Stop What You're Doing And Read This!

by Mark Haddon (Editor), Zadie Smith (Contributor), Carmen Callil (Contributor)

In any 24 hours there might be sleeping, eating, kids, parents, friends, lovers, work, school, travel, deadlines, emails, phone calls, Facebook, Twitter, the news, the TV, Playstation, music, movies, sport, responsibilities, passions, desires, dreams.

Why should you stop what you're doing and read a book?

People have always needed stories. We need literature - novels, poetry - because we need to make sense of our lives, test our depths, understand our joys and discover what humans are capable of. Great books can provide companionship when we are lonely or peacefulness in the midst of an overcrowded daily life. Reading provides a unique kind of pleasure and no-one should live without it.

In the ten essays in this book some of our finest authors and passionate advocates from the worlds of science, publishing, technology and social enterprise tell us about the experience of reading, why access to books should never be taken forgranted, how reading transforms our brains, and how literature can save lives. In any 24 hours there are so many demands on your time and attention - make books one of them.

Carmen Callil Tim Parks

Nicholas Carr Michael Rosen

Jane Davis Zadie Smith

Mark Haddon Jeanette Winterson

Blake Morrison Dr Maryanne Wolf & Dr Mirit Barzillai

Genres: Nonfiction, Books About Books, Essays, Writing, Anthologies, Literature, Self Help

194 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2011

About the author

Mark Haddon is an English novelist, best known for The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time (2003). He won the Whitbread Award, the Dolly Gray Children's Literature Award, the Guardian Prize, and a Commonwealth Writers Prize for his work.

Reviews

[Ümit Mutlu · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bazı yazılar gerçekten zihin açıcı; okuma üzerine derin düşünceler sunuyorlar gerçekten. Özellikle, Carmen Callil'in, yazısında değindiği şey çok hoş:

"Bir kitabı kindle ya da tabletten okumakta bir sorun yok tabii ki, hatta sorun olmamasının yanı sıra çok da pratik, ancak bu, basılı kitapla aynı şey değil. Bir cihaz asla bir kitaba benzemez. Kitaplar çok daha güzeldir. Kitaplar bahçeler gibidir, kindle ya da tabletse daha çok birer süpermarkete benzer: Hayatı kolaylaştırırlar, ama içinde istediğiniz gibi dolanamazsınız. Kitapları ise kurcalayabilirsiniz. Tıpkı bahçeler gibi muhteşem bir manzara sunabilirler. Onlara sarılabilir ve sıcak su torbası gibi kullanabilirsiniz; bir makine bunların hiçbirini yapamaz."

Basılı kitap-tablet savaşı kapsamında, tüm o yüzeysel "kitap kokusu" savlarının falan ötesinde, duyduğum en doğru yaklaşım bu: Kitapta gezinebilir, elinize alıp istediğiniz cümleyi okuyabilir ve dahası, ilk okuduğunuz zamanı ve o zaman sahip olduğunuz tüm hisleri tekrar anımsayabilirsiniz. Basılı kitap asla ölmeyecek.

[emre · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jane Davis'in Okuma Devrimi, Jeanette Winterson'ın Bir Kitap. Bir Yatak. Bir Dağ. ve Mark Haddon'ın Doğru Sözcükler Doğru Sırayla başlıklı denemeleri çok keyifliydi.

[Heather Clitheroe · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not bad - an interesting collection of essays on the art and act of reading, and on the necessity of literature. If it's meant to convince you that reading is essential, it's preaching to the choir: I don't know that many of the people who read this book would be inclined to disagree with the pronouncements.

I had to smile and shake my head at Carmen Callil's vehement disapproval of the ebook.

"Reading a book on a Kindle or an Ipad is all very well - in fact it is better than all very well, it is splendidly practical - but it is not the same. A machine can never look like a book: books are far more beautiful. Books are like gardens; a Kindle or an iPad like a supermarket - it makes life easier, but one doesn't want to loiter in it. You can fiddle with books. Like gardens, they can be wonderful to look at. You can cuddle them and use them like a hot-water bottle; a machine can't do any of these things."

