My own personal librarian

One of the promises I made to myself was to read more.

Unfortunately, reading is an activity that gobbles up a lot of time. Moreover, it requires an attention span that lasts longer than a Vine video. Or even those newfangled Tik Tok thingies.

Nevertheless I am determined to shed the self-appointed moniker as the world's most illiterate writer. This has become increasingly easier now that everyone and their brother, or sister, graduating from high school, is a freelance copywriter.

I made some headway years ago when I was commuting to my staff job in Irvine, CA. I managed to get through the world's 100 must read books via books on tape. Listening to the adventures of Robinson Crusoe, the bloodthirsty deeds of Dracula and the equally murderous activity of Raskolnikov, made the commute on the 405 almost bearable.

But now I work from the comfort of Culver City. And, as mentioned before, because there are so many freelance copywriters racing to the bottom and low balling each other, I find myself with an excess of free time as well as an excess of bills from the contractor.

And so I've turned to turning pages.

I've also turned to my friend George Tannenbaum, who is ironically, the world's best read copywriter. Though I've never stepped foot in his Manhattan apartment I suspect every wall is a bookcase and there are more books to be found here than the in the library at Harvard Law School.

As such, I have appointed George to be my official personal librarian.

Years ago, he pointed me in the direction of the Epic of Gilgamesh. It's a long form poem, not one of my favorite dishes. But this is where I have learned the lesson of open-mindedness. Somewhat.

I plowed through the book in one sitting. If you're like me (and let's hope you're not) and enjoy walking into a movie with no knowledge or expectations, I think you will find yourself equally enthralled with Gilgamesh.

Because we're both native New Yorkers, the Bronx to be more specific, and because we're both fans of muscular, straight forward writing, George thought I'd enjoy the writing of Jospeh Mitchell. And he was right.

Most recently, in response to a blog piece I wrote about my own lack of faith, more specifically my faith in lack of faith, George suggested I pick up Timothy Egan's A Pilgrimage to Eternity. Chances are you've never heard of the Via Francigena, but if you are a seeker of answers, you should.

Admittedly the going is slow, as I find myself stumbling on many historical references that I should be more familiar with. Thomas Beckett? I thought he was goalie for the NY Rangers in the 1980's.

If you read this blog, you probably read George's infinitely more popular adaged.com. There you will find many book suggestions. You can probably reach out to him as well. He enjoys making recommendations and should probably contact Jeff Bezos for a cut of the action.

Now if you'll excuse me I've got to get back to Egan's pilgrimage. He's just about to knock back some homemade grog with a bunch of salty French Jesuits.