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D.G. Hudson wrote an amazing post and Amazon review for my first NOT SO INNOCENTS book:
No, I will not give the link to it since I have pretty much given up on people reading my books.
But it surprised me that anyone had read my book, much less liked it well enough to post a review.
Do you wonder who reads your books?
Walk down any mall and you will find three or four kids,
hooded, gathered around a table, leaning over like monks or druids,
their eyes fastened to the smartphones held in front of them.
But how many, if any, books have they read in the past 6 months?
It is sad that those teens are avoiding eye contact,
avoiding real conversations in favor of cyber-talk.
They are avoiding reading even more.
Yet, stories are the touchstones of who we are as a People, as an individual.
Written stories are the secrets of the soul made manifest in prose.
We don't get that from the torture porn of GOT or THE WALKING DEAD.
Novels slip us inside the minds of the characters in them as TV or movies do not.
They let us see through another perception other than our own.
Could a country that had widely read “Huckleberry Finn”
have taken Donald J. Trump seriously for a second?
Twain’s readers will remember “the king” and “the duke.”
They know what a bullying con artist sounds like.
Who do you think reads your books?
What do you think they took away from them?
What sparked you into writing your last book?
What were you trying to say in it?
Very good observations, Roland. Kids can be encouraged to read more if they like the subject matter. How many parents encourage their kids to read, take them to the library, and read to them when they are young? Those first impressions can sometimes override peer pressure. I asked a 22 yr old a couple of years ago if she did much reading - her answer - she didn't read 'books' whether ebooks or print. Sad, since her vocabulary was sorely lacking. Schools should make some changes and encourage kids to read more current books early on.Technology has made some of our classics tedious to read, especially when you need a Coles Notes to understand them. Parents need to also set an example and read as well. . .
ReplyDeleteYou are so right: how many children see their parents reading anymore.
DeleteThe computer programers have a saying: Garbage In; Garbage Out.
My stepfather (imagine a phone booth with a head) corrected me sternly when he caught me imitating a TV personality in his speech pattern -- "Be yourself, Roland. TV already has that person. Bu5 be the best version of you."
Wise words which I have tried to follow. (At the time I just thought he was being grouchy!)
I taught grammar to my high school class from copies of X-Men comics (when they were written by Chris Cairemont who loved the English language). I then taught the deeper meanings behind the words and actions of the heroes.
It cost me as I bought the comics myself but it absorbed my students and they learned the joy of READING the comics not just looking at pretty girls in spandex! :-)
I've read several of your books, Roland.
ReplyDeleteWho reads my books? Besides a lot of my blogger buddies, I think a lot of people who are hesitant about science fiction. They want a good story and adventure rather than the science and technology.
Thanks for reading those books, Alex! It means a lot to hear you say that.
DeleteRobert Heinlein and Clifford D. Simak were wise to touch only briefly in the science aspects of their books --
since science changes so quickly, what is cutting edge today is hokey next year. But stories based on the human heart will live on as long as people gather around the campfires to listen to brave souls flinging themselves into battle against the darkness to protect those they love.
Thanks again for reading my tales. :-)
Kids may not read on their phones but they do still read print books. That's one thing about the industry - while adults have gravitated towards ebooks, kids and teens have not. And they still devour books.
ReplyDeleteThe New York Times article says otherwise, but since you are in the industry and I know you -- I trust you. :-)
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