Reading is a chore?

[Lisbeth]

I blame it mostly on school forcing me to read literary garbage like To Kill a Mockingbird.

I know what you're trying to say.  But, I kinda, sorta take slight offense (on behalf of Ms. Lee!) at that comment.

You didn't enjoy that book.  Which is perfectly fine.  But, describing it as "literary garbage" is exactly my point earlier in the thread.  Not everyone likes the same genre of literature.  What appeals to you may not appeal to me.  Everyone needs to find their own niche in order to love books.  No book should ever be described as "garbage" because it discourages those who may love that book or genre from realizing that love.  Everyone should be encouraged to find the kind of book or story that really helps them get lost in the book.

Sorry!  Not trying to pick on your post.  That one phrase just got to me. Didn't quite seem needed to make the point!

Thanks, Dotty.

To Kill A Mockingbird happens to be one of my favorite books.  I don't expect everyone to like the same things I like, but to call something "garbage" can be hurtful to those who do like it.

[rolld20]

Heh, when I was growing up, my mom frequently had to frisk me for books to make sure I wasn't reading at inappropriate events (like church!  ).

I remember my English teacher during my senior year of high school.  We were reading something by Kafka, and he compared it to "Metamorphasis".  The next week, I made a comment about his comparison. 
"Oh!  You *read* Metamorphasis?" he asked, impressed. 
"Well, yes, it sounded interesting."
After that, I could do no wrong in that class.     Good for me, but sad that my willingness to do non-manditory reading was so unusual.

[sammycat]

I LOVE to read but often hated the reading requirements for English at school for the same reason a lot of posters have stated - the dissecting of the book can take away the pleasure of simply reading for the sake of it.

I'm another one who will read anything anytime - papers, magazine, food boxes, browsing through reference books (and now my 6 year old likes to do that too ).  I had an interview this week with my older son's teacher.  In the earlier grades he really wasn't interested in reading but now he gets into trouble (sort of!) for rushing through his work so that he can read a book that he'll put on his lap out of sight of the teacher.  Can't win!

Edited to add:  My husband isn't a reader at all.  Whereas I can't go anywhere without at least a magazine to read, he can sit on a 13 hour flight from Sydney to LAX without even looking at the inflight magazine.  On the other hand, I take so many books and magazines on the flights with me I'm surprised my hand luggage isn't charged extra for being overweight LOL.

[fklwmn]

Well, one thing that I will say ... reading for school was a chore for me despite the fact that I am a very avid reader (I read through my town's library--about equivalent to a branch library in a city system--by age 17, and I mean I read everything in the library except the reference books).

Then I started going upstairs.  They wouldn't let me check out any books because all I had was a kids library card, so I would sit there for hours everyday reading.  Again, I had to "prove" to the librarian that I was reading the books and that I did understand them. 

Oooohhh... this annoys me to no end. when my son was in second grade he got hooked on reading with the Harry Potter series. Once he'd read through the books we'd bought him he wanted to check out similar books at school. They wouldn't let him b/c second graders were not allowed to check out chapter books!

the librarian KNEW my son, knew he had been reading the Harry Potter series, and STILL would not let him check out chapter books. grrrrr... I had to go into the school to get them to allow an exception for him. I was just thinking.. you're the school librarian... shoulsdn't you be ENCOURAGING him to read at his level? *sigh*

[fklwmn]

Heh, when I was growing up, my mom frequently had to frisk me for books to make sure I wasn't reading at inappropriate events (like church!  ).

Ha! even now, my SINGLE requirement for a purse is: Is it big enough to hold a book AND my wallet? 

[StuckInCube]

I also was an avid reader at a young age. I had a mom who encouraged me to read as much as I wanted, often helping me pick out books, etc...I, too, read through the children's library at a very young age. The librarians were great, tho, and I was allowed to have a card to the adult library at 10 years old! However, my mom had to approve my selections so I wasn't reading any of those smutty romance novels.

I remember teachers recognizing my love of reading and making special provisions for me. For example, if we had to do a book report, the teachers would often give me a list of books they thought I would like and were more advanced than what everyone else was reading. I gobbled them up because I thought they were a challenge, and I appreciated the teachers encouraged my reading habits.

