Tag: reading

Today, at work, I read a book during lunch.  That’s right – a book.  I can’t remember the last time I put aside some leisure time to just sit and read.

I started reading The Prestige yesterday.  I picked it randomly from our bookshelf because Katie had read it a while ago and liked it and mentioned that it was different enough from the movie to still be entertaining.  It is different, and it’s quite gripping.

It’s funny; in a small way, I almost wish that I hadn’t seen the movie yet, so that I wasn’t fully aware of all the plot elements that unfold as the story progresses.

But it was so enjoyable.  Instead of taking the lunch hour to read some blogs (which I do all day long anyway) or flounder around and try to get some work done in between bites or attempt to play a casual game or two, I just read.

Maybe it’s because it’s been so long since I’ve done anything so solitary and quiet.  Maybe it’s because the story is exciting.  Something about this book and the bouts of reading I’ve experienced over the past two days has been magical.

It reminds me of the unexpected delight of a brilliant game you’ve never heard of, of a movie on TV that makes you cry, of being at an sporting or musical event that turns out to be a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

And yet…it’s something more.  In this age of technology and flashing lights, the fact that simple words on a page still have the astounding emotional power they do is awesome.

Now, time to slip into bed and continue turning those pages.  Alfred Borden awaits.

Maybe part of it is the self-indulgent fact that I like the sound of my own voice, but I think that more people should read out loud.

Aside from random school presentations and other opportunities for learning, the first time I remember reading something out loud to other people was in a summer program during high school.

For some reason, someone in the group of friends I had formed at this program needed to read A Prayer for Owen Meaney during that summer, and I offered to help make the reading more pleasant by holding a daily storytime where I would read the book aloud to everyone, chapter by chapter.

And, for some inexplicable reason, my friends agreed.  So we would cluster ourselves in the basement of our dorm each evening, and I would read the book to them out loud.

It was wonderful.  It also was my introduction to John Irving, for which I am also quite grateful.

I still read aloud, but only to Katie now, and not as often as I (or she) would like.  I think the reason I find it so enjoyable is because it’s a kind of sneaky way of turning an activity that is designed to be private into a shared experience.

That, and the theatricality of turning a story from words on a page into sound.  As a reader, there are certain powers that I enjoy, such as the tone and pacing of the piece that may not be entirely evident just as words on the page.

I encourage everyone to try it.  Find someone to read to, or who will read to you.  Not everyone will comfortable in the former group, of course, but it’s worth a try.

That, and you get to do voices, which is – of course – the best part.