Of Books, Bookcases and Readers

In my country, it was reported that only an average of TWO books are read every year. A similar survey bore similar results in 1995. Now before I jump into any discussion on why the results are so disappointing, let me digress a little. Why is it that these surveys carried out by the government never involve anyone I know? Not just surveys on reading but any survey. Where does the government get these figures from? From another country? But let's save that puzzling issue for another essay.

Assuming the statistics are true, that they were conducted locally, and that the participants really can remember the number of books they've read, then the result of this survey is alarming. Yet I can't shake off the feeling that the survey is bogus. I have many friends who read as much as I do or even more. One of them is Princeton-bound and is such a well read person she knows the exact definition of every English word. I call her the 'Walking Dictionary'. Hence, Princeton-bound. I myself read about fifty books a year (okay, many of them are less than 200 pages but this excludes all my graphic novels, magazines, and the three different newspapers I read everyday) I know the exact figures (I'm at 39 this year and am at least a quarter way through six more novels) because I record them on a tattered piece of paper I tore from an old exercise book, which I keep in close proximity next to my bed. I have about seventy other unread books on my bookcases in each of my two homes waiting to be read. When I leave for London to pursue my studies I will have yet another bookcase with more books to admire.

This is why I call myself a book collector, a different level of obsession for books from that of an avid reader. A book collector is someone who avidly reads his or her books that he or she privately owns. By the way, I made up that definition from scratch myself but do take it seriously. I am sure many will agree with me on my next point; I believe that a bookcase reflects his or her true character the same way most people judge others by their clothes. The fact that you don't even have a bookcase says it all, doesn't it. I'm sorry but I can't help continue drawing parallels with that of a naked person. Judge a person by his clothes... no bookcase means no clothes, get it? But I digress. And yet I must digress again... may I parenthetically add that it is so difficult to stick to the main topic and as such, the reader must tolerate all these digressions, as you must tolerate this particular one.

Without a bookcase, you're going to have to earn my respect and admiration some other way. We are all judgmental, just in our own unique ways, and I tend to measure up a person by his bookcase. The journalist Caitlin Flanagan (daughter of the late writer Thomas Flanagan) as I quote her from a magazine said "Although it looks beautiful, the bookcase is not a decorating element, so no knickknacks! The contents and arrangement of one's bookshelves are vital clues to one's interests and education. Anyone worth her salt will walk straight to a bookcase when she visits, so you'd better be ready! The shelves should be full but not crammed. The spines must be flush with the edge of the case. The books should be arranged by subject or authors and they should impress and slightly intimidate." I agree for the most parts with her.

However, one should learn from my mistake. I have a friend who apart from being my college mate, is a journalist, budding author, actor and dabbles in opera as well. He came to crash in my apartment before one of his theatre rehearsals, and the moment he stepped inside he proceeded to check out my bookcase. Like an examiner peering over your shoulder as you write your answers but the slight difference is that I was naively eager to show off my books. At least until he asked me for my opinion on Foucalt's Pendulum by Umberto Eco, the ingenious book dubbed 'The DaVinci Code for intellectuals'. Slightly embarrassed, I confessed to having not read the book yet like the student admitting to the examiner he hasn't studied. You must understand I regard this friend as some sort of an eccentric mentor. Still nursing my bruised ego, he had to add that most of my books looked unread from the brand new uncreased spines, which was unfortunately true. My only redemption albeit slight came when he asked if he could come and borrow my books any time, meaning he agrees with my choice of reading material. By the by I am currently a quarter way through Foucalt Pendulum and I love it. My point is that you should try to finish up reading your books before displaying them.

The reason I call myself a book collector is because I often buy whole series of books written by any particular well known and respected authors. For instance, I bought four Italo Calvino novels without having read any work of his. I also bought five Umberto Eco novels when I had only read his literary criticism 'On Literature'. Other authors I heavily endorsed blindly include Saul Bellow, Aldous Huxley, Armistead Maupin, John Steinbeck, Graham Greene and many many more. All these virginal books that lay untouched on my bookcase makes me feel guilty at times but my justification is that I will eventually come round to reading them and wisdom gained from books is incomparable. To make myself feel less guilty, I decided not to take up on my parents' policy of unlimited book spending and spend my own cash. My Sandman graphic novels by Neil Gaiman nearly killed me but it was all worth it.

One full circle back to what I wanted to discuss. The disappointing results of the national book survey. According to the article, the philistines, who admit to not reading, blame stratospheric book prices and poorly managed libraries and, get this, that they don't know what books are good. This irks me greatly. That is like saying I don't know what movies are good and therefore I do not watch movies. Just go bloody google keywords like "award-winning novels" or "literature classics"! There are so many book reviews available everywhere.

Having said all this, I must add that I hope people read good books and not just bestsellers like Dan Brown or Sophie Kinsella novels. Not that I am an anti-DaVinci Code evangelist ( I'm an atheist) or anti- chick lit (well I've tried reading two chick lit novels and only managed to finish one but that doesn't mean I hate the genre). It's just that there are so many other obscure authors who deserve a fraction of the fame and recognition Mr. Brown gets. I guess I just want people to read good books, even if it means just two a year.