Tag Archives: Reading

L: Literature

A to Z Challenge: My theme this year is NYC before and during the COVID-19 pandemic.

LITERATURE: Just a tiny departure from my usual dual format because topics I kept coming up with all had to do with literature. Plus, literature is near and dear to me and now is the perfect time to load up on lit. A couple of my favorite literary-related L’s I came up with for the before part are Lear (as in King) and Library Lions (as in the stone sentinels of the New York City Public Library).

When a visiting friend had an extra ticket to see Glenda Jackson and Ruth Wilson in the Broadway production of King Lear, I jumped at the offering. Closing a month early, it wasn’t a hugely popular production, one critic calling it “confoundingly muddled,” and another describing it as a “hot, heavy mess.” Despite the reviews, I enjoyed it, marveling at how anyone can memorize and perform an entire Shakespeare play. It is no easy feat. Seeing Tony-winner (and 84-year-old!) Glenda Jackson on stage got checked off my to-see-in-life list that I didn’t even know was on there. I also got to score an autograph from Ruth Wilson, one of my favorite actresses.

The New York Public Library‘s stone lions are also a symbol of literary magic. Patience and Fortitude are the names of the two Tennessee marble lions seated outside the historic library since its opening in 1911. They didn’t get their monikers until the 1930s when Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia named them for the qualities he felt New Yorkers would need to survive the economic depression. Uh, sound familiar? These lions have seen a lot and just last year, were professionally cleaned and restored. I have to include a few shots I took last year of the beautiful library itself:

As for my current literature fix, I have a few to highly recommend:

I absolutely LOVED The Book of Delights and it’s the perfect antidote to feeling miserable. I’ve nearly finished White Fragility; every white person on the planet needs to read this book. I’ve learned a helluva lot about myself (talk about self-reflection). The Far Pavilions is probably my all-time favorite book and at 955 pages, it’s ideal for riding out a quarantine.

What are you reading? Please share!

R is for Reading

By now, we’re all probably aware of the quote from Stephen King about the importance of reading if you want to write: “If you don’t have time to read, you don’t have time (or the tools) to write. Simple as that.” I think he knows a thing or two about writing, so I take serious heed of this particular piece of advice.

My mom has always been an avid reader and passed this habit onto me early in life. We enjoy sharing books with one another and discussing what we both think of them.

So read, dammit. It’s all part of learning the craft of writing. Don’t limit yourself to writing magazines and books on the craft, but novels, nonfiction . . . you name it. I’m in a book club and because we all have different tastes, I end up reading books I wouldn’t ordinarily pick up. I’ve come across some wonderful books and authors this way. 

Reading great books inspires and teaches. As with most other professions, you wouldn’t dive in without seeing how others do it, right? Books allow you to discover the many different ways of plotting, character development, storytelling, and writing beautiful prose. 

Even if you only have ten minutes a day to read, that’s all right, because I have a feeling that those ten minutes will eventually turn into twenty, thirty, sixty minutes . . .

What are you reading these days?

A to Z Challenge 2015