Got through it, with a lot of skimming. An apt & revealing sample from a bit in which Manguel lists evaluations of memoirs: Auden, quoting an Icelandic proverb: 'Every man enjoys the smell of his own farts.'"" ( )

Life and literature are seldom closer than in the writings of Alberto Manguel. In this personal book he relates his experience of reading over the course of one year. It is a compendium of notes , reflections, and impressions of both reading and travel, his life and friendships as illuminated by his reading. This "Diary" can be read as a memoir or used as a reference guide to one's own reading. The texts are all worthwhile; I found some old favorites, new authors and classic texts all within Manguel's reading annual. This little book, slightly more than two hundred pages, has Rabelaisian qualities confined in a little space. There are lists, wide-ranging comments, thoughts, statements, beliefs, pronouncements, and a veritable litany of the delights of living the reading life.
The subtitle of the book, "A Passionate Reader's Reflections on a Year of Books", captures the essence of the text. For Manguel is a "passionate reader" in every sense of that phrase and his reflections are illuminating. I would welcome further annuals like this, and find myself challenged to make my own. For like the author, I consider myself a "passionate reader". ( )

Wonderful! Manguel takes us with him through Don Quixote, The Wind in the Willows, and many more. Another Manguel book to be savored. ( )

Beautiful language, but the book was very disjointed. Having read several other books on the same subject which I enjoyed much more, was very disappointed. ( )