This is probably the reason why there are so few readers out there

[RolandD]

Originally Posted by Latinandgreek

And yet, judging by your ticker you average an astonishing book read every two days.

We all four have Blackberrys and use them as ebook readers. And, as Maggie mentioned, a book room is essential. Unfortunately, our current home doesn't have one, nor does it have room for bookshelves. So my book collection resides in boxes under the stairs.

I really should be averaging more, but I've been spending way too much time reading this forum.

[boxcorner]

Originally Posted by RolandD

... TV is on most of the time for background noise ... sitting around looking intently at our phones.

Originally Posted by RolandD

We all four have Blackberrys and use them as ebook readers ...

I much prefer peace and quiet, when reading.

Originally Posted by RolandD

... I've been spending way too much time reading this forum.

I've often wondered how much time other people spend reading this forum, compared with reading e-books. Imagine it would make an amusing poll.

[MrsJoseph]

Originally Posted by boxcorner

Some people prefer to keep their books in a study, but ours are spread throughout the house, as they're an essential part of our lives. It is interesting watching expressions, when visitors discover they are surrounded by books. Some people cannot keep their eyes off them, whereas others ignore them completely and express surprise that we don't keep a TV in the living room.

I have two huge bookshelves around my husband's obligatory large screen HD TV. They are crammed with tons of books - trust me, our bookshelves are always a conversational piece (especially before the football games).

[DMcCunney]

Originally Posted by teadonkey

Also - This is just a thought I've had recently. I think that people who REALLY love reading are the visual learners/thinkers. Y'know how teachers are always splitting people in groups of visual/auditory/whatever? I don't really know all the types, I've never put much stock into it. I find I learn best when I do all kinds of learning. But my point is, to really enjoy a book, you'd have to be able to visualize the world being set up for you. Otherwise, you're just staring at a ton of letters and who wants to do that? So... not everyone is made to be a reader?

Reading isn't only a visual experience.

Everyone's sensorium is oriented differently. We perceive the world through an assortment of senses (13, the last I looked), but one will predominate.

Vision is my primary sense. I think visually. See things in terms of visual patterns. In some cases, books don't work for me because the pieces simply don't fit together, and I say "Wait a minute! You can't get there from here!"

Everyone else is not the same. My SO does not think visually. Hearing is her primary sense. When she asks a technical question, my first impulse is to grab a pencil and paper to draw a diagram, but that will convey nothing to her. I need to find a different metaphor to convey my meaning.

I corresponded with a chap a while back for whom touch was the primary sense. He "felt" holes in arguments.

In an extreme case, I read about a guy who could not find his way to work. He was a trained engineer, and not stupid. Examination revealed that he was not visual at all. Landmarks that most people navigated by were meaningless to him. But he did have a strong kinesthetic sense. So they drove him to work in a tightly sprung sports car that transmitted every bump and curve in the road. Thereafter, he found his way to work with no problem, because his body remembered what the drive felt like.

Yet all of these folks read, and read for pleasure. Books convey more than just a visual picture of a world, and you'll have to dig deeper to find explanations of why people don't read.
______
Dennis

[DMcCunney]

Originally Posted by DMB

I wonder if you're right on this. I certainly fall into that category. I take in information much better from the printed page than from listening to someone speaking. My husband is the other way round and drives me mad by reading stuff aloud to me instead of letting me read it for myself.

Sometimes hearing is a good way of getting meaning. I tend to advise people attempting to read James Joyce to read him aloud. Joyce's primary sense was hearing, and he was in part trying to reproduce what he heard in his legendary walks through Dublin. Reading his work aloud helps to grasp the cadence of his prose and adds depth to the experience.
______
Dennis

[SolRaven]

Originally Posted by boxcorner

Some people prefer to keep their books in a study, but ours are spread throughout the house, as they're an essential part of our lives. It is interesting watching expressions, when visitors discover they are surrounded by books. Some people cannot keep their eyes off them, whereas others ignore them completely and express surprise that we don't keep a TV in the living room.

I have noticed that my siblings and I all use books as part of our decoration. We have also found our missing books in each other's houses. I remember seeing one of my missing books in my brother's house that he took because he thought it went great in his dining room. LOL... I happily replaced it w/ a similar looking book that I didn't reference as often. He still has it, but probably hasn't figured out that I have a few of his books.

[SolRaven]

Originally Posted by DMcCunney

Sometimes hearing is a good way of getting meaning. I tend to advise people attempting to read James Joyce to read him aloud. Joyce's primary sense was hearing, and he was in part trying to reproduce what he heard in his legendary walks through Dublin. Reading his work aloud helps to grasp the cadence of his prose and adds depth to the experience.
______
Dennis

That's good to hear... I mean, see! I mean, hear! When I study, I often stand and read aloud. For some reason it helps me retain what I've read. I have always assumed it was because I'm using more of my brain via reading, speaking and hearing, to grasp and hold onto the information. It's one of the reasons I can't wait to get my Kno textbook reader because I also like to stand and pace, like I'm giving a speech. Most textbooks are so cumbersome that it makes it difficult, at time. My SO is getting used to it. I sometimes wonder if my neighbors can hear me. Fortunately, they're teachers so they probably understand it if they can.

[Maggie Leung]

Originally Posted by SolRaven

I have noticed that my siblings and I all use books as part of our decoration. We have also found our missing books in each other's houses. I remember seeing one of my missing books in my brother's house that he took because he thought it went great in his dining room. LOL... I happily replaced it w/ a similar looking book that I didn't reference as often. He still has it, but probably hasn't figured out that I have a few of his books.

Years ago, I went to a party at a well-known editor's house and someone started pulling books off his shelves. PR inserts fell out of each book pulled out. Turns out he was dressing his living area with free hardbacks that he apparently didn't read, and the books he actually read -- paperbacks -- were all in his bedroom.

[moyeen]

That's disgusting, but I don't think it's the underlying reason for the lack of readers.

[WT Sharpe]

Originally Posted by MrsJoseph

I have two huge bookshelves around my husband's obligatory large screen HD TV. They are crammed with tons of books - trust me, our bookshelves are always a conversational piece (especially before the football games).

Just this morning I suggested surrounding my wife's new large-screen HD-TV with book cases and got nowhere. At least you got to put them up!

[SolRaven]

Originally Posted by WT Sharpe

Just this morning I suggested surrounding my wife's new large-screen HD-TV with book cases and got nowhere. At least you got to put them up!

Oh, how funny? Thankfully, when my SO and I created his man cave, the main ingredient was the large flat screen, but he was the one who incorporated books onto the media component shelving. He didn't like the look of all the electronics clumped together and sitting there. So he used a decent sized tall book shelf, and mixed the TV components with the books. I must say, he did a great job.

[MrsJoseph]

Originally Posted by WT Sharpe

Just this morning I suggested surrounding my wife's new large-screen HD-TV with book cases and got nowhere. At least you got to put them up!

LOL! He didn't have an option. I'd collected piles of books all over the floor. He gave me bookshelves out of self preservation.

[MrsJoseph]

Originally Posted by SolRaven

Oh, how funny? Thankfully, when my SO and I created his man cave, the main ingredient was the large flat screen, but he was the one who incorporated books onto the media component shelving. He didn't like the look of all the electronics clumped together and sitting there. So he used a decent sized tall book shelf, and mixed the TV components with the books. I must say, he did a great job.