the kind of problem to have

So much to read! This is a wonderful feeling, but at the same time I'm having some what-to-read-when issues. I've been partially directed by the capricious collective desires of other patrons in the library system; as long as nobody else wants to read what I've got checked out (or few enough other people), I'm fine. I can shuffle things around and renew and read according to what sounds good -- but occasionally there's that OTHER PERSON(S) who insists on wanting the book that I've got. (This is the true downfall of sharing books with an entire metropolitan area.)

Well, ha ha! my hold list nemesis/nemeses! I've got a new plan!! (definitely insane but slightly evil laughter here.) I am going to read some books I've been meaning to read forever but keep passing up because I have others that must be read now; books out of reach of your barcode bullying because they are mine, mine, MINE. (more D.I.B.S.E.L here.) So, what should I read first? The Time Traveler's Wife (I really loved both of her illustrated books a lot)? Adventures of Kavalier and Clay (super-heart Wonder Boys and regular plus-heart Yiddish Policeman's Union)? Everything is Illuminated or Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close? (I don't actually own either of the Foer books, but I know that the library has a LOT of copies and I'm very attracted to the cover art on the latter one.)

(in fairness I feel I should point out that the pressure of reading RIGHT NOW is probably a good one for the perpetual procrastinator, but I want to mix it up a little.)

Any suggestions? Are you reading anything wonderful right now? Read anything wonderful either recently or ages ago that you don't think gets enough attention? (I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith = so good! which reminds me of another I just read, which, etc. etc. etc. ) I've read a lot of really good books lately -- I'm hoping to have a little more about those soon. (I know! I'm all talk. I'm going with the theory that tentative steps in the right direction are better than no steps at all.)

In unrelated news (except that it happened library-adjascent), when I went to work the other day there was a subaru station wagon full of early-twenties hippies playing BONGOS in the parking lot! They had the back hatch open. There were a lot of them, it was almost like a hippie clown car -- they were everywhere! Most of them were wearing those crocheted caps that people only ever wear in the middle of summer if they have had insufficient access to a little thing I like to call THE SHOWER. There were bongos, at least one dog, a unicycle (!), Creedence coming out of some muffled speaker somewhere, and all these hippie boys goofing off in the parking lot next to the library at least an hour before we opened. Thankfully, we did not have to discover how long it took to go from charming ha ha bizarre yet delightful Coen Brother's comedy to rageful I am going to smash that bongo over your head if you hit it one more time, naked Matthew McBongo drama. As soon as the library opened they came in and all asked for guest passes to use the internet. They were just passing through -- a crazy band of itinerant bongo playing crocheted hat wearing shower eschewing unicycle riders with email to check.