Last week I jokingly published something here pleading for help, since I find myself submerged every day, incited to open and read daily email updates from the New York Times, keep up with numerous enjoyable online blogs, and not to mention the constant feed from YouTube. Together, these represent hours of online reading or viewing, which keep me like so many others from just sitting down with a real book.
There was a lot of reaction, including some useful pointers, and there were also private messages, proving to me that many of us are, simply put, in the same boat (I am subscribed to five or six online newspapers and magazines, all with email reminders to open another article). Surprisingly, I received even more recommendations of books to add to my already overflowing must-read list. Maybe they didn’t get the memo!
My dear friend Craig just sent me a most anticipated reply. If you have the good fortune to know the man, as I have since at least the days of Prohibition, you know he’s always up on current events, from politics to Hollywood (not to mention opera and song). But he’s also read just about everything. Because of his insatiable curiosity and Epicurean taste, you get that feeling that he always knows a lot more than you do, which is a marvelous and most endearing fault. Following Craig’s comments in the next paragraph, I’ll reprint here the publication of last week with lots of helpful insight. And I’m still open to more of your pointers on How To Manage Time and Read…
“Dear Greg,
I’ve been giving this question a lot of thought before getting back to you. I’m afraid the answer is going to be brief and perhaps a bit boring. I make no special attempts or preparations to read. Books are simply everywhere in my apartment, as you so well know. On the sofa, on tables between the arm chairs. On the dining room table on often on kitchen counter tops as well. On both night tables by the bed as well as on the bed. Books are stacked on the floor. On the piano. The bookshelves are triple stacked. There is never a book out of reach and I am always reaching. Three or four books are always currently being read, while perhaps ten a day are picked up for cross reference. No special chair is needed. Silence is preferred. I keep my phone signal on because some older friends may need me. It’s as simple as that. I think I started this process when I was about 4 years old, thanks to my mother (who encouraged my reading but abhorred my hoarding) and it’s been going on for 63 years now. Thanks for asking.”
Me
“Wonderful. Thanks. You read so much online, newspapers etc, not to mention sharing; how in your schedule do you tune that virtual stuff out, and say ‘Enough of that, back to my books?’”
Craig
“Online time and deciding what to share actually only amounts to 30-40 minutes daily. Not so much. I don’t pay that much attention to it. And while much of my periodical and newspaper reading used to be held in my hands, I can skim and center in at will on line.”
This is from Steven Eldrich, who in 2019 alone has read nearly 100 books (he’s a fabulous pianist and coach I encountered at the Met, and with whom I savored a quite memorable dinner chez Craig Rutenberg):
“I read mostly at night, in my comfy chair, with phone and computer turned off. I tend to read in long sessions, usually two hours or more. Sometimes I set a kitchen timer for one hour, during which I do not look at the clock. That is my sacred hour to be with my book and me. I also tend to carry my book around town with me, to read on the subway, in a doctor’s waiting room. The other thing is that I watch ZERO TV. Most people who say they want to read more but don’t find the time tend to watch a lot of TV. Some people like to read books. I LOVE to read books, and I cannot stand watching TV. It’s simple. There are so many great and important books I still wish to read, I am running out of time!
PS: I also log my reading onto Goodreads, which keeps constant track of where I am in a book, and lists and shelves all the books I read.
My other secret is that I live alone, and reading is the most solitary pursuit. I have been like this my entire life. As a teenager I loved to read in my room all the time, I am just used to it!”
From Eduardo Tello (Perhaps the most widely cultivated person I could ever expect to meet, and a true defender of bel canto. That was our first connection, via Facebook, before we met in New York last year):
“I was read children’s books from the beginning. I recruited everybody in the house to read to me, and it was a huge pleasure, when I learnt how to read at age 6, to read all those beloved stories all over again. There were books in the house, of course, and my parents bought my sister & me appropriate books to our age. We devoured them all. We read for pleasure and television never could rival the pure, unadulterated involvement & delight of a congenial book, the kind of book one hates to see come to an end.
It has nothing to do with resolutions or will power or a sense of duty. It’s all related to PLEASURE. Discover the books that you enjoy, and enjoy whatever you like.”
From Linda Hitchcock (A true bibliophile. We started by exchanging recipes to on Messenger. Go figure.) I have condensed her generous comments here.
“There are no secrets to reading. If you have a book with you, you will inevitably read. Some of us are voracious readers while others don’t see the point of owning books and haven’t picked one up since they completed their formal education. The key to completing any book is to find something you are interested in or want to read. Trust your instincts. The hottest best seller may be absolute crap. Wander through a library or bookstore, new or used, and see what jumps into your hands. Ask librarians, book sellers or friends for recommendations.
If an entire book seems daunting, read a poem or short story. Project Gutenberg has thousands of out-of-copyright classics and old books in many languages that can be downloaded for free. The key is to begin. If you dislike the book or find it uninteresting, don’t feel obligated to complete it no matter who has recommended it and don’t feel guilty. Start another, keep reading. Always have reading material with you! I can read anywhere but prefer to read on the bed with pillows propped behind me. I do read an average of over 250 books per year and yes, I naturally can speed read. We both prefer to read physical books but I do also read eBooks on my computer. Neither of us has a smart phone and I am uncomfortable with the page size on Kindles or Nooks. I have the fortunate ability to be able to slip into a story and block out sound and distractions. And I was fortunate to have parents who loved to read and can’t really recall a time when I didn’t have a book in my hand. My advice is download or pick up a book, start reading and either finish or not.»
Big thanks again for taking the time to Linda, Steven, and Eduardo!
About the picture: the conception of me reading messages on the phone while trying to read ‘Bel-ami’ by Guy de Maupassant was created by Jacques Chuilon. What a fabulous book, by the way. Merci, Jacques!