Re-Kindle-ing old habits
I just finished reading George R R Martin's first novel in the Song of Ice and Fire series, A Game of Thrones, the other night - and I'm about 6 chapters into Book 2, A Clash of Kings, as I write this. Wow, what spectacular, exciting fantasy writing. Vivid, compelling characters (is anyone cooler than Tyrion Lannister?), intriguing, edge-of-your-seat plotting, and best of all, superb use of language. I feel a tinge of regret at not having read these novels earlier (especially since the announcement of the HBO series adaptation makes it feel a bit bandwagon-jumpy of me). I remember when I re-read the Lord of the Rings before the first Peter Jackson film was released, I wanted to go right to another epic fantasy story, and a friend told me about Martin's Song and Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time. I went with WoT and was pretty disappointed with it, which ended my epic fantasy lust fairly quickly (Jordan fans take heart, my girlfriend at the time picked up The Eye of the World when I set it down and promptly consumed the entire series with gusto. One reader lost, but another gained). No doubt if I had made the other choice I would be one of the numerous impatient throng, clammering for the completion of A Dance with Dragons.
But this blog post isn't about A Song of Ice and Fire.
I also read the last half of A Game of Thrones on my brand new Kindle, a delightful birthday gift from my buddies and co-hosts over at the Totally Rad Show (thanks, fellas!) - and really grew to love the experience. I always thought the Kindle was a solution in search of a problem (what's wrong with books?), but having one now has made me a believer. I feel I'm reading quicker, easier, and - let's face it - cooler than I used to.
But this blog post isn't about the Kindle, either.
No, this blog post is about reading. Reading in general. As someone who happily makes his living talking about movies, tv, video games, and comics, I am struck once again by the narrative advantages of the novel. As much as I love those other artforms, no other medium can match the thrill, richness, or depth I experience while reading a great book.
I've come to the conclusion that I tend to be a cyclical guy by nature. I can get into something very heavily for a while, leave it for a time, and return to it later with as much (more?) enthusiasm, causing the cycle to repeat. Reading is a great example. I'll find myself an excellent book, fall in love with it, and spend hours on Amazon, planning out my next few reads. I'll actually take a break from the book I'm reading to get lost for a time in the (wonderfully) infinite loop of Amazon lists and recommendation pages, based on that book, to see all of the cool, previously undiscovered experiences that await me when I finish it. It is as if the joy in reading the current book creates a line-up of promises that I then use as incentive to finish it. "So excited to read Rothfuss' The Name of the Wind," I'm saying to myself right now, "but not until I've gotten through the four Song books."
Yet somewhere, somehow along the line, life seems to conspire to steal me away from the reading experience. I'll find myself not reading - worse, not wanting to read. One step in my chain of promises might be less than thrilling, and I fall out of the habit of reading.
But when the inevitable return happens - when I move along the cycle to the point (as I am now), where I rediscover the unmatched joys of losing myself in a great writer's words - I wonder why the hell it took me so long to get back into reading!
So... here, at long last, is really what this blog post is about: This blog post is a reminder to myself to pick up a book. Hopefully, when that down-cycle in my reading pattern inevitably comes to pass, I'll find myself editing this blog page, and I'll glance down a bit and see what I wrote here, and maybe, just maybe, I'll make some time to pick up a book, and cut that "not-reading" part of the cycle a bit shorter.
And maybe you're in your down-cycle, too. Maybe you haven't read anything great in a while. Maybe seeing this post can have the same effect on you. I'd love to see some great recommendations of excellent reads down in the comment section, something to inspire me or another reader to try something new. To grab a book. Because, damn, there really is nothing better.
Oh, and no spoilers for Song, please!! I'm reading as fast as I can!
Saturday, August 22, 2009 at 11:22PM
Reader Comments (65)
I totally agree with you but I think it is like that with most in life... Perhaps more to a degree all the stuff that takes a bit longer to do. You soon forget the great feeling you had while reading and only remember it again the next time you sit down to read.
Personally I am having a hard time reading anything other than school stuff, since I got so much and I feel bad when ever I read something that is not for my education hehe. That is why I love being on vacation, like now - I will eat, drink and talk while going through one fantasy or crime book after the other!
I think it is all about priorities and since most of us use the computer for our jobs as well we do not think of it as free time when we are at home, where we could replace that time consumption with a book...
Take care and glad you are doing blog posts again - keep it up.
I can't say I have the same problem Jeff, I was fairly late coming to books though, I only really started reading a lot when I was 13, but now I always have a book on the go and read every day. At the moment I'm reading Robert Rodriguez's guide to film making, "Rebel without a Crew". As a young aspiring film-maker he's really inspiring. Usually though I am fantasy through and through, generally if a book doesn't have magic in it, I cannot read it. My favourite books of all come from a masterful author called Raymond E. Feist. The first book is Magician, which is a masterpiece. He has now written loads of books, and the series will end in a few years with more than 30. If there is only one book you read this year, please make it Magician (because it will make you read the rest of his books).
