A Little Friday Gratitude – Reading a Good Book
Fri, Jan 16, 2009
The most recent edition of the Reader’s Digest has an article about things to be thankful for and one item in particular got me thinking. It states that in 1970 “barely half the people in the world were literate, and many of them could afford only a few books. Today, more than 80 percent of the world’s people can read, and 22 percent have access to the greatest library in history (the Internet).”
It’s hard to imagine a world without books. I know not everyone is an avid reader and I’d think that making it through school with those huge textbooks was torture for them. That’s why I’m happy to say that I fall into the “love-to-read” category. It started when I was a child and my mother would read to me storybooks like Where the Wild Things Are,
Goodnight Moon,
and of course The Cat in the Hat.
As I started to mature, so did my reading tastes. E.B. White became a favorite author of mine with his books Charlotte’s Web and Stuart Little,
as did Laura Ingalls Wilder with her Little House on the Prairie series.
I read those books so many times that the binders began to wear out. My love of reading was partly attributed to the hours we spent at the local library. Every summer my mother enrolled us in their reading club for kids. The object was to read as many books as possible and at the end of the summer, we were given a certificate stating how many books we had completed. Being the little competitor that I was, I would read hundreds and hundreds of books. This meant we had to go to the library every week to get new titles – I’m sure my mother wondered what she had gotten herself into.
That love for reading continued as I grew up. I began to read the typical teenage books such as Blubber, by Judy Blume.
And the Nancy Drew series was a definite favorite.
These books carried me over to my adult years when my love of reading only increased. Of course, by then my tastes had changed somewhat. I now fancy mysteries and thrillers like the book I’m currently reading by David Baldacci called The Whole Truth,
and reference books like Peterson’s Beyond Portraiture or this book about Photoshop CS3.
I enjoy reading so much that buying books has almost become an addiction. I use Amazon.com regularly as it is a great place to buy used or discounted copies. And don’t even get me started on the local book stores. Stores like Borders and Barnes & Noble now offer food and beverages and a warm, cozy spot for reading through your new purchases. Give me that and a bathroom and I’ll be set for hours.
I tell you, just thinking about all these books puts a smile on my face. There is something about the smell of the binder and the sound the pages make as they’re turning. Books have the ability to take you as far away as a small town in Japan or the jungles of Africa, without ever leaving the comfort of your home. All it takes is a little imagination and a library card, and you have hours of entertainment at your disposal.
That doesn’t include all of the online reading that is now available. I spend hours every week reading through blogs and articles on the Internet that cover everything from pregnancy to photography to cooking. Isn’t it amazing? A wealth of knowledge is available online, any time we want it. It’s little wonder that there is more than 80 percent literacy in the world today.
Who would want to miss out on all of the fun?
What about you – are you a big reader and if so, what books do you like to read?
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Tags: books, friday gratitude, reading
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January 16th, 2009 at 5:54 am
HUGE reader. Love books. Love them. I’d rather read than do just about anything else.
What do I read? As a former children’s librarian, I read a lot of children’s books as well as YA. I lean toward fantasy and historical fiction in that age level, but will give anything a try. When I read grown-up books I add in mystery (esp. Agatha Christie and Dorothy Gilman), biographies and some romance (Maeve Binchey, Rosamund Pilcher types). Currently, my non-fiction books cover (what else?) parenting and marriage. Oh, and cookbooks. I love to read recipes.
On my nightstand right at this minute:
Liberated Through Submission by PB Wilson
Sacred Marriage by Gary L Thomas
Making the “Terrible Twos” Terrific by John Rosemund
Lady Knight by Tamora Pierce
More With Less Cookbook by Doris Janzen Longacre
and
my Bible
And I’m always open to recommendations …
January 16th, 2009 at 7:19 am
I LOVE reading! I love reading non-fiction, especially books about international affairs and history. There is so much to learn! But that can wear me out so I’ll throw in a good fiction book once in a while.
January 16th, 2009 at 7:46 am
I love to read. But usually, I like to read something fiction so I don’t have to worry about retaining what I read.
To much addles my brain.
January 16th, 2009 at 7:57 am
I love reading. I’ll read anything once.
Some of my favourites are This Much I know is True by Wally Lamb, One Hit Wonder by Lisa Jewel, all the Anita Blake books by Laurell K Hamilton, anything by Sherri S Tepper, not to mention things like Harry Potter or the Twlight series.
For her birthday, my wife got the 100 Classic books for her DS and I’m really excited to start working through those.
January 16th, 2009 at 7:59 am
Have you read or will you read the Twilight series? It’s interesting, and I enjoyed the books on one level, but I definitely felt like it was more suitable for my teenage nieces than for an adult reader… sort of like when I read the Harry Potter books. An awesome story, but subject matter juvenile.
