Well, I’ve turned the page – pun intended. 2024 saw me finally change the way I consume books; the way I read them and why. Might sound crazy to you but let me explain.

The last song on the album might be awesome. Clear now? No? OK, wait. I’m a completist. I want to finish the movie, the album, the book because the ending may blow my mind. But also and mostly so I can say I have completed it, I have watched, listened and read it all the way to the end. I have never been able to bail on a movie or not finish a book but this year all that changed. I’ve had to simply consider the hours in a day. I’ve got so many interests and I want to be doing so many things, book reading being just one of them, I just don’t have the time to read as much as I’d like so if I’m reading I have to be enjoying it. So, another thing is the number of books I read this year is way down; at 15, it’s the lowest in years. But that don’t matter because I’m caring less about quantity, too. I often would struggle to finish a book I was hating just so that I could say “ok, there’s number ten this year” or whatever. No more. After all, it’s supposed to be about enjoyment.

I finally wrote about my man Van Morrison this year and while digging into him I came across Greil Marcus’ book Listening to Van Morrison. A brief work, I thought it would be a perfect and somewhat light look into key musical moments in Van’s career. But I confess that, while I fancy myself quite astute, Greil Marcus writes miles over my head. I had a hard time discerning what he was saying about various of Van’s songs and I had to put the book aside. But maybe that’s apropos. Van’s music has a certain indescribable quality and so maybe analysis of it has to be just as inscrutable. I will hold onto this book and I hope to finish it one day.

The second book I pulled the plug on in ’24 was one called The Last Madam by Chris Wiltz about French Quarter legend Norma Wallace. Mid-century organized crime and prostitution in N’Awlins? Yes! But…no. Next was a biography of Jack Lemmon that was very dry and was based mostly on the one interview the author had conducted with Jack. During that interview, Jack must’ve shared many specific anecdotes from his life and the writer included all these in his book. Great but I’d hoped it would stick to charting his career; another I bailed on. The fourth and last was a supposed classic by Kurt Vonnegut. I know Breakfast of Champions from the Bruce Willis film version so I was happy to find the book. Vonnegut is a noted man of letters, right? But this book is bonkers. Makes Naked Lunch seem like a Trixie Belden book. So – 19 books started, 15 finished. But I feel really good about book things in general. Going forward, if I am not enjoying the book, I am not finishing it. Sounds basic and obvious, I know, but this is new for me.

Perhaps the biggest turning point came when I tackled the longest unread book on my shelves, the biography of Sam Cooke by a writer I love, Peter Guralnick. I read Dream Boogie at a pivotal time in my life and it began the process of reassessing my reading life, more specifically. This book is long; over 750 pages of incredible detail. It took me longer to read this book than almost any other book I’ve ever read outside of Michener’s Hawaii and this gave me pause. How long it took me to read this book made me look at what I was reading and why. While I came away with much respect for this Cooke book, it took the months of reading it – and my friend’s counsel – to finally make it clear to me that I needed to revamp the way I read books. With the time I spent reading way down this year, a book like Dream Boogie took what seemed like forever to read and this affected how I sometimes felt about the book.

I took a break during Dream Boogie to revisit James Hilton’s Lost Horizon, a story that is near and dear to me. This time, the peaceful and meditative atmosphere of the lamasery resonated with me and I complimented this later in my reading year. During a summer trip to Erie, PA, I was happy to find a copy of Siddhartha. I had been interested in reading the book ever since I saw it among a display of the books owned by Elvis Presley while visiting Graceland. For those who don’t know, Siddhartha is a 1922 novel by German Herman Hesse that charts the spiritual journey of the title character as he pursues self-awareness. As a follower of Christ, I have never been much interested in Indian philosophy but through this year I have come to appreciate the idea of one better knowing and gaining control over oneself. For me personally, though, Jesus is Lord; I’m not lord of myself. But I found both these books fascinating and they encouraged me – like Siddhartha and the monks of Shangri-La – to unclutter my mind, pause and just breathe.

Speaking of Elvis – as usual – I read three King books this year, reporting on two of them. I ended the year reading Lisa’s memoir and I’ll be issuing thoughts on it in the future. Our son now lives in the town I grew up in and he bought us a book called The Art of Nostalgia, filled with images painted by an artist from that town of landmarks in the area. A thoughtful gift and it brought back many memories to me. I took a couple of flyers and read a few lightweight novels from the Fifties and then in September I read a sensational memoir. To accompany my annual Labour Day Weekend viewing of American Graffiti, I pulled down the book by Mackenzie Phillips, High on Arrival. While it was salacious and filled with garish stories of Hollywood excess, it managed to stay grounded in a certain humanity. Phillips told her harrowing tale with some grace and it was a fascinating read I devoured in but days. I finished up the year with another memoir, Deep Thoughts from a Hollywood Blonde, this one much tamer and sharing the story of one of my favourite golden-haired ladies, Jennie Garth and lastly was a hardcover first edition of Sharky’s Machine, the book by William Diehl that was turned into the Burt Reynolds film that I love much more than the book.

Acceptance. Not to get too deep but I have accepted and am ready to embrace the changes I have made to the way I read. I do have to continue to keep in mind the fact that I am entering my seventh year as a contributor to Koop Kooper’s Cocktail Nation radio show podcast. Again in 2025 I will be on the show monthly presenting a book review on Words With Wellsy and so it does still matter what I read and when as I need content for the show but other than that I feel a certain freedom. Hit “Follow” on my home page here to see what the year in books will bring and to never miss a post.

“This is Gary Wells from SoulRideblog.com and I’m encouraging you…to pick up a book”

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My rating out of 5 represents my overall experience with the book

Elvis: His Spiritual Journey — Jess Stearn 📚

Shaft — Ernest Tidyman 📚📚📚📚

Dream Boogie: The Triumph of Sam Cooke — Peter Guralnick 📚📚📚

Lost Horizon — James Hilton 📚📚📚📚📚

The Moonflower Couple — John Fairchild 📚📚

The Art of Nostalgia: A Visual Memoir of Kitchener-Waterloo — Trevor Clare 📚📚📚

Inside Graceland: Elvis’ Maid Remembers — Nancy Rooks as told to Jim Cox 📚📚

Champlain Summer — Marjorie Vetter 📚📚

Siddhartha — Herman Hesse 📚📚📚

Ripcord — D.C. Halacy, Jr. 📚📚📚

High on Arrival — Mackenzie Phillips 📚📚📚📚📚

Survival Zero — Mickey Spillane 📚📚

Deep Thoughts from a Hollywood Blonde – Jennie Garth with Emily Heckman 📚📚📚📚

Sharky’s Machine – William Diehl 📚📚📚

From Here to the Great Unknown – Lisa Marie Presley and Riley Keough 📚📚📚📚