I hope you're well Jeff and that you find joy in reading for ever,
Stu.
A few years back I hated reading books. I didn't see the point, but then after hearing my friend go on and on about harry potter I finally caved and asked my sister if I could get Order of the phoenix as a christmas gift. After reading it I was "enlightened" and then bought the 6th and then 7th book and started reading backwards 5,6,7....then 5,4,3,2,1. I know confusing :) After Harry potter I started on Eragon, and I highly recommend it! All 3 books are amazing and I am still waiting on the fourth and last book in the series! And last week I finished LOTR Fellowship of the ring, love the book and the way J.R.R. Tolkien describes world!
ok...i just posted a comment and it says its from stuscrace....but thats not me! is something wrong with your blog?
MY comment!! not Stuscrace!
A few years back I hated reading books. I didn't see the point, but then after hearing my friend go on and on about harry potter I finally caved and asked my sister if I could get Order of the phoenix as a christmas gift. After reading it I was "enlightened" and then bought the 6th and then 7th book and started reading backwards 5,6,7....then 5,4,3,2,1. I know confusing :) After Harry potter I started on Eragon, and I highly recommend it! All 3 books are amazing and I am still waiting on the fourth and last book in the series! And last week I finished LOTR Fellowship of the ring, love the book and the way J.R.R. Tolkien describes world!
WTH?!?! My post above isn't at all what I typed! What happened?
Glad to hear you're reading Jeff.
I'll second Matthew and say the Sword of Truth series by Terry Goodkind is a definite must read. Outside of the fantasy genre, check out Malcolm Gladwell's books, The Tipping Point, Blink and his most recent, Outliers. They'll change the way you think about the world. To give you an idea of what he's all about, Malcolm has a TED talk available online here (http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/malcolm_gladwell_on_spaghetti_sauce.html). Definitely worth your time. Love the show and the blog. Keep them coming.
Ok sorry to spam the comment section here but Marcus is right it seems like your blog is posting peoples comments as the person who posted before them. It's getting kind of confusing.
I can't agree more - first on finding the time to read and then wondering what took me so long. Secondly, I'm at the same point in A Clash of Kings (here is the proof! http://twitter.com/icu/status/3440352109) and I am completely wrapped up in it and yes, Tyrion rocks. The secret for me (it would seem) is finding the right book. I've started and gave up on too many as of late, but I all in on these works of awesomeness.
Jeff great post!!! I find myself being the typical procrastinating reader. I constantly say I am going to read a book but I'm always to "busy" to start. But once I do start I can't put it down. I am huge fan of the "Odd Thomas" series. The first book of that series is the one that got me on the reading kick I am on right not.
I love what you said about the Kindle and how you thought it was a solution looking for a problem. How do you feel about audiobooks? Do you prefer reading and using your minds voice or having a performer's voice? Which provides a richer experence? I personally have never tried audiobooks yet but Leo Laporte is eventually gonna get me to crossover to Audible.
Stay Rad,
Damien
I'm with Nikki. I am currently reading "Blink" by Gladwell. It is an awesome book but ever since I got into gaming, I have been putting reading on the wayside. Even magnetic books like Blink.
I am seriously considering getting a Kindle. There are so many conversion stories out there, "I would never own one...until I got one, and gosh is it great". I am a heavy reader that is currently easily distracted with work, life...stuff.
I completely agree with you, reflecting on my actions over the last few years I see a definite oscillation in what activities I pursue. Fortunately, right now I am on an uptrend in my reading; unfortunately, my progression is being damped by outside forces, such as school, research and life in general. This results in my anticipation of reading a lot and therefore buying a lot of books, but not having the time to read them. Thanks for this post, I feel it may cause me to reflect some more and re-prioritize my actions.
Also, anyone looking for a good non-fiction book, I suggest "Skunk Works." Sort of an autobiographical book on one of the head engineers at Lockheed. The book is primarily for engineers, but written so that anyone can follow. Just an amazing story about the aviation industry and what it is like to work in, funny as well.
I completely agree with you on this. I had the same thing happen to me, and was actually reinspired last year. I play alot of WoW, but you can't beat a good book.
When i got back into reading i was looking for some cool fantasy and i ended up picking up the R.A. Salvatore novels because they were being re-released. The Drizzt Do'Urden series was amazing, i think i dropped everything i was doing just to finish the series. He writes some of the best fights sequences. I even got my dad into reading the whole series, and it gave us something really cool to talk about.
