I begin with an apology, to my high school English teachers and college professors:

I wish I had read your assigned materials more carefully. Or at all.

But unfortunately, I valued having a good time more than learning.

And it came back to haunt me, when as I raised a family and worked a career, I would often lament having not read the great books – if only I had the time!  

Reading is a curious thing – while it is an intelligent, self-improving pursuit, I was once advised to remove it from the Hobbies/Interests portion of my resume because it would portray me as a “non-action” person. But that made some interviews tricky, when you ran into an avid sky diver or mountain climber who would press you for details on your ‘hobbies’. But I was able to fake my way through how to start a food bank.

But I blame our educational system for some of my poor reading habits. I – like many I would guess – would leave assigned readings to the last possible moment, requiring me to skim the material and/or skip entire chapters – which led to some awkward moments. Unfortunately, I skipped the wrong chapter in the “Grapes of Wrath”, and commented how great it was that Tom Joad was moving to California for a job at Google. I was later embarrassed when I got confused about who had won the Civil War during a “Gone with the Wind” discussion.

And rushed work led to other complications. A college friend could compose papers on the typewriter; when once asked what his paper was about, he replied “I don’t know, I’m only on page 12”.  I wasn’t so adroit, and would have to ask friends for help typing my papers. In return, they were allowed to type the occasional bit of free form content. One History paper thus contained Bolshevik threats, and another a ransom note. As neither professor responded, they might have had the same poor reading habits, or perhaps matched my indifference to the content.

I don’t think I’m alone, though. Cliff Notes was a serious enabler to skimmers/late preparers, but if you read those carefully, it would make you believe the preparers hadn’t read the entire book carefully – or weren’t happy with the ending. But I was relieved to learn that the Mockingbird had actually been nursed back to health…

I think many of the Book Clubs that form are a nod to “historical reading regret”, as adults try and catch up and give the impression that they are literate. We’ve all been in book clubs with “that person” who moderates the discussion as if they have “the correct answer”. Some clubs ‘cut out the middle man’ and assign the Cliff Notes version of famous novels. And how much of our discussion time do we spend in trying to figure out who hasn’t read the book…

All of this is reflected in our current political discourse, as people half- listen, and half-read, with their “what I believe eyes and ears” to TV and print content that supports their current view. How often has a friend cited the “balanced and accurate coverage” of Fox News and/or CNN? We now live in an age where it is OK to talk politics – – with someone you agree with.

The current unfortunate example, is our national (and Corporate) debate of legislation that very few people appear to have read, but are convinced they are qualified to lecture on.

On that note, I’m out. I have to go watch “The Right Stuff” to get ready for a Book Club meeting. Wonder if it’s also available as a comic book?

ENHANCE YOUR READING ENJOYMENT, PAIR THIS POST WITH THESE SONGS:

So Much Trouble   Matt Pond PA

“I don’t think I want to think about it”

The New Year      Death Cab for Cutie

“I wish the World was flat like the old days, And you could travel just by folding a map”

The Book of You   Belle and Sebastian

“And I would write a different story, A new final Act. I don’t need the drama, But I would never write you out”

Everyday I write the Book  Elvis Costello

“Don’t tell me you don’t know the difference between a lover and a fighter,

With my pen and my electric typewriter, Even in a perfect world where everyone was equal,

I’d still own the film rights and be working on the sequel”

Long Strange Golden Road   The Waterboys

“I’m just a bunch of words in pants. And most of those are fiction”