3 out of 4 people READ A BOOK in 2006?

[Jack_Dawson]

There is no way. I know I didn't, and I went to a prestigious university but my ADD prevents me from reading anything longer than a GQ article from San Diego to Houston.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20381678/

:beer:

[SteppingRazor]

1. philistine

:P

[Jack_Dawson]

2. LOL

Somehow I knew that was coming. Might as well be in Reply #1.

:beer:

[EFerrari]

3. My friend graduated with highest honors from Oberlin

and she didn't read a lick. No one knew /told her/ she didn't know about her ADD.

And she preferred Sam Adams.

[La Coliniere]

4. Thought I read some statistic that

stated approx. 65% of Americans who graduate from high school never read an entire book from cover to cover for the rest of their lives.

[Jack_Dawson]

6. But what about THE FIRM

or...or...The DaVinci Code? C'mon now.

:beer:

[Mythsaje]

5. Love of reading

must be engendered early. And, no, ADD isn't a good excuse. I've known plenty of people so diagnosed who were avid and voracious readers. My best friend, who's severely dyslexic, is also an avid reader.

[Jack_Dawson]

7. Hey believe me I used to be

Stephen King. Tom Wolfe. Judy Blume (!). Then came the Internet. And TiVo. Yes, I'm rationalizing. I would love to be able to focus more. Just dunno how.

[Mythsaje]

9. Even if you have to read in installments, it's worth the effort.

You could always try audiobooks too. It's a recent passion of mine, to slow down my enjoyment of books. Rather than devouring them in a matter of hours, I can now extend the enjoyment by days. And I can do other things at the same time. House work, yard work, etc.

[FredStembottom]

28. My ADD severely effects my reading ability but I read a lot now

that I have found out a few helpful hints

1) Difficult language is easier to stay with than modern vernacular. I read a lot of writing from the 19th century. Keep a dictionary on hand at first - once I knew what words like "gaol" and "alacrity" meant, I found that the antique syntax and grammar (and all those dependent clauses) actually stimulated my mind into much better focus. Try P.G. Wodehouse (90 books - and I know he wrote in the 20th century and not the 19th - but did he?) and laugh really hard as you read sentences as long as your arm.

2) Audiobooks, yes! Totally.

3) Have 2, 3 or 4 books going at once. That's supposed to be bad and confusing but seems to help me immensely. Read some of A. Some of C. Back to A. Start B. More of A. etc.

These are just my own home-brewed remedies and may only help me. But reading books is the best - so try all kinds of tricks!

on edit: oops! This shoulda been aimed at the OP. Sorry.............

[walldude]

17. Long flights man...

Between life and the job and the kids and the house, airplanes are my only reading time.

[Jack_Dawson]

21. I feel ya

And I'm single. It's the only time I can concentrate. Cuz what else am I gonna do? Run to check my email while pausing "Burn Notice" and cooking Chicken Parmigiana?

[Webster Green]

22. Me too. I blame the internets..

I fondly remember burning through 'Bonfire of the Vanities' when it came out. Couldn't put it down for a day and a half and was laughing out loud the entire time. I hardly ever pick up a book anymore.

[Jack_Dawson]

23. B of the V -

Best book I ever read. I think. Definitely Top 5. The movie...a big disappointment. Here's to you...


You must be a Cancer.

Or Virgo.

Or Scorpio.

Or Pisces.


:toast:

[Webster Green]

25. Yeah, the movie sucked!

I was forewarned that they had blown it, but had to go see it anyway. It was an abomination.

Aquarius...you were very close!:toast:

[hobbit709]

8. True

I have ADD, which explains why I always got in trouble in school-in the days before ADD was known. I learned to read at an early age, my grandfather taught me. By the time I was 6 I was reading in German and English. I don't read as many books now-mainly due to computers and internet but my personal library has at least 2000 books in it.

[Mythsaje]

11. I don't read as many books now

because 90% of the books coming into the house are romances in which I'm not remotely interested.

[hobbit709]

12. About 60% of mine are sci-fi

The rest are divided among history, science, philosophical and cookbooks mostly.

