Reading & Reviewing
By Karin Elizabeth
22 Sep 2008
There is one thing you need to know if you're planning on taking me out shopping. The moment I'll see a bookstore, is the moment you'll lose me forever. You can bet anyone that I will abandon you to get closer to my home away from home. Close enough to the bookstore to get sucked into it, almost literally. Like a wormhole.
...a bookwormhole.
Books have always been a part of my life somehow; I like to surround myself with them. It feels like home to me that way. No matter where I go, I always carry at least one novel with me in my purse to stay in my comfort zone.
As a photography buff, I already took pictures of my daily life and surroundings, and on an irregular basis I would take photos of books - usually in the form of self-portraits, taken while reading. Separate from this occasional habit, I would also write some reviews for myself if I felt like it.
So sure, I tried for a while to put more thought into why I hold a certain opinion over a book, and I tried to feature books more prominently in my photography - which represents my life more than anything else. But I found something was lacking.
I needed to turn this into a consistent project with an obvious theme to it. Something to call my own, but also making sure it would be a challenge to commit to. I wanted to buy books, yes. But then I'd also have to actually do something more with them from here on out.
So, cheesy as this sounds, starting 2008, I made a resolution to read more. Not to aspire to read more, but to actually read more (and to reflect on my reading). I was to document my progress with photographic imagery and my own written book reviews throughout the year.
Such is the birth of my R&R (reading & reviewing) project, a self-portraiture series featuring the books I've been reading.
I wanted to inspire myself (and perhaps, others) to read more, and to do more with books instead of just reading them and moving on to the next one. What I craved was awareness of what I am reading, and why I (dis)like a certain book.
By photographing these books and by reviewing them, I feel I'm getting more familiar with and connected to my surroundings. And myself.
I'm hoping to continue this series well into 2009 (and beyond).
Edit: response to a question: view my profile to find a link to where the reviews are, online.
4 responses
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Karin Elizabeth added a link (23 Jul 2009):
That's the project's blog. It has 50 reviews & photos up at this time! (ofbooks.blogspot.com)
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Marco Martinez gave props (23 Jul 2009):
Great concept. I thoroughly enjoyed this story as well as the project's blog. Have you had people suggest titles for your reviews? Great story.
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petey whitelaw gave props (28 Jul 2009):
i feel like i've read them all now. thanks for the escape.
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Yassine Hakimi gave props (18 Aug 2009):
Cool concept, and amazing blog !
