Comfort Reading

The last weekend before Christmas brought me much to do. Even though my Bookman and I do not celebrate Christmas we have family and friends who do. Getting presents packed and sent out and holiday cards and letters written took up a good part of my time. I do not do the family holiday letter, preferring instead to write a personal note in each card, or an actual letter directed to just that person. So when I finally came to a point last night where I could stop and relax, I of course wanted to read. But none of the books I am in the middle of appealed. I stayed up late with Clarissa Saturday night and needed a break from the melodrama. So what did I do? What any self-respecting reader would who is in the middle of three books--started a new one! I chose Maureen Corrigan's Leave Me Alone, I'm Reading. Books about books and/or reading are like comfort food for my soul. They are what I turn to when I feel stressed and need to just let go. And Corrigan's book is doing a marvelous job. I never thought about the idea of comfort reading before, but I see a pattern of it throughout my reading life. Do you engage in comfort reading? And if so, what do you generally choose as a comfort book? I realize I didn't post about Montaigne this weekend. I will be doing that tonight since I am done with my essay class. And be sure to check out the Sunday NY Times Essay about authors reading blogs that talk about their books. Bloggers have the ability to make them happy or mad; the ability to lift their spirits from the dumps or crush their egos. I never knew I had so much power. Next stop, world domination!