I'm 31 yrs old now and haven't been to my local library since I was in high school as I moved away once I went to college. My best friend still freqents the library, and the librarians still remember me and ask if I still read. She said they seemed so happy to hear that I still read as much as I can without someone twisting my arm.

One bad memory, tho, is being made fun of constantly for reading. Other kids would call me names, steal my books, and so on...Where I grew up, sports was king, and if you didn't play a ton you were considered to be lesser than. Even my family had a "quiet" word with mom, telling her they thought I read too much and that it was going to hurt me later because I didn't play enough sports (I played softball). My mom replied that in her opinion I would go a lot further in life with a background in extensive reading that teaches everything from critical thinking to firing the imagination than I would playing high school volleyball. They just shook their heads sadly, convinced I was ruining my life. Yep, I ruined it so much I got a bachelors and master's in aerospace engineering!! Poor me...

[LadyJaneinMD]

My mother used to kick us outside to go play and do something besides read endlessly all summer, so I'd take my books with me and find an accomodating tree, and continue reading.  It was my great escape as a child.  Still is, a lot of the time.
It really thrills me to see my nieces not only reading, but writing, too.

[Venus193]

...However, my mom had to approve my selections so I wasn't reading any of those smutty romance novels.

I dearly hope your opinion of those books and those who read them isn't still that.

...Where I grew up, sports was king, and if you didn't play a ton you were considered to be lesser than. Even my family had a "quiet" word with mom, telling her they thought I read too much and that it was going to hurt me later because I didn't play enough sports (I played softball). My mom replied that in her opinion I would go a lot further in life with a background in extensive reading that teaches everything from critical thinking to firing the imagination than I would playing high school volleyball. They just shook their heads sadly, convinced I was ruining my life. Yep, I ruined it so much I got a bachelors and master's in aerospace engineering!! Poor me...

I guess I was luckier.  My school didn't have a football team because there was no available practice field for one.  Being non-athletic was not a sin in my high school and most of my friends were in the top 10% academically.  Our valedictorian had a wicked sense of humor and he and I were among the ringleaders of a lot of joking in a lit class we were in together in college.

[HogwartsAlum]

When I was in 8th grade reading class, I upset the entire class during one of those boring "you can only read the assigned chapters" sessions.  I had read the whole book quicky and liked it ok.  Summer of my German Soldier, FYI.  The teacher wanted up to speculate if a marriage would occur in the future.  I blurted out,"but _________DIES!" and the entire class sent me looks of dismay. 
......

And to whomever said they had books in every room except the bathroom, you are missing a great hide-out!  That was where I escaped my brothers and read for hours.  Now, as a mommy, I only keep quick reads in the bathroom, but I do have a little bookshelf in there!  :

Oh I love that book, Summer of My German Soldier.  I was ecstatic when I found a sequel, Morning is a Long Time Coming. 

I used to do that too - read ahead.  The teacher would have to practically gag me to keep me quiet during a discussion because I would be like Horshack, "OOH! OOH! OOH! I KNOW!!!"

And I always read under the covers with a flashlight, but I would also go in the bathroom and lock the door and read.  When my parents were like, "What are you doing?" I would always tell them I was going.  Of course when they came back an hour later and I was still in there, I was kind of busted!

[Verloona Ti]

Random personal notes:

Have you ever noticed that if you're reading a book or a magazine, people will come up and interrupt you, sometimes with that air that says they know they're doing you a favor , because they know anyone who's reading must be bored as reading isn't something one does for enjoyment?

People who would be very apologetic about interrupting people watching a DVD think nothing of interrupting a reader. Reading isn't fun-reading is boring-a person who's reading will be grateful to be offered  something else to do.

When my DH was still alive, we had multiple book cases in our living room. One set held my 2000+ books. The other set held his 500 VHS tapes. And pretty much everyone who came by said, "Wow, you sure have  a lot of movies!"

I started keeping a log of my reading in January 1986. I did this because I grew weary of wanting to reread something, and having no idea as to the title or author. Sometimes I could remember what I read so clearly I could identify the font size, the typeset, and the kind of paper used, even the passage's placement on the page-but not the author and title. In the 20 years since I started the log, it's worked pretty well : I'd say about 95% of the time, a referral to it will jog my memory as to the book I want to reread.The log lists books by month and year, and I mark whether it's fiction or nonfiction, if it's the first time I read the book, and where I got the book (what library it came from or if I own it).  I average 12 books a month, and I hit the 4000 mark in October.

