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| City Flowers, 2012 |
Let me underscore the obvious here: Reading fiction is important. It is a vital means of imagining a life other than our own, which in turn makes us more empathetic beings. Following complex story lines stretches our brains beyond the 140 characters of sound-bite thinking, and staying within the world of a novel gives us the ability to be quiet and alone, two skills that are disappearing faster than the polar icecaps.More here.
-Ann Patchett
Oh yes, indeed.
ReplyDelete(PS I made rhubarb fool, and then used the extra stewed rhubarb in my oatmeal this morning, so so good. Thanks for the inspiration.)
Nice work, kate.
DeleteThis is so wonderful, thank you for posting it. I'm off to read the rest.
ReplyDeleteAfter attending a reading last night at Shakespeare and Company (thank you for the suggestion!) I am re-inspired by the small bookshop, the community it creates and the power that good writing can have on one's life. Thank you for this post.
ReplyDeleteI'm so happy you did this! Wish I could have been there too.
DeleteThis little extract from that fascinating (dispiriting) article is so timely for me, in many ways. At the risk of sounding odd (worse! creepy) we had a lovely chat over coffee in a dream I had last night...books featured heavily.
ReplyDeleteMaybe we'll continue in my dream tonight. Hope so.
Deletelove this!
ReplyDeleteYes. I need to get back to reading fiction more. Your post seems to be very timely.
ReplyDeleteI love this perspective.
ReplyDeleteI so very passionately agree with you. I had read Ann Pachett's article in the New York Times that she had written on a Pulitzer not being awarded in Fiction this year. I, too, felt saddened by this. I am an avid reader of all kinds of fiction and with each book am entranced and carried away into other worlds where my mind can move around and expand. I cannot imagine not reading fiction. I have learned more about the world, people, and what makes us all tick from fiction reading since I was a young girl. Thank God for folks like Ann Pachett and for blogs like yours to remind us of what is important.
ReplyDeletereading is not only vital & personally necessary, but also socially necessary. This snafu with the Pulitzer is disturbing, and a sign of our society. While there are plenty of worthy writers out there (and it is surprising that no one was found worthy of the prize), readers are probably the one diminishing in number and the quick gratification (~140 words) is dropping our passion to fuel the millennial art of books. What can we do? teach our next generation to read, read, read. I read daily to my kids. This really further inspired me: http://makeareadingpromise.com/
ReplyDeleteThank you for this. I'm off to read the full article.
ReplyDeleteAnything Ann Patchett says is gospel to me.
ReplyDeleteA world without fiction is not a world I care to live in.
Off to enjoy some right now!
xo Jane
Wow, that's so spot on. Quiet and alone are precious indeed. Thanks so much for sharing - it's led me off into the most wonderful reading session!
ReplyDeleteOh! This is such an utterly prefect expression of why one should read fiction (and indeed why one does). The pure pleasure of 'disappearing' into a novel has to be one of the great joys of life.
ReplyDeleteIt's indeed wonderful to let one's mind go unfettered into a well-crafted world and I'm glad to see kindred spirits gather on your site!
ReplyDeleteAmen.
ReplyDeleteExactly!
ReplyDeletexxx E.
Well said!
ReplyDeletethank you for sharing
ReplyDeletenice work
ReplyDeleteWise words I shall take to heart. Thank you.
ReplyDelete