Addicted to reading?

LuckyH · Mar 3, 2010

I can’t remember how old I was, but from the geography of my memory I must have been under eight, when my grandmother caught me reading a book in a meadow, rather than pick mushrooms. She thrashed me with a fallen branch which broke, and I’ve never forgiven her.

I still remember the pinched look on the librarian’s face when I booked out the three books, the maximum allowed, from a small local library. She scoffed, “You just pretend to read those books.”

Only a couple of weeks ago, my partner found me reading at the back of the dark garage. She shouted, “I thought you were supposed to be cleaning up the dog shit.”

This morning I discovered that I’m not the only one:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2010/mar/03/a-week-without-books

Charlee · Mar 4, 2010

Wow I'm not alone!!!

I have an extra large handbag for carrying my books because I'm always worried I'll finish a book and not have another one handy. I read while washing up I pop the book between the wall and taps and keep a towel next to the sink to dry my hands, for turning the page. I thought I was strange.
I guess not!

hannah_92 · Mar 4, 2010

I'm not alone either! Ever since I was old enough to read I've had books. There isn't a day goes by that I don't read. I read while I eat my breakfast and when I'm watching TV. I have a hard job taking myself away from by book to actually do some work.

shaldna · Mar 4, 2010

i read obsessivley.

My daughter can read and she's three. she can read around 800 words and is starting to write.

I have to admit that I have been spending alot of time teaching her this last year, but I wholeheartedly encourage kids to read.

knight_tour · Mar 4, 2010

I have so many books on my shelves I just know I will never get through them all, especially since I keep adding more, and that makes me sad. I am proud, though, that my sons not only love reading, but have even started to write stories after observing me do so much writing. I love being a positive influence!

Alpha Echo · Mar 4, 2010

Sounds like me too! My mother encouraged me to read as much as possible. But the elementary school Librarian thought I couldn't possibly be reading the books I took out (all above my grade reading level), nor I could be reading them so fast.

My fiance is now used to seeing me with a book in my hands all the time. He doesn't really mind, though. He's even building be beautiful bookshelves!

Alpha Echo · Mar 4, 2010

knight_tour said:
I have so many books on my shelves I just know I will never get through them all, especially since I keep adding more, and that makes me sad. I am proud, though, that my sons not only love reading, but have even started to write stories after observing me do so much writing. I love being a positive influence!

I'm with you. I hate to give away my books and just keep adding more! Though I am swapping some now. I'm hoping I'm a positive influence on the Little One...so far, she's enjoying books (though she's only 5 - but she can read, and I'm so proud!)

shub_niggurath · Mar 4, 2010

theres something creepy about this thread

Calla Lily · Mar 4, 2010

When a pre-teen I once got 3 PBs in the mail on a Saturday. The only reason I didn't finish all 3 that day is because my mother ripped the third from my hands that afternoon and threw me outside to get fresh air. (I finished the book under the covers with a flashlight that night.)

Nothing's really changed.

CaroGirl · Mar 4, 2010

Me too. And now my 12 yo son. I've almost had to take books away from him in punishment to get him to do chores or go to sleep before 10 at night. Almost. I've threatened but haven't done it yet.

lucidzfl · Mar 4, 2010

Unfortunately... I am not addicted to reading. I actually have to force myself to do it. Its not that I don't like it. Its that theres ALWAYS something i'd rather be doing.

But reading is an integral part of growing as a writer, so I make time for it.

folkchick · Mar 4, 2010

From my WIP: "I don't do drugs and alcohol . . . I do books."

I grew up in a library and knew every book on those shelves, even the dirty ones, hehe. And then I worked at a library forever, always leaving with a huge stack in my arms.

Jamesaritchie · Mar 4, 2010

I learned to read very early, thanks to an aunt who thought reading was the most important thing any child could learn. I still remember sort of learning all at once. None of the words on the page made sense, and then, in what seemed like an instant, all those weird letters just turned into words that I could read. I couldn't read much of anything one minute, and the next I could read almost anything my aunt showed me.

It was the oddest thing. One minute not a word made sense, and the next, everything did. It actually frightened my aunt a bit.

But I've talked to several other readers who had this happen, so it can't be too uncommon. Isaac Asimov described it by saying the letters turned into ants, crawled all over the page, and when they stopped crawling, they had formed words that he could read.

They didn't crawl for me, they just sort of transformed, but it did happen almost instantly.

I still love reading, and if I had to give up writing or reading, writing would stop at once.

CaroGirl · Mar 4, 2010

Jamesaritchie said:
I learned to read very early, thanks to an aunt who thought reading was the most important thing any child could learn. I still remember sort of learning all at once. None of the words on the page made sense, and then, in what seemed like an instant, all those weird letters just turned into words that I could read. I couldn't read much of anything one minute, and the next I could read almost anything my aunt showed me.

It was the oddest thing. One minute not a word made sense, and the next, everything did. It actually frightened my aunt a bit.

But I've talked to several other readers who had this happen, so it can't be too uncommon. Isaac Asimov described it by saying the letters turned into ants, crawled all over the page, and when they stopped crawling, they had formed words that he could read.

They didn't crawl for me, they just sort of transformed, but it did happen almost instantly.