For one, I'm quite certain that you can use a book as a hot-water bottle. And for another, it's disingenuous to argue that the value of literature and prose is somehow cheapened because of the format it's presented in. The theme of 'ebook is bad' is present throughout the book, which is disappointing and which unnecessarily dates the essays...the ones that are preoccupied with it lose any sense of timelessness in their discussions of the importance of literature.

[Murat Dural · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yine güzel bir Deli Dolu Yayınları kitabı. Takip edenler bilir kitap okurken kendime üçlü, birbirini dengeleyecek, rahatlatacak türde seçimler yapıyorum: Bir roman / öykü kitabı, bir çizgi roman ve bir kuramsal eser. Bol bol yazmak, kurgu oluşturmak üzerine kitap okuyorum ama ilk defa "Okumak Üzerine" bir kitaba bakma, inceleme şansım oldu. Farklı, önemli noktadaki insanın yazıları ile katkı verdiği eser gayet doğurucu. Naçizane yazma çabasında biri olarak pencerenin diğer tarafına geçip okur hakkında, okuma eylemi konusunda da fikir edindim.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book contains ten essays by authors, publishers and other passionate advocates of reading, all giving reasons why reading is important - if not essential - in our lives. It talks about the thousands of children in our country who cannot read and write with competence and those who rarely read outside of the classroom. The parents who do not read to their children, the homes which do not have books. Assuming you are browsing books on goodreads suggests you are a reader, whether devoted or casual, but this book aims to argue the importance of books and reading in all of our lives. From Zadie Smith's portrayal of her family as chronic library users, to Carmel Callil (found of Virago) writing of discovering her beloved fathers book collection after his death, to the wonderful Michael Rosen discussing his father reading Dickens aloud on camping trips to Jane David, attempting through her The Reader Organisation to bring the joys of reading aloud to those who may not have experienced it before, this is a book full of joy for the love of reading and the importance of literature and poetry in all of our lives. There are also scientific arguments for the positive aspects for those who need to be convinced, but reading has enriched my life so much that I could no sooner live without books than I could without food. I suspect the same of you, but, even if you need no convincing that books are great, this is an entertaining and important read in it's own right.

[Adam · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stars. A bit wanky but Nicholas Carr author of The Shallows: What the Internet is Doing to Our Brains saved it from less stars.

I liked the cover. I judge books by covers. That's OK. Just the contents inside didn't live up to the cover ;-p

The title was convincing too! Clever, but overpromised and underdelivered. Should have had a staid brown cover and been titled 'What Authors Love About Books And Reading (Especially Classic Literature And Poems!)'

[Beth Knight · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was really more like a 2.5-star read, especially toward the end. This is a non-fiction book containing essays by authors all about reading. Over half the authors were unknown to me and their essays were the most boring. Part of that may have been due to the fact that they're unknown to me but a lot of it was because many of them talked about more of the scientific aspects of reading, rather than how reading has affected their lives in more personal ways. I was expecting personal vignettes, not dry scientific facts. I found myself skimming much of the book and I was happy when I finally finished this book. That's never a good sign!

[Kirsten · Rating 5 out of 5]

Man darf sich von dem Titel des Buchs nicht in die Irre führen lassen, es handelt sich keineswegs um die Aufforderung, alles fallen zu lassen und mit dem Lesen anzufangen. Sicher, die Überlegung, was passiert, wenn man den Alltag Alltag sein lässt und sich voll auf seine Bücher konzentriert, steht am Anfang des Buchs. Aber es ist nur die Einleitung für zehn Essays von verschiedenen Autoren, die über ihre Liebe zum Lesen und zu Büchern erzählen.


So erfahre ich, dass es in der Familie von Zadie Smith fast schon zum guten Ton gehörte, die Leihfrist für ihre Bücher fast bis ins Unendliche zu verlängern. zu ihrem großen Glück gab es in ihrer Bücherei irgendwann eine Amnesty für Leihsünder, so dass ihnen die große Rückzahlung erspart blieb. Blake Morrison meint, dass Bücher einen freier atmen lassen, und Andrea Ashworth hält sie für ein Kästchen, in das man seine Seele einbetten kann.

