As I was sitting down to analyze "Where the Wild Things Are", I was reflecting on my favorite childhood books and thinking about how much I loved (and still love) to read. I've been meeting quite a few people this past month who have told me that they hate reading, that they never read, that they would rather get bamboo shoots under their nails than read a book.
I have been a reader ever since I was born. My father and I had this nightly ritual where we would curl up in the family rocking chair and read book after book until one of us fell asleep. I know we always read picture books when I was first learning to read, but once I was old enough to read myself I hated reading picture books. For me, reading was always a way for me to relax and "escape" from the world I was in. I enjoyed creating my own world in my mind based on whatever book I was reading. I have been throughly disappointed by the movies created from my favorite books because the way the producers chose to portray the characters and settings would often be completely different from what I had pictured. The same went with the illustrations in books. Sometimes I would read picture books but ignore the pictures and make up the characters' appearances and their homes in my head.
I was discussing this with my roommate tonight, who is also an avid reader, and she was saying that she was the same way. She mentioned that she would always read "The Beranstain Bears" books when she was little, but she would create her own pictures to go with the story based on what SHE thought the bears and the setting should look like. I'm wondering now if a child's reaction to picture books is indicative of whether or not they will be readers later on in life. For example, if someone really hates to read later in life, perhaps they loved picture books when they're young. This could be because they get bored reading simply words and the pictures give them something to be entertained by. Then there are those of us weirdoes who don't particularly care about pictures because we use our imagination to create a whole new world around us.
What do you all think about this? If you do not enjoy reading today, did you prefer picture books over non-illustrated books as a child? Would reading be more enjoyable for you if all novels had pictures for you to look at?
Updates, new dates, more...
-
So, in the last post I noted that i had broken my shoulder. I had surgery
in December (finally) and am now finishing up my physical therapy. I am
back to w...
6 years ago
Posts
5 comments:
Around the age of 8, I was in a conversation with some kids older than me and a couple adults. An adult asked why we liked to read. It astonished me what the kids around me were saying. They loved to read because it was a way for them to “escape”. They said when they read, their imagination would go wild. They would “see” what was happening in the book. When I heard this, I knew I was being gypped. When I read, it was as if I was looking at a black wall. I didn't imagine (in my mind) what I was reading. When I read, the words went in my eyes, then out my mouth (verbal) without me conjuring up a picture to understand what I was reading.
As a child, I loved looking at picture books, I often did not read them. I looked at the pictures and created my own story to go with them. If I read a book, I did not “imagine” the book in my mind. I enjoyed being read to. When my mother read a book to me and I only listened, I would create the world of the book in my mind. Reading a book by myself, took too much effort.
I don't necessarily think that children get bored with reading the words and that is why they like picture books. For me, it was the simple fact that if there were only words, I could not “picture” what was happening in the book. I would read the words, but they wouldn't create an image for me to get meaning from. For most people imagining coming naturally when they begin to read. For me, I had to be taught how to use my imagination when reading. It wasn't until I was 10 or 12, that I was able to use my imagination while reading a book.
As an adult reader, I don't believe that I would enjoy novels if they had pictures. I have learned to use my imagination while reading. I am not an avid reader, but when I read for pleasure (which is rare), I enjoy creating and exploring the world that the author has created for me to experience.
I personally do not think that liking picture books have anything to do with reading more or less when you get older.
When I was young my father would always read picture books to my sister and I every night before we went to bed. Yet as we got older I got more involved with sports and playing outside rather than sitting and reading a book. I consider myself to be an active person and sitting for too long even if I am doing something such as reading or watching TV I get bored after awhile. On the other hand my sister who also loved reading picture books growing up still loves to read today. She would rather read than anything.
I think that enjoying reading in your free time just depends on your personality. Today if I find a really good book I will read for days straight but I would rather be outside doing things then sitting reading.
Your blog was very interesting for me to read because I am the opposite type of reader. (I don't think I would rather have a bamboo shot, but it's still not my favorite thing in the world.) When I was younger I really did enjoy reading all types of books especially picture books. However, now reading has just become such a chore for me. I honestly can't even remember when the last time I read a book for pure enjoyment was. Some people tell me it is because I "haven't found the right book yet", but I tend to disagree. Reading for enjoyment is just not something I do. I feel that this is because of all the reading that is involved with schoolwork. I associate reading to school and there is just so much of it in college that it is the last thing on my mind when pass-time activities come about. To answer your question though, I actually do think that if there were more pictures in books that are higher level reading I would be more inclined to read them. I'm not sure why this is but I guess it would just break up the page and page reading of novels and keep my interest more!
I was one of those "non-readers" up until this summer. I interned in New York City and to make the 50 minutes train ride more tolerable, I began reading. I ended up reading 10 books this summer, just for fun. These 10 books smashed my previous record of 0. I actually now prefer reading a good book, as opposed to watching TV. I enjoy learning, especially new words to widen my diction.
I think many people see reading as boring, because they are forced to do so in school. My younger cousin is 12 years old and he loves to read. He is big into the Harry Potter series and the Twilight series. He reads on his own, outside of school. If children aren't forced to read, simply introduced to it, I think they will find it more enjoyable and will read on their own.
I think that one major factor in determining whether a person will grow up to enjoy reading depends on the experiences they had with books as children. Similar to Mel, both my mother and my father set aside time every night before I went to bed to read books with me (most of which where picture books). As I grew older, my mom and I would sit in the backyard reading chapter books and then talk to each other about our “likes” and dislikes. I can guarantee that I personally enjoy reading so much to this day because I had such a positive experience with books as a child. Similarly, this semester I am involved with civic engagement at Red Cedar Elementary School in East Lansing, and in many cases I have noticed that the students who are not reading regularly outside of the classroom are the ones who become more frustrated with attempting to read and therefore are not able to enjoy it as much.
I think that the nice thing about picture books is that, as Mel stated, you are eventually able to step away from the images and make up your own ideas of what the characters may be like. I would like to think that people who grow up reading picture books and using their imaginations would therefore enjoy reading longer novels; because despite the length, they would probably have an easier time visualizing and connecting with the people in the stories. However I realize this is not the case. I think that picture books are, for the most part, universally accepted and appreciated in our society. However since it is really up to the reader how much imagination and creativity they would like to invest in their stories, some children who just simply enjoy relaxing and looking at the pictures may, as a result, eventually steer away from lengthy books that could involve serious concentration and thought.
Finally, I think that my answer to Mel’s last question on whether or not reading would be more enjoyable if all novels had pictures, would be no. I think that as we get older, no matter how descriptive an image may be in a story, every individual adopts their own version of the person, place, or thing. As a result, if pictures were provided in every piece of literature, I would find it as equally unsatisfying as if I were to read a book and then see the movie only to have the images be completely different than what I had envisioned.
Post a Comment