Reading

[landbeforetimelover]

Never read a fantasy book before.  Only computer manuals and such, but the fantasy movie's I've watched were okay.

I mean, honestly, who has the time to sit down and read a book purely for recreational purposes?

[Petrie.]

I mean, honestly, who has the time to sit down and read a book purely for recreational purposes?

I make time.  Your brain needs some down time where it doesn't have to over analyze every single second.

[landbeforetimelover]

Your brain needs some down time where it doesn't have to over analyze every single second

I find that when I try to do something that's considered to be "relaxing", I get bored really fast.  My brain has to constantly processing tons of information at once for me to be entertained.

[DarkHououmon]

I mean, honestly, who has the time to sit down and read a book purely for recreational purposes?

What do you mean? A lot of people like to read just for fun. Heck, during school, I used to read books during class as much as I could. When I start to read a book I like, I can't put it down. My imagination of what's going on is entertainment enough for me when it comes to reading.

[landbeforetimelover]

What do you mean? A lot of people like to read just for fun. Heck, during school, I used to read books during class as much as I could. When I start to read a book I like, I can't put it down. My imagination of what's going on is entertainment enough for me when it comes to reading.

I find no pleasure in reading.  I read only to acquire information.  I might actually enjoy it though if they made some LBT books. :

[DarkHououmon]

You're missing out on a lot then. Books tend to have a lot more character development than the movies. There are books out there you'd like. There's always something out there that people like to read.

I wouldn't really enjoy an LBT book.. It would only be about 100 or 200 pages, most likely, and be pretty simplified, since it would be geared towards children. I prefer books that are around 400-500 pages long or so.

I can't really read a book just to aquire information. I would get a headache from it all.

[landbeforetimelover]

I can't really read a book just to aquire information. I would get a headache from it all

well then you're normal.  I'm just weird.  I can't stand fictional books.  They make me tired.

[DarkHououmon]

I can say the same for non-fictional books.

[landbeforetimelover]

I've just never been able to see the logic in reading just to read.  Very confusing.  The end result has no use, the process is boring, time has been expended.  Nothing more.  I am often times confused with illogical activities that people around me participate in.  *sigh*.  I guess I'll never learn.

[DarkHououmon]

I've just never been able to see the logic in reading just to read. Very confusing. The end result has no use, the process is boring, time has been expended. Nothing more. I am often times confused with illogical activities that people around me participate in. *sigh*. I guess I'll never learn.

It helps to develop the mind. It helps broaden vocabulary. It helps broaden the imagination. It can induce hope, and help heal a broken heart. It can create excitement, and inspire people, and touch the hearts of many people.

[Malte279]

I mean, honestly, who has the time to sit down and read a book purely for recreational purposes?

Poor you. You have my greatest sympathies!
Here I sit amidst no less than 32 books I have to read for the university (most of them about the cold war and I must also admit that not all of them have to be read from the first to the last page), yet it didn't kill of my love for voluntary reading. I'm looking very much forward to the appearing of the next Harry Potter book. I'm looking very much forward to the publishing of the next book by one of my favorite authors of historical novels (scheduled for September), and I'm very, very sorry for those who really feel they can obtain nothing but information from books; information from which they can derive nothing but knowledge. Books can be so much more.
Many books are written for those who haven't yet unlearnt to dream. Machines don't have any dreams. Albert Einstein once said:

Imagination is more important than knowledge. For knowledge is limited, whereas imagination embraces the entire world, stimulating progress, giving birth to evolution.

I agree, and it is imagination that makes books enjoyable beyond the mere aquiring of information. Through imagination you can interpret the information offered to you to a picture and through imagination you can add elements not presented as information in the text. Much more than movies books allow you to use your imagination rather than prescribing what to see.

I'm afraid this is a topic too important to be dealt with as off topic. Therefore I shall clip the respective messages from this thread and make them a thread of their own.

[DarkHououmon]

Imagination is more important than knowledge. For knowledge is limited, whereas imagination embraces the entire world, stimulating progress, giving birth to evolution.

I completely agree. While it is nice to have knowledge, it is just not as enjoyable as imagination. What good is knowledge if it allows our imagination, the very thing that has been a major part of human society for thousands of years, to rot away?

[Flathead770]

Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings series are the only books i've been able to sit down and enjoy reading, but i never really take the time to try other novels.

[DarkHououmon]

I've only read one of the Lord of the Rings books, and it was all right. And I don't plan on reading Harry Potter.

Some good books I've read and recommend are:

Jurassic Park
The Lost World
Watership Down
Dinosaur Wars
Firebringer
The Sight

[Flathead770]

thanks but i'll probably never get to reading them because im a bit lazy and tend to shove the idea of reading aside, even though i don't mind reading if i like the book enough.

[Petrie.]

What you see in the films of Jurassic Park, The Lost World, and Watership Down do not even compare to what they were like in literature.  Very often if you watch the film and only read the book after, you'll find two different animals but the book is much more detailed and offer background info. that's often not presented in films.

[NewOrder]

That's true Petrie, I read Jurassic Park the novel during christmas break, found it at an used book sale, only cost me 5 euros. Anyway, there are so many details there that were left out of the movie, more dino's and a lot of cool scenes that either showed up in other movies or just never aired.
Ian Malcom dies at the end of the novel and curiously enough he ressurects in The Lost World
I'm a great JP fan, and I still say the movie is one of the best ever maid, but the book is even better.

I'm currently reading a Stephen King novel, that I can't remember the name, so far it's about an old lady who was arrested and is confessing to killing her husband and another old lady she was a made to. Do you like this author?

[DarkHououmon]

Ian Malcolm never died, actually. It was a premature report.

[Manny Cav]

I mostly read my Bible and Car and Driver. However, I do enjoy reading projects assigned in school, like Charlotte's Web, The Swiss Family Robinson, etc. Reading is good for you.

I must sympathize with you too, landbeforetimelover. Anyone who has time enough to watch a LBT movie has enough time to sit down and read a good book. I really find it amazing to believe that you find reading "illogical."

I spend too much time on the computer as it is because of nothing-much-else-to-do-isms. With school coming up soon, mabey I'll get some good reading in.

[NewOrder]

The Bible? I'm supposed to be catholic and never read it I have a friend who's an athiest (not sure on the spelling) and who read it all the way through.