Remarks on reading

I have never understood people who did not like reading, who thought it was boring, who had a hard time with it. I pity them, but I cannot understand them. My earliest memory is of my mother reading books to me, for hours each day (and she assures me that no housework got done). Once I could read for myself, I didn't know anything else that I'd rather do. I've always been an introverted person, and while I am not shy (i.e. timid around people), being around people is usually a stressful time (just recently, though, I've found that debating does not make me stressed), and I rejoice when we are able to stay home, so I can be in quiet (that is, if I stay home alone ;)

My life revolved around reading, and so many of the high points and low points in my life deal with reading. My only juvenile “crush” was on a character from a book, at age twelve, a fact that embarrasses me to this day. Most of my other embarrassing experiences have to do with librarians, or putting the wrong book on hold, and realizing when it comes in it is just about the opposite of the book I wanted. So much for low points. For high points, I have to admit that The Lord of the Rings was partly responsible for my becoming a Christian, and was one of the greatest experiences of my life. Some of my best friends are from books, many of my role models are also characters, and almost all of my favorite movies and much of my favorite music is based off of books. I have said before that I have always been fascinated by film, and would love to make movies someday, but that desire came solely from the desire to make good versions of all my favorite books (or any film version at all for some books).

My style of reading is a gobbling style. Like many of my friends, I read quickly, and try to read quickly, which happens to make school difficult, because we are using the Ambleside curriculum. Charlotte Mason’s view is that if you read small pieces at a time, and spread books out over a long period, you are more likely to remember. I can vouch that this is not true for all people. Some of my best comprehension has come from books that I zipped through, and my worst narrations (due to lack of memory) are from The Vicar of Wakefield, which is scheduled to be read for ten weeks. As soon as I am done with TVOW, I want to go back and gobble it, and if then I remember it better, I shall have final proof.

Another facet of my style is rereading. Because I read fast, I have time for reading much more, which includes reading books over again. I have read The Lord of the Rings probably 15 times, Pride and Prejudice at least 6, and almost all the books I like at least twice. My favorite way of rereading is to finish a book and then immediately start it up again. When you have just had to say farewell to some of the most real people in literature, the best way to ease the pain is to start over again.

I have a list of “books to read” that has over 800 entries. When I first started compiling it, my plan was to read whatever was checked in at our library when we went each week. But placing holds was so much more interesting, and I soon realized that it fit with my natural style. I read by author. After finishing a book I like, I will then read any other books our library has by that author. Therefore, one year I only read Tolkien...which made my booklist look very lopsided. In one month I had completed all Austen’s works, another was Brian Jacques turn, and another was devoted to C. S. Lewis. I was going to start on Dickens back in December, but was feeling just a little too low (it being a normal Pacific NW wet winter) for that. I decided on some Austen related books. I had no idea how many sequels there are to Pride and Prejudice! An Austen email group pointed me to the two or three good ones, and I supplemented that by some bios of Jane, criticism of her works, and history books about her time period. It’s a fun way to read, by author or topic. Unfortunately, there are authors with tons of books. I once checked out 50 gardening books from the library, right after I had checked out all 18 or so of the Tim Severin books. It was spring though, so gardening won, and I still haven’t read all of Severin’s. Right now I am making my way through Fanny Burney, Ann Radcliffe, Samuel Richardson, Anthony Trollope, and Georgette Heyer. The last two have more than twenty books each to their name, so I’ll expect my reading lists to be full of them for a while.

The only bad part of this plan is that there is sometimes no roundness to my reading lists from month to month. So sometimes, I force myself to put down The Mysteries of Udolpho, and will pick up a good old history book or biography (but ah! I cheated, for the history book is about the late 1700s which is topical), or a classic book that I have so long meant to read. It's hard, but it's probably beneficial.

My last remark is on the least of my favorite things about reading (but it's still a favorite): challenge. I love challenging myself with books that are just a little beyond what I can read, and I don't gobble those books. I have actually gotten some pretty quick results in the last couple years, and this school year I no longer have a problem reading any of my school books. I am greatly relieved, for Churchill was so irritating before. I suppose my next challenge is reading all of the greats: Plato, Aristotle, Plutarch, etc. I'm hoping they'll be challenging, but my weaker side is hoping they won't, and is begging for the Book the Twelfth of the Series of Unfortunate Events. My stronger side will hold out though...I hope.