Comments on: On writing and reading http://www.bipolarlawyercook.net/2010/05/on-writing-and-reading/ Wed, 15 Jun 2011 04:07:37 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.1 By: Leah http://www.bipolarlawyercook.net/2010/05/on-writing-and-reading/comment-page-1/#comment-23672 Leah Wed, 16 Jun 2010 13:15:47 +0000 http://www.bipolarlawyercook.net/?p=1934#comment-23672 Some books should be tasted some devoured, but only a few should be chewed and digested thoroughly. - Cornelia Funke version of a Sir Francis Bacon quotation. Some books should be tasted
some devoured,
but only a few
should be chewed and digested thoroughly.
– Cornelia Funke version of a Sir Francis Bacon quotation.

]]> By: Lisa http://www.bipolarlawyercook.net/2010/05/on-writing-and-reading/comment-page-1/#comment-18633 Lisa Mon, 31 May 2010 18:50:25 +0000 http://www.bipolarlawyercook.net/?p=1934#comment-18633 You're right. Recommending a book is (or should be) personal because reading a book is personal experience. Far more so than watching TV. What you take away from it depends a lot on what you bring to it. Catcher in the Rye at 16 was not the same as Catcher in the Rye at 24, for instance. One thing that really bothers me in my job is the large number of books I'm asked to recommend without reference to my actual opinion. We have to endorse the purchase, so we have to tell the customer a book is good, whether we believe it is or not. We also have two 'books of the week' that we have to sell (there are quotas) and often we know nothing about them or they're not the kind of thing we enjoy but we're asked to recommend them to customers. You’re right. Recommending a book is (or should be) personal because reading a book is personal experience. Far more so than watching TV. What you take away from it depends a lot on what you bring to it. Catcher in the Rye at 16 was not the same as Catcher in the Rye at 24, for instance.

One thing that really bothers me in my job is the large number of books I’m asked to recommend without reference to my actual opinion. We have to endorse the purchase, so we have to tell the customer a book is good, whether we believe it is or not. We also have two ‘books of the week’ that we have to sell (there are quotas) and often we know nothing about them or they’re not the kind of thing we enjoy but we’re asked to recommend them to customers.

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