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A review by cbendixe
The Polysyllabic Spree by Nick Hornby
4.0
This is a compilation of Hornby's book columns from The Believer, most of which are almost love letters about reading and the joys of literature. Hornby also has a book-buying habit that I can identify with, so that's a plus.
Here's one of my favorite passages, when he explains his experiences reading two acclaimed books; one is a British futuristic novel called How I Live Now, and the other is a 1907 memoir called Father and Son. Here is how he felt about both of them:
"Father and Son is an acknowledged classic, so I hadn't expected it to be lovable, or modern, nor had I expected it to speak to me. How I Live Now, by contrast, felt as if it was talking to everyone but me--I was watching from the wings as its author addressed the multitudes. Maybe that's why you have to give books time to live before you decide that they're never going to die. You have to wait and see whether anyone in that multitude is really listening."
Yes! Give books time to live! And hopefully you are ready to read them at the right time.
Here's one of my favorite passages, when he explains his experiences reading two acclaimed books; one is a British futuristic novel called How I Live Now, and the other is a 1907 memoir called Father and Son. Here is how he felt about both of them:
"Father and Son is an acknowledged classic, so I hadn't expected it to be lovable, or modern, nor had I expected it to speak to me. How I Live Now, by contrast, felt as if it was talking to everyone but me--I was watching from the wings as its author addressed the multitudes. Maybe that's why you have to give books time to live before you decide that they're never going to die. You have to wait and see whether anyone in that multitude is really listening."
Yes! Give books time to live! And hopefully you are ready to read them at the right time.