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Because the drop-down menu on the right-hand sidebar becomes more cumbersome the more categories are added to it, I’ve decided it’s time to create a review index. The first index available is arranged by author. I hope to add one arranged by title soon (that one will take some work). You can click on the new link to the index at the top of the right-hand sidebar (or you can click here) to see the index.
Putting this index together was a fun task. I liked remembering what I’ve read and reviewed here over the past few years. What surprised me most, though, was how creating this index changed some incentives that I didn’t realize were influencing my choice of what to read next. This might seem strange, but the drop-down menu incentivizes me to read more authors; the more authors I read, the longer that menu is — it’s nice to see it grow as my reading base broadens. The index by author, however, incentivizes me to read more than one book by an author; the more books under an author, the more my completionist urges are sated — it’s nice to see my reading deepen under certain authors, particularly those favorites I’ve been neglecting (get ready for more Ozick, for example).
This is great! Browsing the reviews now feels a bit like browsing in a bookstore.
Hey you haven’t read any Byatt !!
I have read Possession, Rhys, but that was pre-blogging days. I have had The Children’s Book since it was published, but I have been scared of it. As for the early Byatt, I find it very attractive, but something else always comes along to take my attention!
Incidentally, I loved Possession.
I had a similar reaction Trevor, when looking at my category dropdown a while back. I realised that I didn’t want a long list of authors read only once, but that I wanted to deepen my knowledge of them even at a cost in breadth.
For me, there’s something quite nice if I read a review that intrigues to see if the blogger has reviewed other works by that writer. Often though because a lot of reviews are prize driven they haven’t, as many authors only get nominated for prizes once. By contrast, you’ve covered three Muriel Sparks (as an example) which means when I next want to read one there’s a much better chance I can find some interesting thoughts on it and also I think it means your views on Sparks become better informed.
Anyway, interesting post.
Speaking of Spark, Max, I recently acquired nearly everything she’s published, and I look forward to seeing that list deepen under her name. The same thing with Coetzee. And, though already relatively deep, I still have several Roths to go. I’m excited for this healthy perspective!