Is all reading good?

[Slite]

Originally Posted by Hellmark

My understanding of it is, that the movie made things more campy and isn't quite as good as the books. I am also under the understanding that the books aren't all that well written, but still a fun read. (I've not read them, and so this is based on the opinion of a dozen or so people I know that have read the books and seen the movie). Thinking of it, almost everyone I know that read the books hated the movie.

As far as the criticism, well, it isn't so much the basic premise of that it has a happy ending, but rather that it just isn't that great of a story. Note that enjoyable, and good are two different things. I love watching B movies, yet you'll never see me saying that they're great works of art.

Have neither seen the movie nor read the books, but my 18 year old daughter who did, complained about the movie interpretation of the main male character, Eric(?), was sooooooooo WRONG! In lieu of how she pictured him from the books.

[corroonb]

The answer is clearly no. If one only reads Mein Kampf and nasty pornography, then one is better off not reading at all.

It also depends on why you are reading. Are you reading to pass the time or to deepen your knowledge?

[Hellmark]

Even if they were the same, why not have both the book and movie? Something had to be around in written form to get the ball rolling on the movie. Not to mention, a movie can only have so much detail, unless it is wanted to be prohibitively long and expensive. You're working with a limited amount of time. Not to mention, some mechanics just don't transfer well from word to screen.

[Hellmark]

Originally Posted by corroonb

The answer is clearly no. If one only reads Mein Kampf and nasty pornography, then one is better off not reading at all.

It also depends on why you are reading. Are you reading to pass the time or to deepen your knowledge?

That is your opinion. I personally think that if you read such works from a psychological perspective, wanting to understand how others think, then it isn't bad. The reason behind reading is just as important sometimes as the reason behind writing it.

[FlorenceArt]

Originally Posted by Slite

Have neither seen the movie nor read the books, but my 18 year old daughter who did, complained about the movie interpretation of the main male character, Eric(?), was sooooooooo WRONG! In lieu of how she pictured him from the books.

Exactly. Why a movie can never be the same as a book. In the movie, you see someone else's interpretation, not your own.

[Lemurion]

Originally Posted by lovestoreadalot

Why have the MOVIE at all? The book came first, and as always was hundreds of times better than the movie.
Twilight is the best book I have ever read, and hundreds of years from now I'm sure other people will be saying the same.
Romeo and Juliet is always praised for being great and its a love story, Yet Twilight also a love story is usually criticized. Only difference is Twilight has its happily ever after while Romeo and Juliet ends in tragedy.
Why are the tragedies usually praised?( By the way I hated Romeo and Juliet!)

One reason tragedies are often praised is because they tend to inspire strong emotions. As for Romeo and Juliet, I think of it as Shakespeare's "Ode to Stupidity."

There were these two teenagers: they were too stupid to live. They killed themselves stupidly. The end.

I really don't know that Twilight will still be popular in hundreds of years. Very few popular novels really last that long. Personally, I didn't like it - however my 16 year old stepdaughter and 18 year old stepson loved it - which only proves different people have different tastes.

Having said that, I think that people, especially though not always younger people, tend to conflate liking with quality when it comes to books. Most professional writers don't consider Twilight to be exceptionally well-written, even though it is exceptionally popular. My favorite books are the books I like best that I've read, not the best books I've read. It's an important distinction.

[LDBoblo]

Originally Posted by corroonb

The answer is clearly no. If one only reads Mein Kampf and nasty pornography, then one is better off not reading at all.

It also depends on why you are reading. Are you reading to pass the time or to deepen your knowledge?

...So you're saying I should quit the Oprah book club?

[ahi]

Originally Posted by LDBoblo

So you're saying I should quit Oprah's book club?

Yep!

I am of the opinion that the more popular the book is the less it's bound to be worth to the reader. Ideas and knowledge from hugely popular books will almost certainly filter down to you in a myriad ways... ideas and knowledge from obscure ones will almost certainly not.

Read a book about the history and culture of the Mutair or the Akamba, instead of the Pennsylvania Dutch.

Read about Maurice Benyovszky instead of Columbus.

Read about New Netherland instead of Plymouth.

Read about the Hungarian Revolution of 1848 instead of the French Revolution of 1789.

Read about the Ottoman Empire or the Mongolian Empire instead of the Roman Empire.

Read about Ancient Berber culture and religion instead of Ancient Egyptian.

Et cetera.

Doing so will make you a more broadly informed and (quite possibly) also a more interesting and broad-minded person.