January 16th, 2009 at 8:41 am
I love reading and miss leisure reading while I’m busy getting this degree done. I have a large collection of my favorite children’s books, including lots of Beatrix Potter books (in several languages!) No kids though…hmm. Now my taste is for mystery/espionage like Nelson DeMille, nutrition and global food issue books, and anything that has to do with travel, preferably from an adventurous, non-fiction perspective. True guilty pleasure reading – the Jean Auel series that I reread yearly from my bookshelf.
While nothing tops a quiet sofa with a blanket, tasty coffee, and real paper, I do find myself listening to audiobooks and podcasts, often of shorter works. New Yorker has several good podcasts, and PRI’s Selected Shorts is a longtime favorite.
January 16th, 2009 at 8:44 am
OH, wanted to add this. My library growing up had a similar summer reading program. Those that kept it up all summer were rewarded with a free movie at our town cinema (one screen, flat floor seating). Movie, schmovie – I just wanted the excuse to read all summer long!
January 16th, 2009 at 8:53 am
I loved Madeline L’engle as a child. Did you read her stuff?
Now I’m afraid that I tend to read as an escape mechanism and thus avoid anything too heavy.
I like Christian Chick Lit and regular chick lit too I suppose. LOVE David Baldacci and my husband likes those too so it’s fun to read them together and discuss.
January 16th, 2009 at 9:07 am
I like to read best sellers, because then I feel part of the “in” crowd. I don’t like to read Oprah books (but will if they were bes sellers before she chose them) because I don’t like to feel like a follower. I am getting into classics lately, which is great to rediscover those books that as a high school student I hated. Also, and this is just between us, I like to read chick lit, like Jennifer Crusie and Sophie Kinsella. Books with a little s-e-x in them. Shhh, don’t tell!
January 16th, 2009 at 9:12 am
I loved all the same books! I was an avid Nancy Drew reader.
January 16th, 2009 at 9:23 am
I’m a big time reader, for a while I was reading a book every 3-4 days…. I’d read from the moment my son went to bed until I couldn’t keep my eyes open anymore! I love girly books (think chick movies put into books) I love James Patterson, Nicholas Sparks, all sorts of books, I’ll read anything!
I read my son a lot of Dr. Suess and the little Golden Books, both classics!
January 16th, 2009 at 9:34 am
I love reading too, always have. I’m almost obsessive about it, if it’s a really good book I just can’t hardly put it down until I finish it.
Escaping into a good book is the best stress reliever. I love just about all books of any type.
We’ve participated in the local library’s reading programs too. I’m so glad that my kids love reading too. That’s one thing that I have never been able to say no to, them asking for a new book. I’m a sucker for that, but the things that they have learned because of reading so many books is amazing to me and of course the book stores love to see us coming. Thank goodness for their discount programs!
January 16th, 2009 at 9:44 am
I’m a children’s and teen librarian. I can’t say enough about reading or enough about how being a book lover helps raise a book lover. I wrote a post before Christmas about how depressed I was that wasn’t as simple as it was when I was a child, but that books were my real gateway to that feeling of joy that’s easily attinable as child.
January 16th, 2009 at 10:56 am
I thought the same thing about that article. I cannot imagine my life without books and I often tell my husband that I think there could be no better life for us than a cozy house in the woods (where it is quiet and we can read uninterrupted!) crammed full of books in every nook and cranny. I also read every magazine that comes into our house cover to cover the day they come in, I can’t help myself.
I grew up on all the same stuff you did. The pictures of those covers bring back such memories for me! I also loved Joan Aiken and her Arabel & Mortimer series, Beatrix Potter, and I devoured Nancy Drew to such an extent that my parents only allowed me to check out 3 at a time from the library, so I would read something else also. We had a 10 book limit at that time at our library and I would go through those in a week. I think my mom may still have my Laura Ingalls Wilder books but I can’t imagine the shape they must be in, I wore mine out also. I am a huge re-reader of books also.
For kids I am currently a huge fan of the Mr Lunch books by J Otto Siebold, I just love the illustrations. One of my other favorites is Click Clack Moo, about a bunch of cows that find a typewriter and go on strike. They crack me up. My kidlet had better be a big reader like her mom and dad.
Currently I am making my way through a bunch of John Irving books borrowed from my sister. I’m working on Widow for One Year. He is so strange but such a good writer and so compelling and I just can’t put down his books.
January 16th, 2009 at 10:58 am
Heh, I hardly ever read. *shame* I read more when I was younger; my Mom had a collection of Nancy Drew books, among others – nowadays I don’t really read anything but Harry Potter, though.
January 16th, 2009 at 11:17 am
I love it!! Look at all you fellow readers – of course that makes some sense as you are here, reading a blog.
