Last week I talked about books as objects of cultural consumption, where I considered the commodification, consumption and material culture of books. It was a general survey of how we treat books as consumer objects. Then Asti commented that what interested her the most was my discussion of reading as a social endeavour. She views reading as a personal activity, which I largely do too. Yet I thought, wouldn’t it be interesting to explore the notion that reading is a social activity? Thus here we are, contemplating if indeed, reading is social.
Books are Objects of Cultural Consumption
Reading is such a deeply personal activity. It involves the reader and the book. Everything else is superfluous to reading. Even if a book isn’t read in solitude, reading is not an interactive endeavour. Neither sitting down in a café nor suntanning at the beach call for companionship when a book is involved.
Books to Movies: The Ultimate Reading Pressure
I have a confession to make. Actually, no. I have several confessions to make.
- I have not read The Fault in Our Stars. The ebook is currently on my Kindle but I’ve not even taken a peek.
- I own the German copy of If I Stay but have not read it.
- I pre-ordered Allegiant last year but then left it untouched in my shelf. I have yet to read it.
- I own the shiniest edition of The Hunger Games, which is a Scholastic UK Foil Luxe edition. It is all gold, screaming for attention on my shelf but I’ve not read that either.
- I have no idea what The Perks of Being a Wallflower is about because, you guessed it, I have not read it.
- I have not made an effort to read The Maze Runner.
Negative Book Reviews Minus the Negativity
Debates abound about whether or not negative book reviews should be written. There are moves towards banning negative book reviews, while others believe in the value of negative book reviews.
Ebooks Are Real
It’s not unusual to refer to a hardcover or a paperback as a real book. Typically, that is done vis-à-vis ebooks. However, I don’t agree with the reference to real books in that context. In fact, it irks me every time I hear someone speak so flippantly about real books because in my opinion, it’s a blatant dismissal of the reality of ebooks.
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