I became an avid reader at age six. Through my years in public school and into college, I always had a book handy to read during down time. I studied Spanish and Latin-American literature in college, thus turning reading into my profession.

On January 29, 2015, my relationship with books changed. My car was rear-ended at 50 mph while I waited at a crosswalk, and the resulting brain damage made it impossible for me to retain the information in a novel.

I began to be able to read novels again in 2023, albeit with some workarounds to help me keep track of the story. I lost roughly eight years of reading opportunities, which made regaining the ability to read a more urgent and less frivolous pastime.

Now, at age 64, I realize that I have far too many classic works still on my To Be Read list, in addition to books I want to read simply for the joy of the story. I believe I can read at a one-book-per-week pace, which gives me 1,332 weeks until I turn 90. (I don’t plan to die then; I plan to reassess the blog/podcast then.) I figure I’ll need a few weeks to get the infrastructure of this project in place, which led to the title of The 1320 Books.

I will not review the books I read, as many of them will be impeccable works that are well-known. I will describe my reaction to each book and give some background on the author and other aspects of the text. At times I will chat with the person who recommended the book to me, and, if all goes well, I will sometimes have the book’s author as a guest.

Thank you for reading. I intend to provide you with engaging perspectives on works that are new to me. I may also lament at times books I have reread often but may never again have time to read.

It’s time to get started.