I’ll definitely be looking into some of the titles you’ve written down as I’m always open to new stuff. I need to read more non-fiction but I, too, use reading as an “escape” sometimes so it’s nice to just let me mind wander. And yes – someone asked me if I’ve read Twilight. I did read the series and actually enjoyed it along with Harry Potter. I was surprised at how much. Haven’t seen the movie yet though…
January 16th, 2009 at 11:26 am
ps – Mindee you asked if I read Madeline L’engle, I did! I had completely forgotten about her stuff! I also loved The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe by CS Lewis. This was years before the movies, of course. I’ll have to go back and read them again to see how they compared. Oh – one more I just remembered that I had to have read at least ten times: From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler. That book is amazing!
January 16th, 2009 at 11:27 am
I’m in the obsession side of reading – just love it!!! My husband has said – no more hard bound books – we’ve run out of space to store them. I have so many containers of paperbacks that I need to sale them or give them away.
Reading is just wonderful. You are totally right, it can so easily take you away to any part of the world – even the very heavens. I’ve read some amazing books about space travels and the stars!! Love history, thrillers, mystery, informational, spiritual, etc. etc. There have been very few books that I’ve not enjoyed. Definitely have my favorite authors but like trying new ones.
Just wish more children enjoyed reading. The world definitely needs everyone having the skills of reading and it would be a much better place if people took the time to read. Just think, less stress and more peace all because of reading!!!
January 16th, 2009 at 11:42 am
I used to be a BIG reader! In fact, my mom would force me to put down my books when I was a kid just to make me go outside and get some sunshine. lol Plus she thought I was living too much in my head and not enough in my real life, which she was totally right about.
These days, with 2 toddlers, I don’t get much time to read anymore. The only reading I really do these days is blogs, and maybe 10 minutes of a parenting book here and there. That’s about it! I really miss the days when I could curl up with a good book for hours!
January 16th, 2009 at 12:07 pm
Oh! Oh! From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler is wonderful. My two older kids have read it over and over again. It’s such a fun premise.
One I took from my daughter’s bookshelf which was wonderful was Princess Academy by Shannon Hale. It’s so well written and has a really great message for girls.
January 16th, 2009 at 7:11 pm
I’m an avid reader and all of those books you read as a kid, so did I!
I loved Nancy Drew books. I also read ‘GooseBumps”, “Sideways Stories from WaySide School”, the “Little House on the Prairie” series, “Little Women”, “Charlotte’s Web”, “Little Rascal”, “Anne of Green Gables”, anything by Roald Dahl… my reading lists are endless.
If I could review books for a living, I’d be completely content doing that.
January 16th, 2009 at 9:26 pm
I had a “special” voice reading the Cat in the hat to my own daughters. Actually every book had a different voice! Now she has read to her son since he was about 3 months old. Now at 18 months, he’s hooked! She sent me a picture of her husband reading out loud to James, reading a COOKBOOK! he listened to everyword, and looked at every picture like it was a kids book…NEVER to early to read a kid a book.
January 17th, 2009 at 4:44 am
Reading is so special, and not something I thought about to be grateful for, but it really is. Not only is it fun, but it is so good for a child to have a parent read to him or her. I have found that avid readers often become good writers, or at least people who can put a few sentences together in a logical way. In my business, I see many letters, and such a small percentage of them are well written. So many have major spelling and grammatical errors. It makes me wonder if many young people are reading these days.
January 17th, 2009 at 6:59 pm
I LOVE to read! Going to the bookstore is like a favorite family night out. I just finished Home to Harmony by Philip Gulley…I thought it was great and I’m reading an awesome book now. I think I’ll blog about this one.
Happy reading!
-FringeGirl
January 18th, 2009 at 7:19 am
such great comments! And Love Letters – I’m with you there, it would be so great to be a book critic, wouldn’t it? And Catherine – I agree that it’s never to early to start reading to little ones.
January 22nd, 2009 at 1:39 am
nice blog.. i love to visit here…
January 23rd, 2009 at 7:46 am
I read this whole post nodding my head and smiling. I just finished The Thirteenth Tale which was totally fascinating. One weird, uncomfortable part, but other than that really good. Very Jane Eyre.
January 24th, 2009 at 5:35 am
Hi Bening – nice to “see” you, thanks for visiting!
Liz – I’ll have to check out that book. I haven’t read Jane Eyre in a long time!
January 24th, 2009 at 1:59 pm
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February 7th, 2009 at 12:26 pm
I love reading! I enjoy reading all books, but I tend to prefer children’s, young adult, or non-fiction books. Recently I’ve been reading the series of Junie B. Jones by Barbara Park. They are quite fun! I enjoy your blog.
March 4th, 2009 at 3:27 am
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