Beim Lesen gehört das jeweilige Buch den Lesern selbst, danach wollen, nein: müssen sie es mit ihrer Umgebung teilen. Dieses Forum ist das beste Beispiel dafür. Und auch die Diskussion über Print und E-Books findet ihren Platz. Beides hat seine Berechtigung, aber während Bücher wie ein Garten sind, durch den man schlendert, sind E-Books eher wie ein Supermarkt, bei dem alles ein bisschen schneller geht und man vielleicht auch ein bisschen mehr mitnimmt, als man eigentlich wollte.

Ich habe von der Geschichte vom Virago Verlag gelesen, den Carmen Callit gründete, um Schriftstellerinnen den angemessenen Raum und eine lautere Stimme zu geben. Aber es gibt noch viel mehr Geschichten in diesem Buch, große und kleine. In einigen Lesegewohnheiten habe ich mich auch wiedergefunden und gehöre definitiv zu den zwei Drittel von Lesern, die durch ihre Lektüre verändert wurden.

Es ist ein wunderbares Buch, bei dem der Titel vielleicht doch nicht so irreführend ist, wie ich am Anfang erwähnt habe. Man sollte es dringend lesen, auch wenn dafür einige vermeintlich wichtige Dinge liegen bleiben werden.

[Amber · Rating 3 out of 5]

"READING TRANSFORMS THE human brain, which transforms the mind, which transforms the life of every reader.".....
Marcel Proust characterised this ‘heart of reading’ as that moment when ‘that which is the end of their [the author’s] wisdom is but the beginning of ours’ (Proust, 1906).

[Joanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a book of essay extolling the virtues of reading. They are by writers, publishers and scientists writing about their personal experiences with books, of their beliefs about the benefits of reading, and of the scientific evidence about what the act of reading does to our brains. The introduction says that;

This year (2011) we learnt that there are many thousands of children across Britain who cannot read competently, that there are thousands who leave primary school unable to put together basic sentences. One in three teenagers reads only two books a year, or fewer, and one in six children rarely reads books outside of the classroom. Many parents do not read stories to their children, and many homes do not have books in them. Stories, and poems, for these thousands of children, are not a source of enchantment or excitement. Books are associated with school, or worse - they are associated with acute feelings of shame and frustration.

I think my favourite essay was the first one, Library Life by Zadie Smith. She writes about the importance of her local library to her reading life and her education. At a time when they are under threat she emphasises the lifeline that libraries are;

It has always been, and always will be, very difficult to explain to people with money what it means not to have money. If education matters to you, well, why wouldn't you be willing to pay for them if you value them? They are the kind of people who believe value can only be measured in money.

The overwhelming majority of books I read as a child came from the library, and I'm sure that being able to browse there, without anybody telling me what I should or shouldn't read, engendered the passionate love of books and reading that's such a joy to me now, and will be to the end of my life.

The other essay which I really enjoyed was The Reading Revolution by Jane Davis. Her biography at the front of the book says that she is 'the Founder/Director of The Reader Organisation, a national charity bringing about a reading revolution by making it possible for people of all ages, backgrounds and abilities to enjoy literature in a direct, personal way.'

The Reader Organisation has established groups where people meet and read together - out loud, and discuss the book or poem as it is being read. People interrupt with comments about the work itself, or with any personal feelings that the reading might've brought up. It seems to be a very, very informal and free flowing way of reading together. Groups have been established in schools, prisons, nursing homes, in hospitals, with psychiatric patients. I thought this essay was fascinating and I really admire Jane Davis, who saw a need and did something about it. She writes;

We must reposition literature in settings - such as workplaces, mental-health services, demential care homes, looked after children services - where its profound worth will be seen for what it really is: the holder of human value, human meaning, and yes, even the secrets of the universe.

[Chris · Rating 3 out of 5]

A book of 10 British authors and their essays on the experience and love of reading. Some of these were quite good (Zadie Smith, Mark Haddon, Jeanette Winterson), some were terribly scientific and boring.

