Reading

Given the voracious approach to reading that several of my closest friends take, I am barely qualified to comment on this subject. But since this is my blog, here goes.
 
One of my hobbies has always been reading. True, it has often taken third chair to two other media-based passions - movies and music. But it has always been lurking around, a full partner in the entertainment triumvirate and in some ways the senior partner. I was into reading before I even knew about movies and music, as any bright-eyed second grader should be (of course, that was the 50s. Now it's as any preschooler should be). I had the fortunate circumstance of growing up in an era and a neighborhood (the west side of Bay City, Michigan) where all the important places in my life were a few blocks apart. My trusty one-speed was all I needed to circumnavigate the universe. My elementary, middle and high schools were each about eight blocks from my house. My father's combination grocery/short-order grill business, where in my early teens I scrubbed floors and washed dishes, was only ten blocks from home.

Standing kitty-corner from my father's store was the public library, and it was a hallowed place. It had several creaky floors, endless rows of imposing shelves, heavy wooden reading tables and chairs, and just about all the books there were, or so I believed at the time. My elementary school was only three blocks from the library, so there were frequent visits during class hours to return and select new books. And there was a story hour on Saturdays during which one of the librarians would read books aloud to age-appropriate groupings. I remember those experiences vividly, and believe they were not only the roots of my love for books but also the seeds of my subsequent interest in movies - hearing stories through the words and interpretations of others.

Over the years I have observed that the habits of readers vary a great deal. There are readers who can't get through the day without communing with the written word at least for a few minutes but most often for much longer than that. They frequent libraries, they mine used book stores, they hold Amazon Gold cards, they hole up for hours at a time with first-day purchases from favorite authors. I'm not one of these people. While I still consider myself a serious reader, I take books (like I do most things in life) at a more leisurely pace. My intent is not necessarily to get through a large volume of material, although that is certainly an admirable pursuit for those who claim it. Rather, I like to read at an even pace, digesting the material thoroughly, and getting to know the characters in the story. Or if it's a non-fiction work (which is about 50% of my reading life) integrating the new material with what I already know about the subject and perhaps re-forming opinions. I often find myself rereading an earlier portion of a book to clarify a later part and make sure I didn't miss something. As such I'm what might be called a plodder in the reading world, completing a couple of books a month as opposed to several in my circle who no doubt put away a couple a week, if not more. Still, I love it so.

My earliest memories of being caught up in the world of words was a series of stories about a character named Freddy the Pig by Walter R. Brooks that I started reading in third grade. They were really adventure stories set in a barnyard where, of course, the animals could all talk to each other.  But atypically for children's stories of the time, these animals could also talk to humans when they chose to (Wikipedia has a nice summary of the series, which is available again after decades of being out of print). Here's a typical rendering of Freddie.

Brooks and his stories based on the plausible impossible had quite an impression on me as I still favor the world of fantasy and science fiction in both books and movies. I'm a Trekker (as opposed to a Trekkie) sporting a number of Star Trek novels on my shelf along with a little Isaac Asimov, Michael Crichton, Frank Herbert, just about everything Stephen King ever wrote, and of course the holy grails of fantasy past and present - Tolkien's Lord of the Rings (including the Hobbit and the Silmarillion) and J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter series. Can't help it. They are fun.

Of course, I have developed a lot of other interests over the years, especially in the non-fiction category. For the past several years I have read a number of presidential biographies, with a focus on the early years of the republic. I've also dug into the post-revolution war years (Civil, WW1 and WW2) as I find it fascinating to study how leaders in crisis managed their affairs and what they really thought (or at least what their biographers think they thought). One fact that has leapt off the pages of the history I've read has been how little has changed since the First Continental Congress. The divisive nature of our society and the politics that give it voice seem to be as old as the nation itself. Oddly, I take some comfort in that.  We're still young as countries go, but we seem to have a measure of resilience.  It sort of puts the political immobility of recent years in perspective as an era that will pass, as others have.

But back to reading. One of my favorite times in reading was the period I lovingly remember as the Ladies' Book Club at work. I'm not sure how I came to think of it by that name as there were other men involved. Perhaps the first time I attended I was the only one. The important thing is that I enjoyed the book club a great deal as it pushed me out of my niches. As a result I was reading all manner of fiction and non-fiction, even poetry, that I would have never selected on my own. And it was great.

The very first book I read for the club is still one of my favorites - The Song of the Dodo by David Quammen. It's a treatise on how the world of nature really works. It is based on a study of the accelerated evolution that has taken place in a number of isolated environments around the world. It's a tough read, as the author alternates narration of his field experiences with not-so-plain-English explanations of the underlying science, but well worth the effort. I've ploughed through it twice so far and will undoubtedly do so again. I've never quite looked at Planet Earth the same way since reading Quammen.

Unfortunately, repeated reorganizations at work and finally the move to a virtual office environment five years ago shredded what was left of the Ladies' Book Club. I miss it. I miss the books and the discussions.

But I've forged ahead on my own, mostly back in my niches. Recent reads I enjoyed and would recommend are Stephen King's 11/22/63, a clever story about time travel wrapped around the JFK assassination, and As time Goes By by Michael Walsh, a telling of what happens to Rick, Sam, Ilsa and others after the famous airport scene in Casablanca, crafted from the unused material developed for the seven different screenplays that were written for the movie. The book provides the backstories of the main characters and resolves the fates of all with a number of twists. Another recommendation for sports fans is Three and Out by John Bacon, the inside story of what really happened during the years Rich Rod was the Michigan football coach. The book is an interesting dissection of the politics of big time college sports. But enough of recommendations. I know serious readers already have a long queue of books they are just waiting to get to. But if any of you have a title or two to recommend, or have any interest in resurrecting some form of the old book club, please let me know. I seem to have more time for reading these days :-).

And an update on my earlier post The Purge. A few photos to demo how it really works. Here are a couple of shots during the phase known as "improvement mess". Note the deep involvement of the client.

And the new pantry, fully purged and ready for service. Note the room for growth.

 

I still work for food.