Not to say, to be clear, that the Pennsylvania Dutch, Columbus, Plymouth, the French Revolution of 1789, the Roman Empire, and Ancient Egyptian culture and religion aren't worth knowing about. They certainly are. But for the non-professional there is no genuine benefit to reading book after book after book about them... when there are countless equally (if not more) fascinating subjects that they may never even have heard about.

- Ahi

[Abecedary]

Originally Posted by LDBoblo

...So you're saying I should quit the Oprah book club?

I know you're joking with your repeated asking of this question. But truth be told, Oprah has been known to pick some great pieces of literature for her book club. I'm sure there's also a nice bit of overemotional tripe thrown in, too. But it can be argued that she does fit the mold of an "ideal reader"—that is, one who reads a fair amount of mind-engaging books that cause the reader to expand and think about various points of view, all while mixing in a decent amount of mindless fluff (don't wanna sprain the brain with too much thought).

[ProDigit]

Most books I read are good. Informative. Only a small percentage is recreation.
I like SF books, but don't frequently read one anymore.
In this demanding times where time seems to be shortened, I spend more time reading informative books like science or history books, rather than entertainment books.

In my mind, entertainment is good for people who have the time to be entertained.
I have plenty of time, but not enough to be 'wasted' on entertainment books...

I also find that a lot of unmotivated people love to read entertainment books,while motivated people, if they are reading, are often reading stuff that will help them in their course of life.
I know what I just did was make a very strong statement, but hopefully you'll see there's some truth in it.

Obviously many entertainment books seem to benefit some, otherwise they won't read them; while for others it may be a total waste of time.
But people without the desire to achieve something in life, will have more time left to read than those who's goal is to do something, achieve something, to achieve a life's goal or something...

In my teenage years I had nowhere to go. I just wondered around, and read lots of Science Fiction books.
But now I find that time is too important to be reading stuff that does not help me move forward in my life.
I set a goal to be a musician, so I'll do what I can to become one (next to all the daily and demanding tasks that we have).

Another thing I wanted to add, is that there are so many books, and not all of them are beneficial or good. It would take ages to figure out which one are beneficial and which one aren't.
You can stick with a couple of favorite authors, but in essence you don't want to become a copy of the author; you will want to learn other things, and grow in your own way.
I find problem with books,just like with movies that often from the short introduction on the back, and the book cover, you can not say if a book is going to be good or not...
You'll have to read it, and only then say if the money was worth it, and the book was a win; or it was a total waste.

And unfortunately for some reason these days there are more 'wastes' then 'wins'.

Another thing you can do is read books that have a high popular demand or rating.
Those books are generally good for beginners, but if you'll really get into reading (a hardcore book reader or fan), you will want to read something outside of the standard book stories.

[wgrimm]

Originally Posted by Daithi

What about Paladin Press type books?

Would even banning books of dangerous knowledge ultimately harm society?

No books should be banned, period. Dangerous knowledge? Well, I live a few miles from one of the largest universities in the world- I guarantee you that their libraries have much more info on explosives and that sort of thing than Paladin Press does.

No, we should consider banning Democrats long before banning books- Democrats are much more dangerous....

[ahi]

Originally Posted by ProDigit

But now I find that time is too important to be reading stuff that does not help me move forward in my life.
I set a goal to be a musician, so I'll do what I can to become one (next to all the daily and demanding tasks that we have).

It sounds like you've resolved to read only music-related books. That, to me, sounds as restricted a reading fare as reading only pop-corn entertainment type books.

I consider good reading to be about wholistic (in the proper, non-hippy sense of the word) growth, not about idle pleasure or ruthless practicality.

- Ahi

[wgrimm]

[QUOTE=ahi;600070]Yep!

I am of the opinion that the more popular the book is the less it's bound to be worth to the reader. Ideas and knowledge from hugely popular books will almost certainly filter down to you in a myriad ways... ideas and knowledge from obscure ones will almost certainly not.
[QUOTE]

I am not so sure that this is a good starting point- The Holy Bible is a very popular book, and I am not so sure that its popularity means it has low worth.

[Lo Zeno]

Originally Posted by wgrimm

I am not so sure that this is a good starting point- The Holy Bible is a very popular book, and I am not so sure that its popularity means it has low worth.

True; yet, how many people actually READ the Bible, versus how many had been told the Bible?

A popular book is a book read by many, not just bought by many and put on many shelves as a dust collector.

[LDBoblo]

And good bibles are nicely made too...I only wish my favorite paperbacks could be reprinted and bound as bibles.