I will admit that I watch a good amount of television. I recently became addicted to Downton Abbey and I have a soft spot in my heart for Psych, Vampire Diaries, Modern Family, and more. I won't keep going on, that would take a while, but when television shows do their little recap of the previous episode or ones even further back that pertain to the upcoming episode I'm not bothered, I actually love when I hear the words..."Previously on..." Unless of course I've been watching the show back to back and I don't need a refresher but that is something totally different. So what does my rambling about television shows have to do with books? Well, to put it simply, we need those "previously on" recaps when dealing with books in a series or trilogy.
Have you ever read a book in a trilogy or series and then have to wait a year for the next one to be released? I'm sure you have. Well, have you ever pretty much forgotten almost everything that was in the previous book? Then you start reading and you are really confused. It looks something like this.
I have and I am completely guilty of this. This frustration came to me recently when reading Requiem and the last Sookie Stackhouse novel. But don't be fooled, this happens to me almost every single time. I read a LOT and I can't always remember every book that I read, at least not all the details. Especially when I don't get my hands on the new book in the series for a while after it comes out. So really usually it is more than a year since I last read the previous book. So one day a while ago I had an idea...
Every book in a series/trilogy should have a short recap at the beginning of the book. It doesn't have to be long, just a page will do. Highlight the important events of the previous books and maybe remind us of the characters. That is all I ask. I doubt it will ever happen, but I can hope and rant about it on my blog. :)
So many times before I pick up a series where I left off I have to look up a summary of the book online to refresh my memory. It's a lot of work, but when I don't do that I usually end up confused. Therefore this one page would do wonders to my sanity.
This is me when the new book comes out that I have been anxiously waiting for.
This is me when I finally get my hands on the book, start reading, and realize that I don't know what is going on because of my horrible memory.
No one wants to feel that way. Therefore, I firmly believe that there should be a "previously on" version for books.
Heck, maybe as a blogger I should offer up some previously on posts on my blog for when new releases come out. Hmm... I'll have to brain storm more on that later since it may be difficult to do if I can't remember myself.
My rambling discussion post is now over. Discuss away! Do you think books should have "previously on" summaries at the beginning of a book?