Real Readers

Bookpeople at the Half-Blood Prince midnight sale

At the bookstore, I was labeled a "book snob," but that is simply not true as the following quote explains. I have posited that real readers (as opposed to dilettantes/non-readers) read a wider variety of books both good and bad. Real readers feel compelled to read. Most of my close friends aren't simply compelled, but are compulsive about the pursuit. I have often heard from my non-reading acquaintances that during school or other stressful times in their lives they "don't have time to read." For us Real Readers reading is NOT a option, we are helpless but obey the allure of novel novels.

What distinguishes a Real Reader from a Dilettante? Anyone who reads at least one book a week can grudgingly be called a real reader. Otherwise, you are just a dilettante. I actually read more than that (verging on three books a week), but realize that this sort of dedication is obsessive and antisocial. Though it does make me happy.

"A lot of the people who read a bestselling novel, for example, do not read much other fiction. By contrast, the audience for an obscure novel is largely composed of people who read a lot. That means the least popular books are judged by people who have the highest standards, while the most popular are judged by people who literally do not know any better. An American who read just one book this year was disproportionately likely to have read 'The Lost Symbol', by Dan Brown. He almost certainly liked it." The Economist

I am much more cheerful when I am actively reading than when I am stuck in the morass of my daily existence. What do you think? Do you value the book suggestions of your non-reading brethren and sistren?