Musing Mondays (2)

Musing Mondays is a weekly meme hosted my MizB over at Should Be Reading.

This week the question is: What books are you wishing for MOST right now?

The Crown Conspiracy by Michael J. Sullivan
I've been drooling over this book since it caught my eye on The Lost Entwife's TBR list (she actually put up her review today, which doesn't make me want it any less). This is the first book of a six-part saga, written as a single epic tale divided into individual episodes.

From the author's website: Royce Melborn, a skilled thief, and his mercenary partner, Hadrian Blackwater make a profitable living carrying out dangerous assignments for conspiring nobles until they become the unwitting scapegoats in a plot to murder the king. Sentenced to death, they have only one way out…and so begins this epic tale of treachery and adventure, sword fighting and magic, myth and legend.

Doesn't that sound brilliant? I'm almost afraid of reading it, for fear of it not living up to my now sky-high expectations...

A few others that I'd like to read right now include The Thief by Megan Whalen Turner, The Secret Life of Wombats by Jackie French and Bad Debts by Peter Temple.

Musing Mondays (1)

Since I'm still reading Inkspell I won't be doing the regular It's Monday, What Are You Reading meme, as it would pretty much be a copy of last week's entry (I do love Inkspell, though - you should really read the Inkheart trilogy by Cornelia Funke if you have the chance). So this week I thought I'd try Musing Mondays hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading.

This week's question is: Can you read amidst distractions? (tv, others talking, sporting events, etc)

The answer is that it depends. On the distraction, on the book I'm reading and on what's on my mind at the time. I usually don't have any problem reading where there are other people, like on a train or in a waiting room. If the book requires me to concentrate more than ususal I might find it harder to focus on reading and start listening to people talking (in the room, or on TV or radio) instead. If it's a book I really like and want to become absorbed in, I prefer it to be quiet around me so I will often wait to start reading until there are fewer distractions or none at all. I find I can listen to music while reading if it's in the same language as what I'm reading, but if the song playing is in a different language (say I'm reading a book in English and the song is Norwegian), I have to put the book down and listen to the song until it's finished. My brain can only think in one language at a time, lol. And finally if I have something on my mind, maybe something I'm struggling with at work or some personal issue, I may read the same page four times over and still not remember a single word, distractions or not. It's easier to shut out any noise and focus on reading if I'm not preoccupied with anything else.

But ultimately I prefer it to be quiet around me when I sit down to read. I'm an only child and spent a big portion of my childhood reading alone in my room, and I live by myself now, so I'm not really used to having distractions around me when I read (except for the Internet, but that's a whole other post).

So, how about you? Can you read amidst distractions?