I still love reading, and if I had to give up writing or reading, writing would stop at once.

I learned to read so early I have no memory of not knowing how. It would be interesting to remember that moment, though.

lucidzfl · Mar 4, 2010

folkchick said:
From my WIP: "I don't do drugs and alcohol . . . I do books."

I like to think there's time for all three!

knight_tour · Mar 4, 2010

Jamesaritchie said:
I still remember sort of learning all at once. None of the words on the page made sense, and then, in what seemed like an instant, all those weird letters just turned into words that I could read. I couldn't read much of anything one minute, and the next I could read almost anything my aunt showed me.

It was the oddest thing. One minute not a word made sense, and the next, everything did. It actually frightened my aunt a bit.

This is just what happened to me! I was four and it happened with a book called something like 'Biddy and the Ducks'. One minute I was just listening to my mom read and the next I realized that I could actually read the words on the pages. I just started reading on my own after that.

Shadow_Ferret · Mar 4, 2010

I was once addicted to reading. I spent my entire time in high school reading rather than learning.

I still enjoy it, a lot, but I have a family--wife, kids, dogs--and they all demand my attention and I find reading the same paragraph over and over again just isn't very satisfying.

Jamesaritchie · Mar 4, 2010

Shadow_Ferret said:
I was once addicted to reading. I spent my entire time in high school reading rather than learning.

I still enjoy it, a lot, but I have a family--wife, kids, dogs--and they all demand my attention and I find reading the same paragraph over and over again just isn't very satisfying.

Huh, and here I thought reading was learning! I have a family, too. A wife, kids, grandkids, pets, etc., but there always time for reading, just as there's always time for writing.

Shadow_Ferret · Mar 4, 2010

I didn't say I didn't read. I have to pick my moments. When they're busy on the X-Box, I can read (but then the dogs want out). Mostly I read and write after everyone has gone to bed.

And reading Edgar Rice Burroughs or Fritz Leiber may be learning, but it's not getting you a passing grade in physics.

Jamesaritchie · Mar 4, 2010

CaroGirl said:
I learned to read so early I have no memory of not knowing how. It would be interesting to remember that moment, though.

Ray Bradbury claims he remembers being born. My memories don't go back quite that far, but for good or ill, I still remember learning how to walk when I was still a couple of months short of my first birthday. I have several strong memories of things that happened long before I turned one, and hundreds of vivid memories from the next two years.

Shakesbear · Mar 4, 2010

I always cook food that only needs a fork or spoon to eat it - the other hand is used for turning pages. I have lost count of how many books I have - but need to give some away as I have almost run out of room for new ones.

I was told by a teacher that if you do not remember learning to read it was easy for you to learn. I have no recollection of learning only of the pleasure of reading.

Does anyone keep a record of the books they have read?

CaroGirl · Mar 4, 2010

Jamesaritchie said:
Ray Bradbury claims he remembers being born. My memories don't go back quite that far, but for good or ill, I still remember learning how to walk when I was still a couple of months short of my first birthday. I have several strong memories of things that happened long before I turned one, and hundreds of vivid memories from the next two years.

It's weird. I have memories from the crib and remember being toilet trained (which was completed before I was 18 mos). But I don't remember not being able to read. I learned when I was just shy of three years old.

I do remember my first day of nursery school when the teacher asked who could read and I raised my hand. She must not have believed me because she had me read to her out of a book I hadn't seen before. The surprise on her face told me not too many other kids my age could read. I just recall being offended she didn't believe me.

MumblingSage · Mar 4, 2010

I found out I wasn't alone when I read the church bulletin and one of the parish school kids wrote that he would "give up reading when I'm not supposed to" during Lent. Apparantly some of my grade school teachers told my mom they felt a little worried, since I was reading when I should be doing work, but if they told me not to they feared I would stop reading alltogether...

And now I still read when I should be working. That or I lurk on AW.

Collectonian · Mar 4, 2010

I can't remember a time not reading. I used to hit our public library every week, checking out the maximum books (3 for us too). I vaguely remember when I hit 13 and had no limit, and immediately checked out 30 books (that my poor dad had to carry home LOL).

I logged every book I read in 2008, and I read well over 400. Should be fun when see this year's logs.

Jamesaritchie · Mar 4, 2010

CaroGirl said:
It's weird. I have memories from the crib and remember being toilet trained (which was completed before I was 18 mos). But I don't remember not being able to read. I learned when I was just shy of three years old.

I do remember my first day of nursery school when the teacher asked who could read and I raised my hand. She must not have believed me because she had me read to her out of a book I hadn't seen before. The surprise on her face told me not too many other kids my age could read. I just recall being offended she didn't believe me.

I remember the same thing happening several times. It was always annoying. I thought all kids could read. Then I started school, and learned on the first day that most kids couldn't read anything, and couldn't write. My aunt also taught me to write cursive before I learned to print, and that, too, made me a weird first grader. I had to prove both things to the teacher, of course.

Being able to read well and write cursive did allow me to skip the first couple of grades of school. Unfortunately, I wasn't quite as good with math, and my school started teaching the "advanced" kids algegra in the fourth grade, so I couldn't jump all the way to my reading level.

Addicted to reading?

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