[Scott Postma]

This is such a great question, and not an easy one to answer. Given so many “good books” have been written, we are all aware that it’s impossible to read them all. Thus, we are often admonished to focus on the “great books,” the BEST of what has been written or said. But even then, we are in over our heads. For me, I don’t have set plan for new vs. old but I do focus on those older books that inform the newer writers, and then try to only read those newer authors who are saying something important about the application of wisdom to the modern condition, not just regurgitating what has already been said by the older authors. A good example of such a newer book is Rescuing Socrates by Roosevelt Montas. Something else I read recently to this point really resonated with me. I’m paraphrasing here: “We are better off building a library of books we want to read and then constantly be reading ‘in our books,’ communing with these authors and not anxiously trying to get through all of them.” I’m not sure if that helps but your question is sure one that resonates with many of us.

[Michelle Ferguson]

This is helpful. I have come to see that my hunger for constantly reading something else that “I should have read by now” is a spiritual, not intellectual, issue, a form of pride that says I must have read ALL these particular books to be “good enough” for my students or fellow educators. The books I teach, however, and therefore read again and again, become sweeter and deeper with each rereading and call me to reread and drink more deeply from others already read.

[Annie Nardone]

I am a bookmoth surrounded by a thousand twinkling lights. There is always a current stack, a b-list stack, and shelves full of books that I hope to read. Nearly all are classics with a few shelves of theology and philosophy. I recently decided to include some modern fiction that had been recommended to me, which I can read and enjoy without a highlighter! A Gentleman in Moscow is written so beautifully and the Audible version is perfect. Read what calls out to you.

[Daniel Maycock]

Michelle, that’s good question. As someone who barely has time to read, I have a few rules I follow.

(1) I won’t read a new/recently published book unless someone I respect recommends it to me.

(2) I choose what to read based on current writing/research projects. That ensures that I’m making the most of my time.

(3) I’ve come to terms with the idea that I don’t need to read every book all the way through. It’s okay to skim some books; and sometimes the best part of a book (and perhaps the only part worth reading, given our time) is a single chapter or even the introduction–as is the case with C.S. Lewis’s masterpiece, English Literature in the Sixteenth Century.

• This reply was modified 1 year, 5 months ago by  Daniel Maycock.