Tell you what i'll post the summary
So 23 read completely.
7 partly read
10 only ever watched
5 loved
2 hated
I own a few that I haven't read.
You can always pop to my other home if you want to see the whole thing.
Here's the thing though...
I am not an especially prolific reader compared to some. Normal for someone who likes to read i'd say.
So, i'm 31 years old, i've always been a reader, but we will take the first time I remember being able ot select my own books as the starting date. 2nd year primary school, the shelves at Henry's Junior, so i'd be 8.
So that's 23 years. I'd say given the complexity and length of the books has increased so the number per year is probably fairly constant. I don't quite average one per week most years. At least, not one new book per week. Rereads are usually additional to my regular intake so we shall discard those and say 45 books per year, now there have been times when I haven't read much for a couple of months, equally there are times when i've read three books in three days, so I think it probably averages out.
That's 1035 books read, since i started selecting my own. Actually given how many books I own and how many i've read and given away over the years, along with school shelves and the library, I would say that's a really low estimate.
So why do I only get 23 on the BeeB's list? It's a rubish list, it assumes people will only read the sort of dross that is served up at school. Oh some of them are good, some of them are even wonderful, most of them are very average. I read a lot of genre fiction, i'm not into the whole classics thing.
Some people don't like to read, some people love to read, it doesn't define our intellect, my Dad is way brighter than me and the only thing he reads is the Daily telegraph and the annual book I buy him for xmas which inevitably has to tap into one of his interests, engineering, cars, etc. He just isn't a fan of reading. Oh, he does enjoy the building regs and his old engineering texts.
So all of you, gather round and all together for the BBC and their views on reading,
PFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFT.
10 comments:
That's a lot of books! And I doubt I can remember my first book...
L. Diane Wolfe
www.circleoffriendsbooks.blogspot.com
www.spunkonastick.net
www.thecircleoffriends.net
I think it's a lot, but then I look at my mums shelves, remember how many she's thrown out and think yowser, i'm illiterate. :)
The thing that gets me is how bizarre the list is. Excepting the (obviously since it's the BBC) English bent of the writers, how the heck does a list include Bridget Jones Diary (which I read and liked BTW), alongside Tess of the D'ubervilles (read and thought "meh"). I'm all for randomness but this list isn't really indicative of anything.
Incidentally, the fact that I read so many of the books on the list has, in my opinion, ZERO to do with how smart or dumb I may be. That's like saying, "if you read all 100 of these books you will be more intelligent" which, to hopefully use the slang correctly, is bollocks.
Bollocks is dead right, but not the dog's which is what we are, since we are soooo awesome. :)
I should also mention that my wife, who reads nothing but romance novels, Harry Potter and Christopher Moore, has only read 6 books on that list and is (at rough guess) eleventy times smarter than I am.
At least that's what she tells me, and I believe her!
Chris - she may well be eleventy times smarter generally, but you get the award for being smart enough to marry her. ;)
I have a super brilliant friend who only reads historical romance and star wars books.
Hagelrat - I recieved the package of bookmarks in the mail, and want to thank you thank you thank you! Strangly, it had been opened (straight edges, so obviously a letter opener, not torn) and then repackaged in a Royal Mail plastic bag. Hmmm... what do the postal people think you're sending me?
(by the way, I LOVE HEDGEHOGS!)
lol, clearly didn't believe it was just paper. It's not that unusual, especially as the girl who served me was a complete thicko and didn't put any import stickers on them. i'm just glad they got there safe.
Hope Chris gets his ok too.
I'll let you know - and let me know when you're ready for the Patterson book - you said to hold off but it's starting to creep around a terrorize the other books!
Chris - you best send it then. Don't want it upsetting the others. I'll keep it with the doomed collection (books that will be looking for new homes soon, like the later anita blake books.)
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