The Bookmark Podcast S3 E4: Why we read
Listen Now
Download MP3 Subscribe via iTunes Subscribe via RSS
Tough questions
Miranda is asking tough questions about our reading habits this week. What do you want the book you are reading to do for you? How do you want it to impact you?
Do you pick books to make you feel good/better?
Chris' immediate answer is no. He never deliberately picks a book to feel good or better. Autumn uses romance novels as a pick me up.
Do you read books to escape?
Autumn jokes that she reads books about people "trying" to escape from their captors. Chris is only able to escape while reading children's books. For example, the Timmy Failure books that involve a child detective who may or may not have a polar bear.
Miranda reads books where it "works out" for the character(s) so she can feel some of that in her life.
Chris reads because he wants to feel and think. He gravitates toward books that have a gut punch. However, he has trouble naming any page-turners, or books he just couldn't wait to find out what happened!
Autumn has the opposite problem. If she's not reading an ebook, she tends to flip to the back of the book to find out what happened. She looks for that "Umph!" cringe feeling in thrillers that leave her saying "What the bleep?!" Autumn wants build-up with multiple truths. She reads for the thrill.
Do you read books to discuss them with others?
Autumn said she doesn't knowingly do it, but then she wants to discuss her book with others afterward. All three of our hosts have picked up books only because they were "assigned" by a book group they were in.
This is a good point to remind readers that we have the Book Group in a Bag collection. Get 10 copies of a book and discussion questions with each bag.
Do you read books to learn?
Autumn's learning goals depend on where she is in her life. Right now she's reading lots of self-help, but she used to read a lot more parenting-style books. Miranda often "accidentally" learns things from reading. She makes a point of reading books from perspectives different from her own, different lenses such as race and class. Chris is actively reading a book by an author from every country in the world and has maps to document his progress!
Here are the books we discussed this time:
What’s Next?
The next episode of The Bookmark drops October 11!
Meet your Hosts
Autumn Friedli, Chris Blocker and Miranda Ericsson relish talking books with recurring readers and special guests from the library and community in The Bookmark.
Thanks for listening! We love to hear from listeners.
