Too many books ...... not enough time

One of the reasons that Christinabean and I get along so well together is our love of books, particularly YA fantasy, but our tastes are similar in many other reading areas as well. We also share a love of knitting. I helped teach Christinabean how to knit a short while ago and now she is hooked. But there is one huge problem. Have you ever tried knitting and reading at the same time? OK, I have to admit that if I'm reading a large hardcover book and my knitting is just plain stockinette, I can actually do both at the same time ( talk about multi-tasking!). Unfortunately, most of what I'm knitting these days is a little more complex and requires my concentration, and I do understand that it takes years of knitting practice before you can knit without looking (I refuse to admit just how many years that is in my case).

So here is my dilemma - do I read, or do I knit? (I also embroider, which causes similar problems.) Simple solution - listen to books instead of reading them. Now, I have heard some people say that listening to a book just isn't the same, and I do agree up to a point. When you read a book, your mind provides the voices in your head and your imagination really comes into play. When you are listening to a book, you are hearing an actors' voice interpreting the story, which completely changes the experience for the reader/listener. But if my choice is listening or not reading at all, you can be sure I will listen.

One of the interesting things I find is that I am actually inclined to listen to books that I might not necessarily pick up and read on paper. This has opened up a whole new spectrum of books for me and I am thoroughly enjoying it. You might have noticed that I listened to Living Dead Girl, before reviewing, and I probably wouldn't have read that one. I would have missed out on an amazing experience if I hadn't.

The real beauty of listening to books is that I get to enjoy my 2 hobbies, which would otherwise be mutually exclusive. I listen to books on my computer, on my cd player, I even download audiobooks from overdrive (through my library) and listen to them on my Ipod, and I get to listen to books in my car - although that can be a bit disjointed since I only have a 10 min drive to work. I'm not sure if Christinabean listens to books, but she has a toddler at home, so her time is much more occupied than mine.

Anyway, there is a point or two to this post. I would love to hear from anyone out there who listens to books as well as reading them, and do you do other things while you are listening?

The other reason is to let you know that since I have solved my read-or-knit problem I'm going to review a few knitting/embroidery books. There are hundreds of really great ones out there that knitters like Christinabean and I don't know about, so keep your eyes peeled for the occasional post.