Remember that old PBS show called “Reading Rainbow?” I never really appreciated this show nor, to be completely honest, reading for that matter. I mean, I liked books and all, but I never truly appreciated the binding of the pages, that fresh smell of a new book, the yellowing of the pages as it ages, and the power of literature as I do now as a college student who made the decision to dedicate their life to writing and reading.
Yes, celebrities are just like us. They eat. They sleep. They read. The New York Times spotted Thomas Hardy’s “Jude the Obscure” on Paul Rudd’s bookshelf.
David Ben-Merre, an English professor at The State University of New York Buffalo State College, said that he likes to get a glimpse of what others are reading as well.
“I have a horrible habit as a human being when I go to a dinner party or a colleague’s party. I go to that bookshelf,” he said.
Everyone has a different story of what made them a reader. It’s not always like in the movies, such as how “Matilda” portrays it where we are born a genius, just picked up a book and began to read. Although, I can’t deny that the book community is full of geniuses.
Ben-Merre said that in high school, kids are forced to read books and are taught it in a way that makes it unappealing. Luckily, his high school experience was different.
“In my senior or junior year of high school, there was a lot of leeway and a lot of English teachers taught Virginia Woolf, Franz Kafka, James Baldwin and James Joyce, which really opened up new worlds or possibilities,” he said.
Mary Lou, a librarian at Clearfield Library, said that many people have “re-discovered the classics.”
“Some people have decided that they’re gonna use the down time to read an author that they missed or an author that they remembered from when they were in school that they really liked and they want to explore some of the other things that they’ve written,” she said.
There’s different kinds of readers too:
I personally don’t mind buying used books at my library bookstore because one can get pretty good deals and if they're lucky, get a copy that’s almost brand new. That isn’t to say, however, that annotated and used copies are not as valuable. OK, monetarily speaking, its value is down, but seeing the previous owners’ notes or finding something random they used as a bookmark makes it more profound.
Ben-Merre said he prefers paperbacks and enjoys going to library sales, although those that sit on his shelf now are falling apart. Yes, the paperback struggle is real.
I personally like to annotate paperbacks over hardcovers because well, paperbacks are less expensive.
“If you go back and look through the books of some of the great writers we have, their notes and their copies are invaluable,” Ben-Merre said.
Perhaps when I’m a famous writer my annotated copies will be invaluable too!
The great thing about being a humanities major is that it changed the way I perceived the world and looked at words on a page. Sometimes I wonder, will my reading experience ever go back to the way it was where I just read for the sake of reading? For the sake of fun?
Ben-Merre said that one of the things that we’re taught is to “just be better readers.”
“We’re trained to follow logics and rhetorics. We’re not able to turn off that critical reading eye,” he said.
I also realized that the humanities major is underrated. As Ben-Merre points out, the “values of learning how to write and read and think critically are important in any career path.”
There’s something unbreakable about the literature and writing community like no other. Why be a reader and join this wonderful community?
“It’s the perfect hobby. You can do it any time, any place,” Mary Lou said.
If you’re tired of your busy life, take a break and go to the bookstore or your library. The experience is different for everyone, but I can guarantee that when you walk in, you’ll feel that sense of community: warm and welcoming. All of our differences are set aside, including politics. The only thing that I’m aware of that sets me apart from the others are our genre differences, but in the end, we’re all still readers.
As an English and journalism major, I look forward to watching the news, not only to be up to date with current events, but to get a sneak peek at the guest speakers’ bookshelves. I know, I know. Call me weird. Call me nosy, but I’m not the only one who does it. Apparently, The New York Times does it too.
Yes, celebrities are just like us. They eat. They sleep. They read. The New York Times spotted Thomas Hardy’s “Jude the Obscure” on Paul Rudd’s bookshelf.
David Ben-Merre, an English professor at The State University of New York Buffalo State College, said that he likes to get a glimpse of what others are reading as well.
“I have a horrible habit as a human being when I go to a dinner party or a colleague’s party. I go to that bookshelf,” he said.
Everyone has a different story of what made them a reader. It’s not always like in the movies, such as how “Matilda” portrays it where we are born a genius, just picked up a book and began to read. Although, I can’t deny that the book community is full of geniuses.
Ben-Merre said that in high school, kids are forced to read books and are taught it in a way that makes it unappealing. Luckily, his high school experience was different.
“In my senior or junior year of high school, there was a lot of leeway and a lot of English teachers taught Virginia Woolf, Franz Kafka, James Baldwin and James Joyce, which really opened up new worlds or possibilities,” he said.
In high school, Ben-Merre originally enjoyed math and physics.
“Math and physics makes sense. Here’s how you do it, and that's it,” he said.
When you study English, according to Ben-Merre, you play by different rules.
“Without being given a manual, it became more of an interesting project,” he said.
There has certainly been an increase in the bookish community and appreciation for books when the pandemic began.
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| Photo Credit: Publisher's Weekly |
“Some people have decided that they’re gonna use the down time to read an author that they missed or an author that they remembered from when they were in school that they really liked and they want to explore some of the other things that they’ve written,” she said.
There’s different kinds of readers too:
- those who prefer hardcovers over paperbacks
- those who annotate
- those who don’t annotate because they don't want to ruin their book
- those who prefer new books over used books
Ben-Merre said he prefers paperbacks and enjoys going to library sales, although those that sit on his shelf now are falling apart. Yes, the paperback struggle is real.
I personally like to annotate paperbacks over hardcovers because well, paperbacks are less expensive.
“If you go back and look through the books of some of the great writers we have, their notes and their copies are invaluable,” Ben-Merre said.
Perhaps when I’m a famous writer my annotated copies will be invaluable too!
The great thing about being a humanities major is that it changed the way I perceived the world and looked at words on a page. Sometimes I wonder, will my reading experience ever go back to the way it was where I just read for the sake of reading? For the sake of fun?
Ben-Merre said that one of the things that we’re taught is to “just be better readers.”
“We’re trained to follow logics and rhetorics. We’re not able to turn off that critical reading eye,” he said.
I also realized that the humanities major is underrated. As Ben-Merre points out, the “values of learning how to write and read and think critically are important in any career path.”
There’s something unbreakable about the literature and writing community like no other. Why be a reader and join this wonderful community?
“It’s the perfect hobby. You can do it any time, any place,” Mary Lou said.
If you’re tired of your busy life, take a break and go to the bookstore or your library. The experience is different for everyone, but I can guarantee that when you walk in, you’ll feel that sense of community: warm and welcoming. All of our differences are set aside, including politics. The only thing that I’m aware of that sets me apart from the others are our genre differences, but in the end, we’re all still readers.
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