Throughout the book, though, I found little nuggets that I could relate to, and realize there are others who feel the same way I do when I read. I would love to say that reading possessed some of the special powers it is often claimed to possess, not least the ability to soothe the troubled mind. But when my mind is troubled, like many people, I find reading hard, if not impossible, and fiction in particular becomes a country from which I feel painfully exiled, so that when I'm able to read again it feels like coming home." Mark Haddon

Or this one, Our love of reading manifests itself in a romantic attachment to the physical book. A volume on a shelf becomes a kind of sacred relic. Glancing at its spine spurs memories of the time in which it was read or of the emotions it aroused. Some readers even rhapsodise, Proust-like, about the way books smell. They relish the ink-and-adhesives scent of a freshly printed book and the musty aroma of an old one. Nicholas Carr

And to think I was the only one in the world who loved the smell of books!

[Chris · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was a collection of essays about the importance of reading. Several of the essays focused on the ideas of reader-response theory, assuming that books are special because of the ways they engage each reader's individual imagination. One thoughtful essay speculated that we are on the verge of a paradigm shift as momentous as the historical shift from oral tradition to literacy in the transition to the digital age. Mostly, these essays felt like curiosities to me. I agree that reading is important, but I don't see it disappearing anytime soon, and I think the popularity of e-readers is evidence of this. I don't think there is any serious qualitative difference between reading a physical book and reading the same book in a digital format.

[Clong · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thought the last essay was very good at addressing e-reading and reading in the 21st century. Vs most of the other essays which simply eschewed electronic devices as reading's nemesis. Though all of the essays were well written and interesting in their own ways they had a beef. And it was the Kindle. Which is ironic because I read this bad boy on Kindle. Thus feeling a stab of guilt, as though I were cheating on books, or the literary community, throughout.
Loved all the brain science stuff. I always eat that up. And anything arguing FOR reading? Yeah I'm on board with that. Bravo. Reading is not just a languid pleasure. I'm improving my brain and compassion level people. And since you clearly have a goodreads account you are too. Way to be.

[Jennifer · Rating 2 out of 5]

Some interesting (and one or two annoyingly snobby) essays about the importance and pleasure of reading. I find the aim of the collection a bit confusing though, as for me they were preaching to the choir, but surely the LAST thing someone who didn't like reading would pick up is a book of essays...

[Ghayda الجويسر · Rating 4 out of 5]

Updated review 31 March 2016:

Two different occasions you have to read this book on:
- If u r a reading-aholic feeling that no one understands how much u love reading!
- If u stopped reading for a while and u needed some enthusiasm to go back on track!

In sum, it is the best illustration of Bibliomania, people like us, explaining why we love reading & books, and how they make us alive!

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

From BBC Radio 4 Extra:
Serialised book readings, featuring works of non-fiction, biography, autobiography, travel, diaries, essays, humour and history.

[GÜRSEL SOYBIR · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kitaplar, kaçmaya çalıştığı dünya kadar gerçekti.

Kitap, bu anın ve buranın ötesinde bir şeyler olduğuna dair ümittir.

Kitaplar, bir cankurtaran, inanmamız için bir sebep, daha özgürce nefes almak için bir yoldur.

Yazılan herşey, okurun cömertliğine bağlıdır.

Onlarınkinin (yazarların) bittiği yerde, bizim bilgeliğimiz başlar.

Kitap dünyaya gelir gelmez kendi hayatını yaşamaya başlar, yazarların bebeği artık bizimdir.

Okumak; heyecanı taşıyor olmanın, yoğun bir biçimde zihnen ve sessizce yaşıyor olmanın en tekinsiz yanlarından biridir. Ve bu heyecan; zihnin en akışkan ve kişisel alanında, bir başkasının varoluşunun ürettiği, yakalanması güç yoruma anbean tepki göstermektir.

Kitaplar, insanlar gibidir, kimisi uzaktan yanıltıcı bir şekilde dikkat çekici görünür. Kimisi aldatıcı şekilde zevksizdir. Kimisi zahmetsiz bir eşlikçidir, kimisi de karşılığını alma garantisi olmasa da fena halde çaba talep eder, bazıları arkadaş olur, bunu ömrü boyu sürdürür, bazıları yokluğumuzda değişir ya da biz onların yokluğunda değişiriz.

