remember buying, some going back to my early teenage years. So now I have a collection of books for reading and a collection which are touchstones to my past. Books that appeal to me the reader and those that appeal to me the collector. And I am content with that. We all go through a rationalisation of our stuff at some point and if what we have and value after we've come out the other end works for us, then that's all we could ask for.

[@monalisareads]

I found out about you when MJ did a live last year to discuss the read what you own challenge. Someone mentioned you were doing 500 hundreds books & that intrigued me. I started watching your backlog of videos & found myself enjoying them immensely. I know you think you channel is dopey, but I disagree. Your perspective on the various genres that you read I have found to be different than the majority of Booktubers I've seen/watch. Your appreciation for the written word is palatable & has made me more excited to read & see books in a different light/perspective/view. I am thrilled you have continued with the 500 book challenge. I don't have nearly as many books as you have, but I have been encouraged/challenged me to work on reading the books I already have. There are so many I own that I'm eager to read & I'm determined to read a large portion of them before buying more. You're an inspiration to me & I'm sure many others. Keep it up!

[@thomasr7292]

Awesome to hear how much Booktube has helped you, Michael! Kicking bad habits is extremely hard but it's such a reward when you're able to do it.

[@Arrow72893]

Dude if I met you in public I'd get a selfie. You're a book tube celeb to me

[@RickClassico]

Gotta be honest hombre, the reason I'm reading the Tom Holland translated edition of The Histories by Herodotus is because of your recommendation.

[@mysteriousoul]

You bring a love of literature that is infectious, not to mention you championing forgotten authors, classics, comics and every genre out there! I love your content and look forward to hearing you share your reading journey with us dopey audience. Please keep going with your dopey channel, and let Michael know he’s pretty good to listening to occasionally too. 😉

[@constancecampbell4610]

I loved going to bookstores even when I had no money to spend. I’d read a little of this and a little of that and leave feeling refreshed and sated. Maybe you could try that while you are still doing the challenge?

[@Yesica1993]

I was thinking the same. Being broke (and having no credit cards) cures the buying problem instantly! I was thinking he could just browse, but then put whatever $ he would have spent on those books into a savings account. It would make it a more "positive" habit, instead of just the denial part.

[@LadyJaneBooks]

This was simply wonderful. :)

[@TheFiown]

My mother taught me to read before I began school, it was liberating. I would read everything and anything. My father bought me the complete 'Encyclopedia Britannica' when I was two and as soon as I could I read and read and cross referenced articles, it was Google before Google. The first time I went into the school library I cried as I realised that there wasn't enough time to read everything and it was a small library ! I tend to binge by author or theme still. My two best friends are really bookies, one of them has the most famous book stall in Portobello and her whole life is about books and research and purchase and she has fascinating conversations with customers. Often people as her to build up collections for them. I am currently preparing to move house and the book situation is a nightmare. I have tried to whittle down but it's quite impossible !

[@user-vd2ve8ce5i]

Finishing The Great Book of Amber, you will consider it as 1 book or 10? Theoretically, it is a omnibus...

[@michaelk.vaughan8617]

10 definitely

[@dqan7372]

You got up at four in the morning to record? I could have passed you in the hall on my way to bed. Well, not in your halls from the sounds of it.

[@user-oh7nu9iv7o]

"Reading is a more important thing than books" is so true! So many "book people" care way too much about books and not reading. Books become an affection and an object to fetishize. It's funny. It's hard to do this with other hobbies. If I enjoyed playing the sousaphone, I probably wouldn't hoard sousaphones ...

[@Aunt-Rachel]

Hoarders gonna hoard... the item isn't really important. 😁

[@w.adammandelbaum1805]

Maybe Roger could clean Cthulhu's litter box on top of those books?

[@MegaWhoppingCosmicBookwyrm]

I’m doing a reward system challenge to simultaneously keep down my purchases and bring up my reading. I don’t know that I could wait to read 100 let alone 500 before breaking down and buying at least ONE new book. 😅 More power to you though. It’s certainly an experiment I’m interested in seeing the result of in several years.

[@adellajones9887]

I think we have tsundoku syndrome 😂. I have a plethora of books but I get busy with other things. Then I am tired😢