Read, Remember, Recommend: A Reading Journal for Book Lovers by Rachelle Rogers Knight

Title: Read, Remember, Recommend: A Reading Journal for Book Lovers
Author: Rachelle Rogers Knight
ISBN: 9781402237188, Sourcebooks, 2010
Genre: Non-Fiction
Rating: C
Source: Sourcebooks

Billed as the ultimate organizing resource for book lovers, Read, Remember, Recommend gives readers one spiral-bound place to keep track of their reading. According to most of the people who've ever worked with me, "organized" is my middle name, so when a publicist for Sourcebooks asked me if I'd like a copy to read and review, I couldn't say no. (Most organized people seldom turn down opportunities to fine-tune their skills.)

When I received the book, the very first thing I did was get in my comfy chair with the book and a pen and start turning the pages. There are six tabbed sections in the book:

1. Awards and Notable Lists
2. To Read
3. Journal Pages
4. Recommendations
5. Loaner Lists
6. Resources

The largest section by far is Awards and Notable Lists. This section is invaluable for anyone who loves to read the winners of any major prize in the English-speaking world. I tend to avoid prize winners, yet I'm always interested to see how many of them have slipped through my radar. Each prize is listed by year, with 2010 and 2011 blank so this journal has room to grow. Author and book title are next followed by columns for Own, Recommend, To Read, and Want. I found those columns to be of the "glass half full" variety. There were several books that I read but didn't own and wouldn't recommend to anyone, yet there was no column for me to record any of that.

The second tabbed section, To Read, was much too slim for any sort of rabid reader: ten pages with space for six entries... or sixty books. My wish list at Paperback Swap has 200 books that I want to read, and my reminder list there holds over 300 additional entries. I don't think I've had as few as sixty books I've wanted to read since I was six.


The Journal Pages section could be very useful; however, I read well over 150 books in a year, so this section would be too small for me as well. If you're starting to get the distinct impression that I have reservations about this book, you would be correct. It would be perfectly fine for anyone who reads a dozen or so books per year, but for the dedicated, serious reader, it's just too small. A three-ring binder format would be much better, especially for sections like Journal Pages and To Read.

The Recommendations section would help me keep track of where I learned about certain books, but it, too, was small. I think it would be for many book bloggers.

The Loaner Lists section could come in handy for those who loan out their books. I don't, since I had someone borrow books that were near and dear to me and then subsequently lose them. If you have things like that happen to you and you're passionate about books, you soon learn not to loan them out.

The last section of the book, Resources, is a gold mine. There are URLs for all the book awards, a section listing URLs for book blogs (and almost all book bloggers are going to recognize many of those listed), bookstore blogs, social networking sites for readers, book exchange sites, and book clubs. Not sure of a literary term? Look it up in the glossary in back. Of all the sections in this book, Resources is of the most use to me.

I think Read, Remember, Recommend is an excellent resource for people who enjoy reading and would like a bit of guidance in order for them to read more. For anyone who is a dedicated, voracious reader, the book may be of some use, but several of the tabbed sections are just too small. I would also wonder if the format is the best for voracious readers and bloggers, among whom I count myself. So much of the tracking and recording of my personal reading is done on my computer. I really can't see myself picking up a book to do this when I have spreadsheets and other forms already at my fingertips.

Be that as it may, this idea is spreading. There is already an edition for teens, and editions are in the works for Mystery Lovers, Romance Lovers, Nonfiction Lovers and Kids. What interested me the most was this: "Watch for ebook versions of both journals--track your reading from your computer, iphone, or electronic reader." Now that really interests me!