Opinions on Reading

[AdminAssistant]

I read to myself from age 3 on. I don't see how having books read to me would have been better.

I don't think Boozy was saying one is better than the other. But until a child can learn how to read on their own, being read to is the next best thing.

[Flyndaran]

I don't think Boozy was saying one is better than the other. But until a child can learn how to read on their own, being read to is the next best thing.

I'm still not so sure.
My parents and I had story telling games. It started out as bizarre lying that became a game. It's one of the reasons why I at first thought Sunday School was a big story telling school.

[Lady_Foxfire]

I learned how to read when I was about 3 or 4, and have been an avid reader ever since. I mostly prefer fantasies; I'm currently reading Terry Pratchett's Unseen Academicals (it's awesome, BTW, not that I expect anything less from Mr. Pratchett), and once I'm done with that I'm going to continue reading Fritz Leiber's Fafherd and the Grey Mouser series (I've read the first three, and loved them).

I've also read a lot of the classics, most of them for school, but I read Phantom of the Opera and Macbeth for fun. I liked most of them, with the noted exceptions of: 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (way too much boring stuff about the random undersea scenery and exactly how the damn sub worked); The Scarlet Letter (a soppy, boring romance); and Beowulf (I mostly hated the character of Beowulf, I thought he was arrogant and self absorbed).

Also, Catherine Called Birdy. I read that one for "fun", and dear God I want those hours of my life back. Birdy was an obnoxious, whiny, passive-agressive clueless twit and the moral of the story was, as far as I can tell, "If you try and fight what authority tells you, it will just make things worse (I.e. Birdy chasing off her suitors and winding up engaged to Shaggy-Beard of whatever she called him), but once you accept your fate and do what the people in charge tell you, no matter how awful you think it will be, things will magically change for the better and you'll live happy ever after (as soon as she accepts that there's no way around getting married to Shaggy-Beard and that she's just going to have to go along with it, Shaggy-Beard kicks the bucket and she gets to marry his nice, intelligent son instead)

[blas87]

I'm really not a big reader...if I read anything, it's the local paper while I'm on lunch break at work, or a magazine that I get in the mail......and self help books perhaps.

I had a thread a while back "I'm Smarter Than You Because I Read" where I bitched about people who think they are better and smarter than others because they read, over watching TV or movies or whatnot.

I did have a coworker who was convinced she was just way better than any of us because she read books (and they were like fantasy, sci fi, out there stuff) and the little TV she watched was "informational".......because she watched "Ice Road Truckers" and "Deadliest Catch" instead of, say, "The Bachelor" or "Biggest Loser", she was smarter than all of us.

[AdminAssistant]

and the little TV she watched was "informational".......because she watched "Ice Road Truckers" and "Deadliest Catch" instead of, say, "The Bachelor" or "Biggest Loser", she was smarter than all of us.

Ooooh, I HATE that. Look, I love my silly cop drama (NCIS) and my goofy somewhat-reality shows (Ace of Cakes and Mythbusters). And yet I've been openly mocked for liking "fake science" and "those stupid fake forensic shows". The Target clerk literally laughed at me for buying a season of Ace of Cakes. First of all, NCIS is not CSI and the two aren't even remotely related, except for being on the same network. I like NCIS because the characters are interesting and well-rounded. Mythbusters has things go BOOM and Ace of Cakes is just hilarious. And I have a mad crush on Geof.

That is a serious pet peeve.

[blas87]

I'm glad I'm not alone there. I like my soap operas and my American Idol and Hell's Kitchen and Family Guy, and I swear the next person who sticks up their nose and insinuates I'm an idiot for it is going to get their book or History channel shoved right up their self righteous ass.

[guywithashovel]

I go through phases where I will read a lot. Between those phases I'll go through dry spells where I don't read so much.

Recently, I read "Catcher in the Rye" and "Fed Up" (a mystery novel I found in the library). Since then, most of the leisure reading I have done is either news-related or random stuff I look up online.

I just thought it was weird that people would so sharply look down on someone who "only reads newspapers," when in fact you can learn quite a bit from reading newspapers or other online articles. Granted, books might have more careful editing processes, as others have pointed out. But still, I've expanded my knowledge quite a bit from reading newspapers and online articles.

[blas87]

I'd also like to add that I like to go through the newsletters that my employer has out for us to read, and look for typos, double negatives, and other grammatical errors and no-nos.

Many people will disagree with me, but I think if you're in a position making more money than the pee-ons, you'd better damn well be at a more advanced reading level and English comprehension than us.....or at least use Spell Check.

[BroomJockey]

the pee-ons,

Peon. Unless you're literally being urinated upon, it's peon. Though grunt or serf would be more apt terms, I believe.

[Ree]

I used to read everything I could find.
I was constantly buying books and would practically read until the book was finished.

Since I discovered the internet, I'm lucky if I read a book a year. It can take me months to finish a book.

I feel a bit guilty about that and don't know why.

Somehow, the thought makes me feel a bit lazy, even though, with the internet, I am constantly reading.

(Of course, with some of the semi-fiction novels posted on CS occasionally, it's kind of like reading a book. )

[jackfaire]

I feel a bit guilty about that and don't know why.

Somehow, the thought makes me feel a bit lazy, even though, with the internet, I am constantly reading.

Don't I was the same way heck I literally would read ingredient lists on my food if I had nothing else to read.

Your still reading just as much as before but simply with a shift in medium.

[Boozy]

If you're anything like me, Ree, then you're not feeling guilty about not reading so much as you're missing it. I used to read three or four books a week, and I'd have a "to read" pile on top of my bookcase. I recently discovered that my pile had grown dusty. I decided to shut off my computer for an entire day and pick up a book whenever I had a spare minute.

I forgot how relaxing it is to get lost in a book. It's completely different experience than surfing the internet. The problem is that my five minute break turned into an hour, which is not something that happens when I'm on forums.