Early reader here , too. I was tested in 4th grade, and at that time the testers said my reading comprehension level was that of the average college junior. Pretty cool! And if I finished a test or whatever early, and I was sitting reading quietly, I'd be the one the teacher would ask if I wanted to "help" her grade papers or whatever, instead of the kids who were playing or conversing. After all, I MUST be bored, or I wouldn't be doing something as dull as reading a nonassigned book. "Pleasure reading"-what's that?

[Venus193]

Have you ever noticed that if you're reading a book or a magazine, people will come up and interrupt you, sometimes with that air that says they know they're doing you a favor , because they know anyone who's reading must be bored as reading isn't something one does for enjoyment?

This always gets me. 

About 8 years ago I was a panelist on Sally Jesse Raphael's program about romance novels.  I knew the staff of Romantic Times magazine and because I had access to syndicated research on the subject I functioned as their spin doctor.  My research indicated that most romance readers have at least some education past high school, are white-collar employed, and married.  So much for the idea that they are semi-literate and lovelorn.

My then-boss had a good friend who absolutely refused to believe this.  I quoted the sources and she said "Then, the research is wrong! Only trailer trash reads those books."  My rejoinder, which shut her up in a second, was this:  Uneducated people are unlikely to read for pleasure because there are too many easier ways to entertain themselves.

So, whatever you enjoy reading, keep in mind that people who think you are wasting your time by reading at all are likely to be far less educated than you are. 

[Xanthia, Maker of fine Tin-foil hats since 2007]

This always gets me. 

About 8 years ago I was a panelist on Sally Jesse Raphael's program about romance novels.  I knew the staff of Romantic Times magazine and because I had access to syndicated research on the subject I functioned as their spin doctor.  My research indicated that most romance readers have at least some education past high school, are white-collar employed, and married.  So much for the idea that they are semi-literate and lovelorn.

My then-boss had a good friend who absolutely refused to believe this.  I quoted the sources and she said "Then, the research is wrong! Only trailer trash reads those books."  My rejoinder, which shut her up in a second, was this:  Uneducated people are unlikely to read for pleasure because there are too many easier ways to entertain themselves.

So, whatever you enjoy reading, keep in mind that people who think you are wasting your time by reading at all are likely to be far less educated than you are. 
[/quote]

I love to read, and I love to read romance novels. I have had people tell me I am rotting my brain by reading that crud.  Hey, I read a lot of stuff, sci-fi fantasy, religious, comedys, drama, classics...I love to read!! Sometime I want to read something that does not make my brain hurt, or want a nice distraction.  To some people it is OK to read LOTR  and learn Elvish (I like those as well) but romace is rot, I think fiction is fiction...but in my fiction people Kiss, LOL.  Jellybean likes when I read romances and will sometimes ask me to red him a passage.  I LOVE THAT MAN!

[Venus193]

In my observation, men who have a problem with women reading romance novels are scared to death they don't measure up to the men on the pages.  Other women are harder to figure out.

At the last convention I attended, one author talked about volunteering to help a women's shelter.  She drove a van picking up donated clothes and other things and when she pulled up in front of the designated location and the women came out to unload the van, the first thing they took was the box of romance novels donated by the author's cousin.  Because they represented hope.

[StuckInCube]

...However, my mom had to approve my selections so I wasn't reading any of those smutty romance novels.

I dearly hope your opinion of those books and those who read them isn't still that.

I meant that tongue-in-cheek. Sorry if it came across wrong. I don't think anyone who reads them is smutty!! Just at that age I wasn't allowed to even look at the covers. Mom wanted me to stay innocent as long as possible.

I have to admit I haven't read too many romance novels because I'm the type that doesn't have much romantic tendencies. Give me a good fantasy novel, and I'm enraptured. Read me a passage out of a romance novel and my eyes roll. Is it sad I'm more apt to believe in elves than ever meeting a man that will sweep me off my feet to exotic locations while giving me a back and foot rub?? I think I'm just much too cynical.

[Lady Vavasour]

Whereas I can't go anywhere without at least a magazine to read, he can sit on a 13 hour flight from Sydney to LAX without even looking at the inflight magazine. 

Aaarrrgh ... I would go insane! I even keep a book just for reading when I dry my hair in the morning because I can't stand to do nothing for so long!