Now that i am done with that series i am still on the look out for good fantasy books. Im finishing the 3rd book in the Eregon series and i think it will be off to Terry Goodkind's sword of truth series after that.
Now i need to get a kindle, i agree that good recommendations on Amazon really inspire me to move onto the next series.
~Corey
great post, man..and nice blog!
I have read the the first four GRRM books 2-3 each (I would reread the series right before a new one came out) but I can also recommend the VERY good audiobook versions of it. Great English actor reads the first three books, it's incredible..
have fun--these are GREAT books..
I'd like to also mention that I've recently got very much back into reading by reading off my phone's screen. e-ink is preferable, of course, but the fact that it is with me and my current page can be called up on my screen in 5 seconds just makes it so convenient and always available I find myself reading every spare moment. I read with a black background and grey text which is fine on my eyes and adjusting the text size is fine for me. I can see the appeal of the kindle, but I don't see myself carrying it around with me always. I'd sooner carry around a paperback tbh.
I'd love to try one out but the price of entry is too high for this chump.
Ironically, I just started reading (finished the last 20 pages of Enders Game and started Speaker of the Dead) again yesterday and am working on continuing to read without quitting it again. I seem to always get caught up in serialized television because it doesn't require as much work out of me...(I also think it has something to do with the fact that serialized TV shows, though a long story like a book, also have a short story the ends each episode, giving me a sense of finishing something, before starting again; but a book requires me to go from start to finish before feeling completely accomplished, since many times the chapters aren't made to give one satisfaction on finishing each chapter)
So anyway, I can't say that you've inspired me to start reading again, but I can tell you that I too feel proud and glad that I started reading again (or is it just me thats proud?)!
Oh yeah, and I read not too long ago on Lifehacker that if you mouth "1 2 3" over and over as you read, it helps you better comprehend what you're reading. Apparently most people use their larynx to physically read what they're seeing and it keeps you from comprehending as much as you could be. I have to say that it's actually helping me.
It's too bad you didn't get into WoT, it's one of my favorites personally. I also love A Song of Ice and Fire and can't wait for the next to come out. I would definitely agree with the "Dune" suggestion especially since you like A Song of Ice and Fire so much. They both really have a lot of deep dialog and political intrigue. My own suggestion would be the His Dark Materials series by Phillip Pullman. Don't know if you checked it out after you reviewed The Golden Compass but if you have not then you really should. It's so much deeper and cooler than the movie makes it even though I actually enjoyed the movie.
I also grew up reading and it had a huge place in my life. I don't even remember when I stopped reading, it just happened and I never picked it back up again. I had so many games and TV show's to watch I just never made the time for reading. I managed to get back into it and find myself totally addicted to reading.
I have noticed that when I am reading good books I am more psyched to continue, also when I read a book that does not pull me in...I tend to read a bit less voraciously, with enough so-so books in a row I tend to be less apt to grab the next book and it opens up my schedule a bit for TV and games to sneak back in. Finding the balance is tough because I love entertainment in general and don't want to spend all my time on one form of it, yet I tend to do that anyway.
I have always been a sci-fi/fantasy reader. I never really gave any other genres a fair shake. My recent reading jag was pushed into high gear thanks to the Kindle and the ease of acquiring books along with my surprising preference for reading on the kindle vs real books. I wound up discovering that I like mysteries and other genres more than I ever would have guessed. The most surprising discovery for me was getting semi-fooled into reading a quasi-romance series and having it turn into one of my favorites. Nora Roberts wrote a series called the "In Death" series under the pen name "J.D. Robb". It is a crime drama set in the not too distant future and is a great world that evolves and grows following a homicide cop. There is some romance in there too, but it is not too over the top so I can deal with it. I can safely say I would have never tried that series without the kindle and being more open to various types of books.
I don't want to fall out of the reading habit again so I am thinking about re-reading a book I know is awesome every time I get a couple of duds in a row. I totally feel like there is a cycle and I don't want it to stretch to years without reading ever again.
I completely agree with whole cycle thing with reading. I love to read and when I get into a book it is just as if not more enjoyable than watching a good movie or playing a good video game. When I get into a good book I prefer to read large chunks of it at a time and often get through a book in a couple days, and I dislike just reading a few pages here or there. I really wish I could get through more books because I have a gigantic list of books that I would like to get to, but there are many other distractions in the form of work, school, and other forms of entertainment that it is hard to get back into the cycle of reading despite enjoying it so much.
I would like to start through the Harry Potter series again (I've read the first 5 twice and last 2 once) I know once I start I won't be able to stop until I get through them, so hopefully I can find enough free time to start on them.
I'll have to check out the Song of Ice and Fire series. It looks like a good series.
Maybe I would read more if I get a kindle and have the ability to carry all my books around with me.