Thoughts on Reading

[Don Coyote]

So, by your rational reading books for entertainment is better than watching tv because it takes a sliver of more effort?

[LMNO]

I'm fairly sure I didn't say anything about "better" or "worse".  It would serve you well not to read into my posts what isn't there.

[Don Coyote]

I'm sorry, I just took the mildly insulting quote editing as you taking the stance I am lazy because I generally no longer read for pleasure.
And maybe instead of just pretending to address my points with, "I am really lazy," you could have addressed some of the points with something more than retarded copy paste.
Some of my points could be read as, "I am really lazy," but not all of them.

[LMNO]

Okay.

One thing I have been pondering for a while about reading.

Yes, being literate is important, but why is it that reading for entertainment is viewed as better than watching tv or playing video games?

When reading a book, you are being passively entertained. I guess more neurons are firing because you are supposed to be imagining everything that is going on in the book you are reading, so it generally more active than tv.

Indeed. Instead of seeing a guy throw a ball in frong of a CG image of Mars, you have to go through many different layers of cognition, metaphorical analysis, abstract pattern recognition, and textual analysis to be able to picture in your head a guy throwing a ball on Mars.  You are creating something that never existed in the world.

Part of the reason I stopped reading as much for pleasure as I did when I was younger is that I've noticed more and more books are just garbage, and that I am really lazy.

No comment needed.

The few times I have set out to read some classic, I have generally gotten bored, mostly due to minor changes in language and the writing styles of then vs now.

This is also lazy, in two parts: You can't be bothered to learn new patterns of communication; and you are too lazy to search out something you're actually interested in, and accept someone else's definition of a good book.

Granted, while I own a TV, I do not have cable or an antenna. And the few times I have watched tv I just end up tuning it out and doing something else, as tv seems to more garbage filled than the pulp masses lining the walls of BN.

You admit that books are more active than TV, and that there is more content in books, and yet you are too lazy to find something to read that interests you.

And as an aside. Hamlet and other works of the Bard aren't meant to be read, they are meant to be performed, or at least read aloud. Reading plays is like reading screenplays for tv shows and considering it literature. I shudder to think that one day centuries from now, transcripts from Jerry Springer might be read as part of the 20th/21st century American Literature class, or even Star Trek.

If Springer or Star Trek was written in a well-crafted poetic meter, then maybe.  But your comparison falters.



Happier?

[Don Coyote]

Much

[LMNO]

You may notice that it adds up to the same thing.

[Don Coyote]

You may notice that it adds up to the same thing.

Yes

[Brotep]

You may also notice that the first version was funnier. We needn't drag this out any further, TGB.

Aaaanyway, having a physical book (or at least a reader) as opposed to using a computer screen makes a big difference. I am far more likely to finish a book if I am holding it in my hands than reading it off my laptop in pdf format.

[Don Coyote]

I agree on both parts, aside from the humor.

I, living in very spacious Troop Billeting, have very little space to amass physical books, which is the real reason I don't read much currently.

Any advice on an ebook reader?

[Kai]

I've mentioned this before. How to Read a Book by Adler and Doren. It's what got me interested in reading again, especially those things that I used to /think/ I /should/ have read (cf. Less Wrong, I forget which post)  but now I actually crave to read. Like Homer.

Can you give me a link to that book?

http://gigapedia.com/items/5135/how-to-read-a-book--a-classic-guide-to-intelligent-reading

[Nurse Enabler]

I've noticed a fair few people, myself included, express a frustration with their reading habits.

"I used to read a lot, but I jut don't seem to enjoy it as much anymore."

If you're anything like me, you likely lost your reading habits because you started doing other stuff. School or work started taking up loads of time and mental energy. Or maybe you just started to fill your free hours with something else, like video games, tv, or internet. Whatever happened, you suddenly found yourself putting books down partway through and not picking them back up. Reading became a chore.

This thread is about ways to deal with this problem.


I've had some success with the "brute force" method. If I find that I'm not reading for pleasure anymore, I read anyway. Force it down until you've re-acquired your taste for it.

Read stuff that's relatively easy. Pick a guilty pleasure sort of book or something that you read back when you still enjoyed reading. Harlequin romance, dorky sci-fi, cookie-cutter fantasy novels, mysteries, whatever. I know that for a while I was on a non-fiction binge, which eventually killed my ability to enjoy reading until I rediscovered the joys of Terry Pratchett and the like.

Don't try to choke down some really dense classic if you're picking up reading for pleasure up again after a long break. You want something that will give your brain lots of cheap and easy rewards, so that your brain develops a "reading = fun" connection in place of a "reading = work" connection.

Anyone else have thoughts on this?

I totally agree with you.

[Brotep]

Whoops, I completely missed the tail end of this thread.

Reading on the bus works great for me, even if it's serious material, as long as it's not intricate. Certain books are alright to read for only ten minutes at a time. They don't have to be pulp, they just have to be less intricate.

I have not attempted Infinite Jest on the bus, as it seems best read in longer stretches. It's hard to say, though--I've only gotten a few chapters in.

Any advice on an ebook reader?

I don't know much about ebook readers, but I will say this:

Make sure it's not on lockdown, or that you have a way to circumvent it, if it is. I don't much care for the prospect of constantly being sold books. Piracy aside, there's a vast amount of great literature available via Project Gutenberg. It would be a shame to pay for classics you could be getting for free. Plus, if you did engage in piracy, you would have access to an endless supply of books for only the price of the reader. Basically, regardless of how you feel about piracy, remember that you don't have to pay for everything.

[Disco Pickle]

I may be something of an annomaly, as I chew through books, and quickly.

I'm not sure where I picked up the habit, but possibly when I was very young and needing an outlet to keep my mind busy.

I found several authors I liked and maintain a library of their books.  I take suggestions from other readers who's opinions I trust on good stories.

I occasionally have to brute force something that's considered a "classic" such as Gravity's Rainbow.  More because of Pynchon's writing style than not liking the story.

don't know that I have any advice, except to try several authors of subjects you already enjoy and keep the book with you everywhere.  I take mine to the bathroom, have it in the car for when I have to go somewhere and wait, work for lunch breaks.