As I was preparing tomorrow’s post, I realized that I had too many quotes about reading. I like to keep Wordsmitten Wednesday to just one or two quotes, and I had six! So, I split them up into two posts. 🙂
If you want your children to be intelligent, read them fairy tales. If you want them to be more intelligent, read them more fairy tales.
― Albert Einstein
It is what you read when you don’t have to that determines what you will be when you can’t help it.
― Oscar Wilde
Never read a book through merely because you have begun it.
― John Witherspoon
I am reading six books at once, the only way of reading; since, as you will agree, one book is only a single unaccompanied note, and to get the full sound, one needs ten others at the same time.
― Virginia Woolf
If one cannot enjoy reading a book over and over again, there is no use in reading it at all.
― Oscar Wilde
Love this. I agree with all except Virginia Woolf’s. I’m pretty sure my brain would melt if I tried to read six books at the same time. Though I think you’ll be proud of me, Selah: I’m reading a book and listening to an audiobook (on my commute to work) so I’m technically reading TWO books at once. Haha.
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Ah, I think back to all the years I commuted to work and DIDN’T take advantage of audiobooks – so much wasted reading time! 😦 6 books at once is a lot – 3 is my optimum number. 🙂
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I might be okay with three: one book, one audiobook, and one graphic novel. 🙂
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There you go!
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Great quotes! I hadn’t come across the Virginia Woolf quote before, but the first two and the last are among my favorite book quotes. I’ve got a Pinterest board for collecting book-related quotes, plus I keep my favorites in a Word document.
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Yeah, I have a Pinterest board for book quotes too. I also collect quotes on Goodreads. It’s rare to find a quote promoting polyreading, so I was thrilled when I saw the Virginia Woolf quote on Goodreads!
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I agree with Woolf. I read multiple books at the same time as I would watch multiple shows at the same time. If I am reading very different books, I feel like I’m going on multiple adventures. If the books are very similar, I can learn more about a particular subject. I can learn about that subject from different angles.
I also agree with your last quote from Wilde. If a book is incredible, I can’t help but reread it. My favorite works are Le Petit Prince (The Little Prince), Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and Gulliver’s Travels – books I have reread many many times.
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Yes! The analogy to television shows is perfect. 🙂
Oh, I’ve read Charlie and the Chocolate Factory multiples times as well – it’s such a fun book!
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Sometimes, reading the comments are just as enlightening as reading the post! At first, I agreed with Stefani about polyreading but then Fariba put an excellent spin on it that got me thinking: I do following several TV shows at once so it makes sense. Then I realized, with the advent of DVR, I usually don’t watch my shows until the season is over and then I marathon them, so I guess I’m still a monowatcher/monoreader at heart. Can’t teach an old dog… ;p
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What’s funny is that while I prefer polyreading, I’d much rather marathon a TV show – especially shows that have a season long or series long arc.
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Exactly! The only shows I do polywatch (am loving this new term you’ve created here!) are the episodic ones like Castle and Bones.
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Haha, I think I saw the term polyreader somewhere, but I don’t remember where it was. 😛
I polywatch New Girl because, as you said, it’s episodic, and a few shows that I watch alone (Longmire, some Masterpiece stuff). I also polywatch Downton Abbey, Sherlock, and Doctor Who because I’ve already waited AGES between seasons (plus, I’ll end up marathoning them again later)!
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I need to get back into Downton. I stopped at series 3 (?) right when the youngest sister died. Wait, did I just spoil that for you?!
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No, not for me. I don’t know about anyone else reading the comments. 😛
So, you stopped half way through series 3? There are 3 episodes and the Christmas special after that, plus series 4.
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I know. BFF spoiled the other death for me and I stopped watching because of it. That other dead character was one of the redeeming ones in the show… 😦
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Oops. Yeah, a couple of the actors didn’t want to renew their contracts, so they got killed off. 😦 I’ll keep watching as long as Maggie Smith is on the show – she is amazing! I have to admit, my favorite thing about Downton is that Bert watches it with me! 😀
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Is that what happened there? Grrrrr! And just when that character finally grew on me looks-wise (previously, I thought he looked a bit like a surprised giraffe). Well, Maggie Smith IS amazing so perhaps I shall go back and rewatch. Too bad Netflix doesn’t have it.
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Hmmm… That first quote by Oscar Wilde is making me all thinky. I love quotes just generally so love this post – thanks!
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I’m glad you like the post and that it made you think. 🙂 I’ve got another great quote lined up for tomorrow!
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