Last week, my pile of books to be read (TBR) was down to just two. Today, it’s up to seven.

At the top of my pile: Right now I’m powering my way through “Solaris” by Stanislaw Lem. I read this science fiction classic when I was in high school, didn’t understand it at all. The kind of science fiction I enjoyed back then was all about intrepid explorers in rocket ships that used pew-pew laser pistols to vanquish evil space aliens. I was not ready for a psychological thriller from the deep end of the sci-fi pool. After watching the 2002 movie based on the book, I got my hands on a copy of the book and read it again to see if it would help me figure out the movie. It didn’t. But, I discovered I really enjoyed the book the second time around. I’ve re-read it once since then, and I’m having another go just for funsies. It holds up well.

Over the past two months I’ve been steadily devouring Bruce Catton’s “Army of the Potomac” trilogy: “Mr. Lincoln’s Army,” “Glory Road,” and “A Stillness at Appomatox.” I finished the first book a couple weeks ago, and I’m about halfway through “Glory Road” now. I’ve never been all that interested in reading deep dives about the Civil War, but Catton is a crackerjack writer, the kind I can’t get enough of. If I start a chapter, I find it hard to put the book down until I finish. Highly recommend.

“A Canticle for Leibowitz” by Walter Miller was required reading for a high school class. I remember enjoying it, but I haven’t re-read it since. When I ran across a reference to it in social media, I checked it out of my local library to give it another go. Haven’t started it yet.

I picked up a secondhand copy of “The Ministry for the Future” by Kim Stanley Robinson while I was out yesterday searching local bookstores for a copy of “Solaris.” I read the first fifty pages last night just to get the feel of it and I’m honestly not sure I’m ready for a 550-page novel about humankind struggling to deal with the natural catastrophes brought on by climate change. But it’s on my pile now so …

I was out pretty much all afternoon yesterday searching for used book stores. When we moved here twenty years ago, I could spend all day strolling in and out of the dozens of book stores in downtown Madison. Today there are virtually none. And this is a college town. It’s a bleak world that doesn’t have book stores in it.

I’m so glad I saw Ann Leckie’s “Provenance” out of the corner of my eye while I was searching the shelves for “Solaris.” I enjoyed reading Leckie’s “Ancillary” trilogy (running to the bookstore to buy each volume as they were released) so much, and I’ve re-read them all more than once. I knew she was still writing, I just overlooked getting my hands on her new books. Haven’t started this yet.

Ned Blackhawk’s “The Rediscovery of America” is a history of the colonization of North America from the perspective of Native Americans. Good reading, as well as a good reference to have handy. I’m about halfway through it, and pick it up when I don’t know what I feel like reading.

Ron Chernow’s biography of Alexander Hamilton is the work that inspired Lin-Manuel Miranda to write the musical. I love the musical, every note, but it’s historical accuracy is not exactly solid. I check it out from the library every so often to remind me what really happened. This time around, I’m reading about the Reynolds affair, and about the deal Hamilton made with Jefferson and Madison (“the room where it happened”) to secure enough votes for his treasury plan. Good stuff.

I love having enough time to read all the books I’ve wanted to read (and re-read!) for years. And I love having a library system that lets me search for books from dozens of neighboring libraries, and brings them to my local library.