[Mythsaje]

14. About 10% of the books coming in

are sci-fi or fantasy. I exaggerated a little. Only about 75% are romance. I can deal, in fact I LIKE, romantic suspense, if it's done well, and I don't mind some of the paranormal, fantasy, or futuristic varieties.

My wife runs a major review site. We've got books coming in at a prodigious rate. I review a couple of books a month. More, if I see ones I really like. But, to be honest, romance is what moves the Earth these days in the literary department. So that's what we get the most of.

[pitohui]

10. yeah that's what i was thinking

i seriously doubt it myself

[TahitiNut]

13. Well, I read something around 35-40 books in 2006 ... so I'm holding up my end.

:shrug: If I didn't have a book to read, I'd starve.

[Jack_Dawson]

16. Yeah but...you're smart.

I'm talking 3 out of 4 people! Have you *talked* to people lately? *People* elected Bush! TWICE!

[enlightenment]

18. 1 to 2 a week here

but I usually have 2 or 3 going at the same time - otherwise I'm reduced to reading cereal boxes and such. It's an addiction, I think.
I agree about the audio books slowing down the enjoyment. I used to play them while travelling, but found that I would get so wrapped up in the story that my driving suffered, so that had to go. Now I like to listen while I'm exercising . . . takes my mind off the sweaty boredom of that process.

[eridani]

24. Reading cereal boxes is a sure sign of text addiction

For some of us, reading really isn't a skill--it's more of a tropism.

[Mythsaje]

31. Cereal boxes, signs on the wall, text printed on any kind of packaging...

Oh, yeah. It's an addiction. LOL

[uppityperson]

27. Me too. How could you I not read?

Not all classics or high reading, some fiction, some non, but must have at least 1 book going all the time. A wished for vacation: Tent and nice pad on a bluff overlooking the beach, with several books and no one around. And a cooler with ready-made food. woohoo!

[spag68]

15. I could not survive this world without books

I guess i'm dating myself, but I read at least 10 to 20 books a year.How about this, " Military leaders pushed Johnson to expand the campaign against North Vietnam, a move encouraged by SoD R McNamara." "Known for his aggressiveness in pursuing the military effort in Vietnam, McNamara was reluctant to tell Johnson and others in the administration that the Vietnam war might not be winnable"<1967> Sailers to the End, about the USS Forrestal tragedy, by Gregory A. Freeman. Might not be winnable, sound familiar?

[splat]

19. Everybody read Harry Potter! That counts n/t

[Orrex]

20. But I swear it's not a children's book! Honest! I really really swear it really isn't!

:evilgrin:

[pansypoo53219]

26. in total, i think i read 4 or 5

BUT, 1 of them or 2 were 1892 encyclopedia britanicas, which are read slowly in the upstairs bathroom. quite illuminating. no science per se, ok, i pass over the ecclesiastical bios, but i have learned stuff. from my 1st, 1903 F-ferdinand and isabela were BROTHER AND SISTER. and later, they WERE married and had offspring. in fact Henry V111 first wife their daughter.
hmm, ok, i read it, but brazil's history has not stuck. cept portugal's queen and her consort went to brazil during napoleon.
hmm, i forgot that oration book i finished.

but no novels.

[FredStembottom]

29. Repost to the proper person:

My ADD effects my ability to read severely but I read a lot now........
that I have found out a few helpful hints

1) Difficult language is easier to stay with than modern vernacular. I read a lot of writing from the 19th century. Keep a dictionary on hand at first - once I knew what words like "gaol" and "alacrity" meant, I found that the antique syntax and grammar (and all those dependent clauses) actually stimulated my mind into much better focus. Try P.G. Wodehouse (90 books - and I know he wrote in the 20th century and not the 19th - but did he?) and laugh really hard as you read sentences as long as your arm.

2) Audiobooks, yes! Totally.

3) Have 2, 3 or 4 books going at once. That's supposed to be bad and confusing but seems to help me immensely. Read some of A. Some of C. Back to A. Start B. More of A. etc.

These are just my own home-brewed remedies and may only help me. But reading books is the best - so try all kinds of tricks!

on edit: oops! This shoulda been aimed at the OP. Sorry.............
Impeachment is the remedy.

[NaturalHigh]

30. Reading is one of the great pleasures of life.

I am constantly amazed at the number of people who tell me that they don't like to read.