my eyes are tired, but i want more

I grew up reading a lot. Seriously, it was my favorite thing to do. My parent's house is filled with books, and they always encouraged my sister and I to read more. I remember going to the library and checking out the maximum number of children's books allowed (at the time it was 15) and then going back the next week to exchange them for more. Christmas presents always consisted of maybe 3 toys and 8 books. So now I love to read. As a byproduct, I'm not good at sports and I never learned how to ride a bike though.

After I left my parent's house for college, my appetite for reading declined drastically. Partially because I never bothered to find out where the library was in Pittsburgh, and I had run out of books that I was interested in reading. As a kid, I would just walk around and browse the shelves, looking for books that I hadn't read yet. As an adult, there are just too many books to do that with, and many of them are just boring or trash.

Lately, I've been feeling the need to read. In the past few weeks, I've been reading during my commute and sometimes at night, and I've finished a few books. Because I am too lazy to summarize these books, I've included excerpts of the editorial reviews from Amazon.com.

A Severe Mercy

"A Severe Mercy, by Sheldon Vanauken, is a heart-rending love story described by its author as "the spiritual autobiography of a love rather than of the lovers." Vanauken chronicles the birth of a powerful pagan love borne out of the relationship he shares with his wife, Davy, and describes the growth of their relationship and the dreams that they share. As a symbol of their love, they name their dream schooner the Grey Goose, "for the grey goose, if its mate is killed flies on alone and never takes another."

While studying at Oxford, Sheldon and Davy develop a friendship with C.S. Lewis, under whose influence and with much intellectual scrutiny they accept the Christian doctrine. As their devotion to God intensifies, Sheldon realizes that he is no longer Davy's primary love--God is. Within this discovery begins a brewing jealousy."

I loved this book. It was wholesome, honest, and beautiful. I discovered it on a friend's blog where she had it listed as her favorite book.

In An Instant

"In January 2006, the Woodruffs seemed to have it all–a happy marriage and four beautiful children. Lee was a public relations executive and Bob had just been named co-anchor of ABC’s World News Tonight. Then, while Bob was embedded with the military in Iraq, an improvised explosive device went off near the tank he was riding in. He and his cameraman, Doug Vogt, were hit, and Bob suffered a traumatic brain injury that nearly killed him.

In an Instant is the frank and compelling account of how Bob and Lee’s lives came together, were blown apart, and then were miraculously put together again–and how they persevered, with grit but also with humor, through intense trauma and fear. Here are Lee’s heartfelt memories of their courtship, their travels as Bob left a law practice behind and pursued his news career and Lee her freelance business, the glorious births of her children and the challenges of motherhood."

Isaac brought this book home from Google. I wasn't particular interested in it, but once I started reading it, I had a hard time putting it down. Somehow it just captivated me and I ended up reading the bulk of it in one night. I like reading about people and how they handle difficult situations and what motivates and drives them.

The Mole People

"Alligators breeding in the sewers of New York City is an urban legend; thousands of people living in the tunnels beneath New York is not. Ms. Toth has written a compelling, compassionate and extraordinary documentary about the 'Mole People.'"

I bought this one to read while I was getting a perm, but when I got to the salon, I got distracted by the magazines and I ended up reading this one during my commute. It felt a little awkward to pull this out of my bag on the subway, not knowing if any of the people around me might be tunnel dwellers themselves and take offense to my choice of literature. I was really excited about this book, but I found out after I finished that some people believe that some of it is fabricated because her descriptions of tunnel layouts are not completely accurate. Even so, the book is a quick read and very interesting.

Next up: I'm thinking about reading R.C. Sproul's "The Holiness of God" or the new biography of Einstein by Walter Isaacson. Oddly enough, I usually enjoy fantasy/science fiction or fluffy chick lit novels, but they usually go so quickly and tend to be somewhat formulaic. I guess I've been a little hungry for something more substantial than the latest Shopaholic novel. Any suggestions?