Book-Loving Wonders of the Blogger 'Verse

The number of blogs about books out there is just... fantastic. I discover ten or more that intrigue me each time I visit one, and suddenly the blogosphere (... I should really stop using this word. It feels a little sensational, or as if I'm flaunting jargon. But then again... You know what? Blogosphere, blogosphere, blogosphere. Stop being so paranoid, self) no longer feels so vast and lonely. The sheer number of places to visit and follow makes the Eternal Reader in me wave her hands like a fangirl. Though how is that any surprise; my Eternal Reader is a fangirl. Unashamedly so.

For instance: I have just spent 3+ hours surfing blogs and pretending to write this entry, and have finally managed to get the number of tabs open in my browser down to a healthy number five. It was a hard battle. And I still have math homework to finish, German to study, a dog to feed, and a post to finish. (Yes! Audible Candy's first official review is in the final stages of composition! Just two more drafts and a great deal of red ink until it's done! Tell me this sounds encouraging.) So, without further ado, allow me to present four book blogs that have captivated me:

The Broke and the Bookish...
... the blog of the Goodreads group, College Students, a lovely company I sporadically followed a year ago when I first discovered Goodreads (before I lost all my original information and meandered to other corners of the Internet). I love the diversity of the book selections (George R. R. Martin! Harry Potter! The spectrum of literature, all in one place!), the Top Ten Tuesday meme (I will be writing about the most recent one, which concerns all time favourite books), and how the blog has been my introduction to the book blogosphere (ha!)

The Reading Ape...
... is not focused solely on book reviews, but on the broader concept of literature and the reading public. I thoroughly enjoyed The Ape's posts on blogging and gender (here be a link to his Redux post); the discussion is fascinating, and reminds me of the discussions over at metafandom (a community that is all about social and cultural discussion through the lens of specific fandoms and fandom in general). His writing is elegance itself, and there's a nice post on having a favourite author (and how it is oftentimes impossible to choose with any certainty). I can certainly relate. Though personally, it's the question, "what kind of books do you like?" - with the implication that "kind of books" equals "genre" - that gets under my skin.

The Zen Leaf...
... looks like a relaxing blog to browse (I mean, look at that colour scheme. And the sketches of gently steaming tea pots and-- well. "Zen" does sum it up). I've only read two posts, but I thoroughly enjoyed both of them. The first (Top Ten Picks: Male Literary Characters) is like a sonnet to lists and a great deal of fun to read through, and the second (Sunday Salon - Comments) is an inspiring discussion about the relationships bloggers can build with the bloggers around them, and the audience they can gain through friendship, rather than strictly business-like marketing. ... It would probably be better if you just read the post.

And last, but not least, Dead White Guys: An Irreverent Guide to Classic Literature...
... balances humour with the Necessary Gravity of the classics - and solemnity goes flying right out of the window. Jane Doe's writing is wonderfully engaging. My favourite post, so far, is the Top Ten meme from The Broke and the Bookish: it's made me look at books that I've read and not enjoyed - such as Anna Karenina - in new ways, from different perspectives, and encourages me to try them again. And plus, her review of Middlemarch? Solid gold and more solid truth FTW.

And now, having explored so many different blogs today, I find myself wondering if this multi-coloured, stuffed animal background undermines any credibility I may or many not have as a semi-serious (audio)book blogger, xD