Aynı zamanda, mucizevi bir şekilde beni de anlayan romanlar okumak istiyorum.

Bir insan olmanın ne demek olduğunu tam anlamıyla anlayan ve ifade eden romanların arayışı içindeyim.

Romanı filmin yanına koyun, filmler her şeyi vadeder,
neyi yapamayacağını bile unuttuğumuz sınırsız bir bolluk.

Romanlar dayanacaktır, filmelere, televizyona, sansüre, siyasi zulme, ikinci el kitaplara, online satışa, butik kitapçıların ölümüne ve amazonun yükselişine dayandıkları gibi.

Kitabın, özel güçlerden bazılarına, özellikle de dertle dolu zihinleri yatıştırma yetisine sahip olduğunu söylemek isterim.

Okumak bir şey daha sağlar, hayali bir dünya. Hayali dünya, bütün bir dünyadır, parçalanmış, ya da bölümlere ayrılmış değil.

Okumak daha derine dalmaktır. Ya da yükseğe tırmanmaktır.

Eğitimli bir akıl, konsantre olabilen akıldır. Dikkat eksikliği, bir hastalık değil, okumamanın bir sonucudur.

Hiç bir zaman okumak ya da yazmak için doğmamışızdır. Her yeni okurla birlikte yepyeni bir devre inşa edilmesi gerekir.

Suzan Sontag: Bir sanat eseri sadece bir şeyle ilgili değildir, bir şeyin ta kendisidir.

İçinde his olmayan bir düşünce söz konusu değildir. Hissetmemek imkansızdır.

Şiir, yüzleşmeye ödümüzün koptuğu şeylerle yüzleşme meselesidir.
Söylememeyi tercih ettiğimiz, umutsuzca paylaşma ihtiyacı hissettiğimiz şeyleri söylemektir.
Şairin, acıyı, dünyanın geri kalanı ile uzlaştırma girişimidir.

Şiir, derinlikle ilintilidir. Gözyaşlarıyla akıtmak için, derinlerde duran düşüncelerin dışavurumudur.

Mısraların kısalması koşuşturmamızı azaltmak gerektiğine dair bir işarettir.

Kederdir öngören
Koca bebeklerin ne kadar uçarı olduklarını
Ve etraflarında nasıl akılçelenler barındırdıklarını...
Ah şu zihin, zihnin de var dağları, yarları,
Dibini kimsenin görmediği dehşetli uçurumları,
....

John Clare:
Varım ben.... lakin kimse, ne umursar
Ne de bilir beni....
...
Yine de varım ve yaşıyorum, savrulan bir
Buhar misali.....
Ezilmişliğin ve gürültünün hiçliğinde,
Uyanık düşlerin dirimli denizinde,....
....
İtibarımın devasa enkazı içinde ..
.....
Bir yer arzuluyorum, insanlığın ayak basmadığı
Kadınların hiç gülmediği ya da ağlamadığı
.....
Ne rahatsız edeyim, ne de edileyim
Uzandığım yerde
Altımda çimen, üzerimde gök kubbe.

[Denise · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book has sat on my shelf for years. Now I discover what a fascinating book of essays it is. Zadie Smith writes about the importance of libraries, a subject more relevant today than when this essay was written. Michael Rosen discusses reading aloud and how as readers we bring characters from our own lives into those we read. Tim Parks considers how we develop words to access our consciousness and feelings. Blake Morrison thinks about the companionship in reading, how a book can talk to the reader.
And Jeanette Winterson says " I am remapped by a book. My internal geography shifts."
As these writers discuss reading and how it has developed and will develop in a technological world, it made me think about the comfort of reading.

[Crazytourists_books · Rating 2 out of 5]

The title is so much promising but unfortunately the essays don't deliver what's promised. There are of course a few gems here and there, but overall the essays are far more theoretical and philosophical than I would have liked. Yes, we know the importance of reading, we are after all reading this book, we have already bought what they are selling. I would have liked more personal stories, favorite books, incidents, memories. That would have made me stop What I was doing and read this.

[anotherfungurl · Rating 2 out of 5]

Mehh, not so good as I imagined it would be. There were too many classics, too little about my taste of books. Gave up by the 50-60th page. Could have been better.

