Musings on Reading

I recently saw a photo essay of people in New York reading in different settings and it got me thinking about the pleasures of reading. There’s nothing like time spent with a good book!

I always have more time to read in summer and this past summer was no exception. During other seasons, I seldom take breaks in the middle of a weekend day to read. In contrast, summer weekends mean time at the beach and hours of reading under a beach umbrella. I also watch less television in the summer and make time to read in bed before falling asleep. Several evenings this summer, I headed upstairs to bed early, so that I could have an extra hour or two with a good book.

It is a luxury of our times to have easy online access to a diverse collection of reading material. But there’s something wonderful about holding a physical book while one reads.

I love books that stay with you for days after you finish them. Our son gave my husband On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous this spring and Tom and I couldn’t stop talking about it. For days after, I thought about it before falling asleep and it crept into my thoughts throughout the day. Ocean Vuong is a talented writer whose phrases are stunning and who tells a gripping story.

My experience with Vuong’s book reminds me of listening to The Kite Runner years ago. The audio version was read by the author, Khaled Hosseini. Months after finishing the book, I heard an interview with Hosseini on the radio. At the sound of his soft lyrical voice, I was transported back to the story of two young boys growing up in Afghanistan.

Blogger Sue Burpee often discusses books and reading in her blog High Heels in the Wilderness. In a recent post, Sue wrote about wanting to be a girl detective, how she read Nancy Drew when she was a child and dreamed of solving crimes. I could relate. When I was young, I read every Nancy Drew book I could get my hands on and I might have dreamed of being Nancy. If you need book recommendations, I suggest checking out what Sue is reading.

I’m currently reading Anthony Bourdain’s A Cook’s Tour. It’s a gritty, sensational story of Bourdain’s journey around the globe sampling foods that ranged from sumptuous to disgusting. When I finish A Cook’s Tour, I’m moving on to the second book in Elena Ferrante’s Neapolitan series, The Story Of A New Name. I received the Neapolitan set from my husband last Christmas. It’s a series about two girls growing up in a poor Naples neighborhood. I really enjoyed the first book in the series, My Brilliant Friend. It is a treat to have a store of good books on reserve.

I’m a fan of reading cookbooks. I have far too many cookbooks, but they are a source of so much pleasure! I go back to them over and over again, which I believe justifies the cost. I am lucky to have a used bookstore in my town (The Book Rack) and I regularly purchase used cookbooks there.

I’m about to crack the spine of Sea Salt and Honey, a cookbook celebrating the food of Kardamili, Greece. It will be an adventure in cuisine and armchair travel.

Here are a few links about reading-related topics, including the photo essay of readers that jump-started this post.

• Reading Around New York — These black and white photos of readers in New York are a journey of book readers through time. (The New York Times)
• A Bookstore in a Bus in the Bronx — A modern bookmobile visiting neighborhoods and offering books of interest to the community it serves. (Curbed)
• Do You Have a Favorite Library? — Special libraries around the world. (Sea Salt and Sailor Stripes)

What are your favorite books? Leave me a comment and let me know what you are reading these days.

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