“I can hardly conceive how limited my perception would be without the books I have been privileged to read, how superficial my understanding of others, how undeveloped my sympathies.” – p. 164
Hello Readers!
Welcome to The 12 Days of Books – 12 Days highlighting our literary favorites, an annual tradition here at The Write Teacher(s).
The theme this year is “Books About Books.” For the first twelve days of December, we will be highlighting books written by fellow bibliophiles that highlight the importance of reading. I hope these books warm your hearts and lead you to your next favorite book.
The first book of Christmas is Walking a Literary Labyrinth by Nancy M. Malone, an Ursuline nun with a degree in theology from Harvard Divinity School.
Malone’s words about the value of books go beyond their entertainment factor. She digs deeper and recognizes that reading a vast amount of books, both fiction and non-fiction, on numerous topics has made her not just a better reader, but a better person.
“In good fiction I can observe the characters asking – or failing to ask, or wrongly answering – the questions that make us authentic human beings, true selves, the questions that are the very stuff of our lives, and the very stuff of literature, both tragic and comic.” – p. 32
“In good novels, and I count Middlemarch among the best I have read, we can find pleasure – I do – in the close observation and insightful portrayal of human personalities, the complexity of our relationships, the ambiguity of our motives, and the immense power inherent in social structures to influence our lives, the forces that are arrayed against the human good.” – p. 99
Books shape ideas. They alter our perception of the world. This is not something that happens after reading one or two books, but is the result of reading and aging.
“Think, for instance, if the novels that spoke to you when you were eighteen, that you regard as superficial or exaggerated now. Or think of revisiting one of the classics, only to discover a different, deeper book than the one you read decades ago. It’s not the books that have changed. It’s you yourself.” – p. 2
Has that ever happened to you? There are so many fictional characters I had one opinion of when I was younger that I have a very different opinion of now. For example, when I first read Little Women, I was heartbroken that Jo did not accept Laurie’s proposal. Now, Jo’s refusal seems completely rational. Her attraction to Professor Bhaer makes is much more in line with her character. Amazing how your opinions can change as you age, isn’t it?
Finally, Malone wrote on the beauty of language and the importance of its complexity.
“Language is grammatically complex because we are, our thoughts and feelings and relationships are, because life is. We don’t experience ourselves, or life, simply, declaratively. We need subordinate clauses, compound-complex sentences to express the reality of who we are, to show what is more important or less important, just how one thought or feeling or situation is related to another. And we need a rich palette of words with their different, fine shares of meaning, from which to select just the right word.” – p. 122
It’s easy to be lazy in your language. This is especially apparent in this day of Twitter. 140 characters. Go.
But humans are more complex than 140 characters.
Pick up a copy of Malone’s book this month. Consume it with a cup of tea. It is sure to warm your heart.
Live, Love, Learn,
Candice & The Write Teacher(s)
PS – Don’t forget to get your tickets to The Ugly Christmas Sweater Soiree at Feinstein’s/54 Below! Tickets and additional information are available