[Danielle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some great essays in here, written by some of my fav authors!

[NKay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Glad I did stop and read it. Reading is so under rated and mainly due to our personal time constraints. We should make time to escape. A good book is as good as any physical holiday in my opinion.

[The Contented · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really liked the Michael Rosen and Jane Davis essays, but found the others mostly forgettable

[poetavates · Rating 3 out of 5]

ilginç anılar ve anlatılar

[Bettie · Rating 2 out of 5]

You can listen too: here

:O)

Couldn't find the theme tune but this one fits neatly

blurb - Passionate, funny, revelatory and inspiring, this series is a mission statement about the transformative power of reading; about the way it inspires us, the tangible impact it can have on our well-being and the importance it holds for us now and will continue to hold in the future.

Stop What You're Doing And Read This! features five of our finest authors and advocates from the world of publishing. Michael Rosen, Jeanette Winterson, Tim Parks, Carmen Callil and Mark Haddon, are all united here in a passionate belief in the distinctive and irreplaceable pleasures and powers of reading. Their essays argue that reading literature is, and must continue to be, a fundamental part of our daily life, as it directly improves our mental health and well-being, enriches our experience and broadens our imaginations.

As the ways people read, what they read, where they buy their books and in what format are all changing rapidly, this series argues unapologetically for the paramount importance of books and reading in a fast-moving, dislocated, technology-obsessed world.

Producer: David Roper A Heavy Entertainment production for BBC Radio 4.

[Cynthia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was deeply into a detective-mystery novel when my husband ruptured my thrall (twice!) to suggest that I might want to read this book of essays on the power and joy of reading literature. I was irritated and made rude dismissive gestures.

However...

I ran out of something to read and decided to pick this up.

I apologized to my husband for my unspoken assumptions. This slim and quickly read book contains eleven essays by twelve esteemed writers talking about their individual love stories around reading. It was a little like stepping back into an English Lit class at University nearly 50 years ago, but, really, a great pleasure to have the rich experiences and rewards of books and reading reiterated in a time when the electronic media would sometime make "old school" literature and literary pursuits seem outdated and without value in a changing world. Not so.

Since reading this book my husband has pitched to our younger grandchild (11 years old) that we would like to read to her at least weekly. Online of course, since she lives in another province. She was highly receptive, even thrilled, and suggested that our reading aloud to her would be "soothing", which was not exactly the descriptor we expected, but given her very stressful young life, the word is fitting. She even suggested a couple of her favorite books. Her teen sister has not returned our call yet-- she might be a harder sell.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

Saw this book in a library and decided to read it. Ten essays by a variety of authors and academics discussing their love of reading and how it is essential. Preaching a bit to the converted with me.
Where I live I see the value of libraries in communities and how that is slowly being eroded away. It’s a shame some of the Internet billionaires of today emulate the past ones who built and set up libraries in the past.

What was interesting is how the essays mentioned their favorite poems, books, authors and how it allowed them new vistas. Books can be entertaining, inspirational, educational, instructional and also frustrating. The danger we have is the dumbing down of people via the media, television, social media where people get trapped in their own echo chamber thanks to the wonder of algorithms. Books can also do that but do require concentration instead of instant information gratification we get from the internet.

One of the best decisions we ever made was to get rid of our television. I sometimes watch it at friends places and come away not missing it. I know that I do read rubbish sometimes but mostly I like to think it is quality such as the classics. It is also true that at different times of your life some literature is more interesting and appealing. Overall this book of essays made me appreciate reading more.

[Florencia Scarpatti · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked it. Essays about reading. It tells me nothing I don t know about the importance of it but sometimes is nice to read perceptions from other people that thinks literature is a way of life.
One quote: This is what books - the best books - give us: a lifeline, a reason to believe, a way to breathe more freely".

