Re-Discovering A Love for Reading
Last week I raised questions about how we factor more reading into our lives. And yesterday Alison shared some very clever tips for maximizing reading time that I hope you caught.
Admitting It Is the First Step
It is with much respect (and maybe a little envy) that I reflected on Alison’s comment that reading is like breathing—not optional. After a very honest look at my own reading habits, I find that I'm not maintaining that level of determination right now. I think it’s an issue of making time for the things you value. And if you value reading enough, this is an obsolete conversation.
But my instinct is that there are other well-meaning readers out there like me who struggle to live up to their ambitious reading intentions. How many of us read all of the books on our summer reading list?
After much thought, I’ve been motivated by Alison’s post to come up with a list of the top three ways to reclaim a zeal for reading. My thought is that if we reclaim that zeal, then we can follow Alison’s tips to be the voracious readers we would like to be.
1. Fall Back in Love with Reading
This may be a moot point for some of you three-books-a-week readers. But for some of us, it’s easy to get wrapped up in the busy-ness of life and place other priorities ahead of our reading time. (Does this rhetoric ring a bell?) A good way to shove reading back up the list is to remind yourself why you fell in love with reading in the first place.
For me this means a trip down memory lane. When I graduated from kindergarten, my grandmother wrote a book for me. Imagine scrapbooking before there was scrapbooking but in book form. She narrated the story of our family and my life with pictures here and there. At the risk of exposing my self-absorbed nature, let me admit I loved it. I read it over and over and still cherish it.
The larger point is that pulling that book off the shelf and taking a look reminds me of how special reading can be and motivates me to….
2. Find Books that Really Hook You
Part of my problem is I’m not individualistic in my reading. I’m like the 16 year-old with no personal sense of fashion who simply goes to the mall once a month and grabs whatever everyone else is wearing. I pick whatever book people are talking about and chalk that up as my reading for the month—that and whatever “homework” books I’ve prescribed for myself. No wonder I don’t read more—I don’t do it for fun, and it's not personal. So my plan is to concentrate less on what books a good reader should be reading and read a book I know I will be glad I read.
3. Re-Channel Your Media Consumption
Surprisingly this is not the first time I’ve had this conversation. My consolation when we talked about this last was that we still read, we just read from different media forms.
Most of us spend much more time on the Internet than we do with traditional books. This can be great for research and supplemental reading, but unless you find quality reading material online, it is hard for this act to constitute good reading. Plus, there’s just something about sitting down with a good book you can hold in your hands that can’t be replaced with an online session.
All This Said
I hope next time I’m discussing loftier topics, but sometimes it’s just fundamentals—like reminding yourself how magical reading can be and making it fun again.
Admitting It Is the First Step
It is with much respect (and maybe a little envy) that I reflected on Alison’s comment that reading is like breathing—not optional. After a very honest look at my own reading habits, I find that I'm not maintaining that level of determination right now. I think it’s an issue of making time for the things you value. And if you value reading enough, this is an obsolete conversation.
But my instinct is that there are other well-meaning readers out there like me who struggle to live up to their ambitious reading intentions. How many of us read all of the books on our summer reading list?
After much thought, I’ve been motivated by Alison’s post to come up with a list of the top three ways to reclaim a zeal for reading. My thought is that if we reclaim that zeal, then we can follow Alison’s tips to be the voracious readers we would like to be.
1. Fall Back in Love with Reading
This may be a moot point for some of you three-books-a-week readers. But for some of us, it’s easy to get wrapped up in the busy-ness of life and place other priorities ahead of our reading time. (Does this rhetoric ring a bell?) A good way to shove reading back up the list is to remind yourself why you fell in love with reading in the first place.
For me this means a trip down memory lane. When I graduated from kindergarten, my grandmother wrote a book for me. Imagine scrapbooking before there was scrapbooking but in book form. She narrated the story of our family and my life with pictures here and there. At the risk of exposing my self-absorbed nature, let me admit I loved it. I read it over and over and still cherish it.
The larger point is that pulling that book off the shelf and taking a look reminds me of how special reading can be and motivates me to….
2. Find Books that Really Hook You
Part of my problem is I’m not individualistic in my reading. I’m like the 16 year-old with no personal sense of fashion who simply goes to the mall once a month and grabs whatever everyone else is wearing. I pick whatever book people are talking about and chalk that up as my reading for the month—that and whatever “homework” books I’ve prescribed for myself. No wonder I don’t read more—I don’t do it for fun, and it's not personal. So my plan is to concentrate less on what books a good reader should be reading and read a book I know I will be glad I read.
3. Re-Channel Your Media Consumption
Surprisingly this is not the first time I’ve had this conversation. My consolation when we talked about this last was that we still read, we just read from different media forms.
Most of us spend much more time on the Internet than we do with traditional books. This can be great for research and supplemental reading, but unless you find quality reading material online, it is hard for this act to constitute good reading. Plus, there’s just something about sitting down with a good book you can hold in your hands that can’t be replaced with an online session.
All This Said
I hope next time I’m discussing loftier topics, but sometimes it’s just fundamentals—like reminding yourself how magical reading can be and making it fun again.
Well into It and Enjoying: The Road by Cormac McCarthy
posted by Lee Ann at
7/21/2007 01:37:00 AM
6 Comments:
I just wanted to say that I hope no one thought I was bragging when I said reading was like breathing for me--I certainly don't think that struggling to find time for books in your busy schedule makes you unworthy somehow! We all have our challenges. The summer my daughter was 1 1/2, I was reading Plato's Dialogues, which I would try to read while I watched her in the back yard. Average time between interruptions: 1.2 minutes. I still don't know what Plato was trying to say.
As for your points--right on. #2 has been so important to me. I do still try to read "serious" books (classics, history, literary criticism) that might stretch my brain, but I allow myself plenty of fun reading, and I've been exploring genres (mystery, chick lit) I once would have ignored.
Alison,
Thanks for sharing. We don't think you're bragging about your reading; in fact, it is motivating to hear of your zeal.
Also, your time-maximizing reading tips were helpful. In fact, I will agree with your warning about your reading tip #2. I chalk up driving incident #19 to trying to read a campus newspaper in traffic on the way in to LSU.
Happy Reading,
Lee Ann
We read McCarthy's The Road in a "Men's Studies" class last semester. I was not expecting to enjoy McCarthy, but man, oh man, was it good. I'd like to hear your take on it, and I will share some of my reflections.
The Road was the first of McCarthy's novels I'd ever read. I had a discussion with someone about a certain point of view shift in the novel. It drove me nuts trying to come up with a satisfying explanation for it. If you have time, maybe you'd like to share your take on that particular part as well.
Lee Ann,
Good point about reading what you WANT to read. It's funny how you can stereotype your own self and think you have to read a particularly narrow set of topics. I just gave myself permission to read more fiction and I'm having a blast. I just finished "The Book Thief" by Markus Zorsak and I must admit I SOBBED at the end - not cried, SOBBED. I was so moved that I resolved I'd read more fiction. So, no, this is not a less loftier topic - we need to hear it! What inspiration!
Ann
Ladies,
I'm planning to talk in-depth about McCarthy's The Road in my next post. It was a very interesting read, and I would like to address it from a few different angles. Thanks for the comments!
Lee Ann
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