The Pleasures of a Good Book

          Winter Break gave me some time to do one of my favorite things – read! I hope that all of you were able to take advantage of the holiday season to read some things that you really enjoy. Whether we are students in school or parents at work, we read all the time. It’s a part of what makes us human – that ability to read. I remember as a child reading everything that passed across my eyes. The cereal box in the morning, assembly directions that my dad refused to read, those funny “do not remove under penalty of law” labels on pillows…absolutely anything with words on it. As a parent, I remember the days when my daughter was first learning to read. The wonder on her face as she found that she could read the signs on the walls in the airport while we were waiting for her father to arrive home from a trip brought tears to my eyes. The beauty of reading was, and remains, something very special in my life.

            But I also remember the arguments I had with my daughter when, as a teenager, she insisted upon reading Stephen King above all else. We all have our guilty pleasures (mysteries are mine), but I just could not understand how Rebecca would want to read Stephen King when so many wonderful classics were at her fingertips. It took me a long time before I realized that reading for pleasure requires that it be pleasurable! It seems so self-evident, and yet I struggled with wanting to guide my daughter to “good literature,” refusing somehow to see that reading – reading anything – was building her vocabulary, developing her understanding of syntax, helping her develop the “ear” for how proper language works, and yes, providing pleasure. It was also giving her a common experience to share with other adolescents, even if she shared little in “real life.” She learned how to discuss fiction, and by extension literature, through talking about these fantasy/horror novels.

            As we sit down to read a book or magazine that interests us, it’s like slipping our feet into a set of warm and comfortable slippers. We sit in our living rooms with a good book, and we can be hundreds or thousands of miles away, making contact with environments, cultures, history, science, music, and people we would never otherwise have the opportunity to meet. Our minds are exercised and expanded, our verbal skills become stronger, our ability to concentrate is reinforced, and we find ourselves able to leave our troubles behind. All of this is true regardless of the genre or the literary noteworthiness of our reading material. What matters is that we love what we read.

            I hope that the type of reading material that appeals to you surrounded you during break, and I especially hope that was true for your children. As you look to 2012, talk with your children about the books that appeal to them and then be sure to provide an environment that is rich in that sort of book. At school, your children will have many opportunities to experience new genres and will read things that stretch them beyond their comfort zones. Be sure that at home they have the chance to slip those warm comfortable reading slippers on and relax into a good book. And don’t forget to do the same yourself from time to time.