[Kusaimamekirai · Rating 4 out of 5]

While this anthology/ode to the pleasures of reading suffers occasionally from some dry essays about how reading affects certain regions in our brain as well as some somewhat irresponsible, off the cuff and unsupported “science”(one such claim from Jeanette Winterson is that: like “Attention Deficit Disorder is not a disease; it is a consequence of not reading”. How she arrives at this claim is never explored but if her goal was to stop me in my tracks, well done), these are more than offset however by the beautiful essays by Zadie Smith on the place of libraries in communities (as a side note, I’d read anything written by Zadie Smith on this topic. Just incredible) and by Mark Haddon whose suggestion that it’s not only ok to hate some books and authors but rather that this hate is its own kind of love:

“Indeed, we forget sometimes that a vital part of loving literature is hating certain books and certain writers, just as hating Spurs is an important part of supporting Arsenal; and the embarrassing truth is that I have probably got far more satisfaction out of trying to persuade friends that The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is a tawdry piece of misogynistic torture porn than I have out of discussing the reasons why Wolf Hall is a masterpiece.”

Like Haddon, I will always hate Spurs and while I actually quite like “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” if we’re talking Han King’s execrable novel “The Vegetarian” than yes, I’m 100% on board. I don’t think I’ve hated a novel like this that was universally acclaimed since I was in junior high school and forced to read “Island of the Blue Dolphin”. Yes, I still remember and hold a grudge against my teacher for making me read it. That after my constant criticism go it she later let me write book reports from books of my own choosing has nothing to do with this review but shout out to Mrs. Z for that!

One criticism I’ve seen in some reviews of this book however is that most of the writers here seem to believe that reading on an e-reader is not a legitimate way to consume a book. While I tend to agree that e-readers that take you out of the story via hyperlinked videos, web links, and other information meant to “enhance” your reading experience are detrimental to the quietness and calm that is what makes reading special, reading a book on a screen without any of those bells and whistles is as much of a book as anything printed on a page. We could just as easily imagine this same debate when parchment came into being and people were probably arguing that anything not printed on a tortoise shell isn’t real literature.
Words, as many of the essayists here eloquently attest to, are free of the restraints of their medium. Spoken, written on a clam shell, parchment, piece of paper or screen, what matters is how those words engage us and allow us to leave behind the noisiness and chaos of the world for a moment.
Even if you come only for the Zadie Smith and Mark Haddon essays, there are some fantastic recommendations for further reading here as well. Overall a short, and pleasant diversion.

[Fatma Burçak · Rating 4 out of 5]

Okumak, kitaplar, okur olmak üzerine düşüncelerini, deneyimlerini, duygusal yolculuklarını ve okumanın insan üzerindeki fiziksel ve psikolojik etkilerini anlattıkları makalelerinde yazarlar kendi okuma maceralarından yola çıkarak bir de okuma listesi sunuyor.
Bu kitabı bir çırpıda ve çok keyif alarak okudum. İyi okur olmanın kendi yaşamım üzerindeki bildiğim etkilerini bir kez daha hatırlarken, farkında olmadıklarımın da farkına vardım.
İşte sizi cezbedecek birkaç alıntı:
"Bir kitap bizimle öyle güçlü bir şekilde konuşur ki onun özel olarak bize ait olduğunu düşünürüz, hatta sadece bizim için var olduğunu. Tanıştığımız insanların da üzerimizde bazen böyle etkileri olur. Gözlerimizin içine bakıp dingin ve samimi bir sesle konuşurlar ve başka birine de aynını yapmadan önce onlar için eşsiz bir öneme sahip olduğumuzu düşündürürler. Gerçek hayatta bu tip insanlara çapkın deriz. İyi kitaplar da böyledir, yalnızca bize ait gibi dururlar, ancak aslında herkese aittirler."
-Blake Morrison

"Hayat yanlış kitaplar için çok kısadır, hatta doğru kitapları yanlış zamanda okumak için bile."
-Tim Parks

"Zihin bir kitabın içine girip yazarına eşlik ederek istediği yerde dolaşabilir. Böylesi bir dolaşma özgürlüğü bedenin ve aklın ikisinin de kısıtlanmayla baş edemeyeceğini hatırlatır. Ve eğer beden kısıtlanmayla baş etmek zorundaysa serbestçe dolaşmayı bilen bir akıldan daha iyi ne olabilir ki."
-Jeanette Winterson