"Oh, I'm Frightened, Auntie Em; I'm Frightened!!!!"

Now, darlings, rest assured, no witch is holding me prisoner in her castle! When you have been around enough queens who think they can hold you in their dungeons long enough, you can bet I take no prisoners, nor do I EVER become one!!!!!!!!!!

Yet I must confess I am frightened. Making superb headway through Haruki Murakami's "1Q84," absorbed in its 925 exciting pages, I am nevertheless looking ahead to other reading projects. It pains me to say this, but I have coming up a project so daunting I have considered purchasing a Kindle or a Nook! No, I am not talking about "War And Peace," or Proust; you know I have read those, loves. In the case of Tolstoy, twice.

But I am scheduled, very shortly, to read Adam Levin's mammoth novel from 2010, "The Instructions," and, girls, I have no idea how I am going to do it!!!!!!!! Now, let me explain!!!!!!!!! It is not the book's length that has me daunted so much, as the weight and heft of it! I have a paperback edition, with a spine that is a solid six inches thick!!!!!!! How am I supposed to carry this around, and keep it in some semblance of good condition???? And if I leave the book to be read only in the comfort of my home, well, home life is complicated these days, not to mention it could take me a good decade to finish if I read it that way!!!!!!!!

And forget about the Nook or Kindle; this book is one that has not been formatted to such. Proof there is no substitute for hard copy, but this copy is harder than most!!!!!!!!!!

Can any of you out there advise me???? You know how much I revere books, but I am telling you, I have thought of tearing it into sections, and reading it that way. But then I could not proudly display it on my shelf when done.

I don't chide Levin for writing such a gargantuan book. From what I hear it is quite a satisfying read; one reader wished it had gone on for another thousand pages.
Why didn't I buy this when I could still get a hardback????? A book this size in such an edition would last!!!!! I am not so sure I can say the same for the paperback.

So you can see my dilemma, girls!!!!! Trapped by my insatiable passion for reading literature, yet hit with a work that is too daunting physically!!!!! What in the world am I to do?????????????????????????? I know; if the paperback falls apart on me, I will write a letter of complaint to the hardback publishers, demanding they send me a copy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Will I get through "The Instructions"????? Only time will tell, darlings!!!!!!

Stay tuned!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!