I get the fact that every person is unique, and has their own way of doing seemingly routine and everyday things, but why such a great disparity? This seems to be especially apparent in the ways that people read a fine book(or a not so fine one), and I’m not totally sure what to make of it.  My idea of the proper way to sit down and read a book is the digestion method, as I have decided to call it. It is the sort of method in which the book, and the characters who inhabit its world, seep their way into your everyday life and become very real. To me, this is the only reasonable way to read a book, and I do believe that it is the way an author intends it to be read. Let’s take a look at the others methods:

Marathon Reading Method: The name pretty much says it all, folks. A method which I think kills the cathartic, emotional, and spiritual effects of a good novel. One cannot simply sit down in a chair and gorge themselves with every word contained in The Great Gatsby all in one sitting. It is rude, pointless, and is driven by that same macho mentality that makes men want to drink their coffee black.

One-Week Method : A bit better than the method above, and I must admit, I do respect this method to a degree. This is the method where a book is to be read in one week. Now, for most works, this is a very acceptable method, but for works of more girth, and that have a general more grandiose form, it is not reasonable. We must pace ourselves when sipping down the works of the greats.

I’m sure there are other methods that I am not aware of, but those are the main two that I just wanted to talk about specifically.  Don’t get me wrong, they have there place(as much as I hate to admit that), but only in the sort of book club setting, not for leisure reading. Ultimately though, reading is a personal thing, and it ought to be done the way you like. I have no business butting in on how to read a book—shut me up.

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