the book trail: how reading changed my life

happy halloween! the only thing better than candy, is a good book. hope you got a chance to pick up this slim little book of essays. here’s our guest host emily’s view on things.

I thank our inspiring hostess for her persistent invitation to review a book.  It gave me the swift kick in the glut I needed to open and finish something worth discussing. I selected Quindlen’s book with the hope that she would give me additional momentum to push me to read her manageable book lists. In her extended essay, Quindlen weaves her evolution as a reader from a young girl to a middle-aged woman with contemporary literary issues.  The End.

The teacher in me can’t help but form discussion questions when I read.  This non-traditional ‘book review’ addresses the foremost themes through quotes and question format to engage you in a conversation.  I am dying to know what you think about Quindlen’s ideas and hope that regardless of whether you picked up the 70 page essay, you will offer your two bits.

Chapter 1

“Perhaps restlessness is a necessary corollary of devoted literacy.” p. 4

1. What causes restlessness? How does reading relieve it? Is reading merely an escape for the discontent?

Anna seems to have been inconvenienced as a child by having to interact with others.

2. Can our passion for reading impair our interactions with others? p. 5-8

In response to this question, I remember a reading experience I had several years ago. Even though I am not a Harry Potter fanatic, when the last volume was published, I found myself using every spare minute and hour to rip through the chapters.  I recall feeling peevish when my reading was interrupted by a hungry baby and husband.  I was startled by being so perturbed, yet was too engrossed in the suspense to slow my pace until I had finished the text.

Reading for pleasure v. reading for purpose. The former represents snobbery. p. 9-10

3. Do your perceptions of others change based on their reading habits?

Chapter 2

“The act of reading, the act of seeing a story on a page as opposed to hearing a story told - is infinitely more complex…” p.16

1. How have audio books impacted reading?

2. True or False? Women read more than men for intellectual exercise and companionship. p. 29-31

Chapter 3

She introduces the infamous concept of the Canon and suggests that reading literature ‘is not simply for personal growth, but for cultural and societal growth as well.” p. 39

1. What are your views on the Canon?

2. Have you experienced censorship of book lists or thought that a book should have been removed from a required reading list?

Ch. 4

Quindlen addresses the dynamics of the symbiotic relationship between reading and writing.

1. Have you felt inspired to write after reading? What did you read? Will you share what you wrote? p. 53

She shares her first memories of watching her parents read. p. 56

2. Do you have memories of your parents reading on their own/with you? How has their attitude towards literacy impacted your own reading identity/habits?

“But a computer is no substitute for a book. No one wants to take a computer to bed at the end of a long day, to read a chapter or two before dropping off to sleep.” p.64

3. Has the computer detracted from the joy of pleasure reading? Is technology killing or promoting literacy?

Case and point: I made a conscious choice to bury myself in my comforter to finish the essay last night instead of reading and taking notes on the computer .

Chapter 4

Books, words, authors, characters are immortal.

“Through [books] we experience other times, other places, other lives. We manage to become more than our own selves. The only dead are those who grow sere and shriveled within, unable to step outside their own lives and into those of others. Ignorance is death. A closed mind is a catafalque.” p. 69

1.  The meaning of catafalque - discuss.

For anyone else like me who could only guess at the definition of a catafalque: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catafalque

Book Lists

1. Which of these do you love/cherish/recommend?

Little Women by Louisa May Alcott  Doesn’t everyone think they are the independent, creative, and adventurous Josephine March?

2. Are there any books that you have passed by for the last time and feel motivated to read now?

Middlemarch by George Eliot

emily recently relocated from solon, ohio to utah. she holds a masters degree in english as a second language and is busy awaiting the arrival of daughter number two.

i assure you, emily, that i am going to answer all of your questions, but first i am going to the halloween parade.

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life and death in shanghai

this was a doozy! it took me weeks to get through it. (i spent most of september very mad at china.) here’s our guest host tiffany’s take on the book:

I picked this book because I believe it is powerful.  Nien Cheng is in the unique situation of being Chinese and living through vast changes in Chinese society during the 20th century, yet she really understands western thought and western culture.  Plus, she is brilliant.  Very few people who actually experienced this period in China could have written a story that is so easy for the western mind to grasp.  But, Nien Cheng did it and she has taught me (and I hope you) a lot in the process.

I could probably write ten essays on ten different things I learned from reading this book.  Not only did I learn a lot about Chinese history and culture, but I also learned about strength, endurance, integrity, and faith.  I can’t imagine going through something like this, and I often found myself asking, “Would I be able to do that?”  I loved her descriptions of how she got through and kept up a productive attitude.  At the beginning of her imprisonment she tried to recite poetry to keep her spirits up but did whatever it took to keep her sanity:

My persistent efforts to maintain sanity had a measure of success.  But there were still moments when I was so burdened with hunger and misery that I was tempted to let go my tenuous grip on the lifeline of survival.  At those times, I had to depend on conflict with the guards to stimulate my fighting spirit… (pg. 204)

 

Reading that made me smile.  Not only was she brave, but she was also willing to fight in any way she could.  I can’t believe the example she sets for the attitude we should have in the face of adversity.  I am also struck by her ability to forgive those who imprisoned her.  She really was able to keep any anger she had from being directed at individuals.

Most of all, I think this book made me feel grateful.  Today all we hear on the news is how bad our economy is, and dire predictions for the future.  Many people complain against our current leaders and hold them completely responsible for the situation.  Maybe they are.  Maybe they aren’t.  All I know is when I get told at work how Bush ruined America, all I want to say is, “you have no idea how one man or one political faction can ruin a country, have you ever heard of Mao Tse-tung?”  Despite all the mess we find ourselves in today, this book has helped me remember why I still love my country.  That in and of itself is a message worth remembering.

What struck you most about this book?  What will you remember?

tiff is working toward a phd in biochemistry at duke university. she has curly hair.

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