Wednesday, July 20, 2005
BOOKS: Good article on the value of books in school and life. One quote that mentions something I see talked about quite a bit but always gives me the willies:
Many entering students come from nearly book-free homes. Many have not read a single book all the way through; they are instead trained to surf and skim.
I just cannot fathom never having read a book and not having them around. I remember watching the first time Oprah Winfrey did her book club. There were women on the show who hadn't read a book in decades. The very idea freaks me out. My 3 year old daughter has more books on her shelf than some adult homes I've been in. Don't people think it's weird when somebody mentions a new book or they see somebody reading and they have to think "Hmm, I should do that sometime"?
Even if you only read one book a year, at least do that. Read in the bathroom, on your lunch break, before bed, whenever you have the chance. Even if it's 10 minutes 3 times a week and you think you'll never finish because you read slowly, who cares. Nobody is grading you. If you don't know what to read, ask somebody in a bookstore. Tell them you like X and Y movies. They'll have a suggestion. Ask a librarian. Heck, ask somebody else in the library. Choose something random off the 'New Books' shelf at the library. I used to do that every time I went and I found some of my favorite books that way (Red Earth and Pouring Rain being my all-time favorite random find and one of my all-time favorite books period).
Just read.