Taste, Pleasure, and Reading

I realize that not all will share my book choices, which may seem by some to be a bit obscure. A bit of context might help here. I was an inveterate reader as a child, demolishing whole series of "The Bobbsy Twins," "Nancy Drew," and other fast food reading for the younger set. No doubt, part of what made me such an avid consumer of books was the fact that I was a socially maladjusted child, not only somewhat precocious but super sensitive and lacking in basic social skills. Books were my junk food - they filled me up and whisked me away from taunts, teasing, and my parents' arguments. At one point when I was sick and bored, I was so starved to read something that I picked up the dictionary, meandering through the meanings and etymologies of obscure words.

As I aged, I was a promiscuous reader. I gobbled up mysteries, fantasies, and, on occasion, books that were somewhat akin to the "book club books" that play such a prominent place on today's bookstore shelves. I also had a few favorite authors of a more serious vein, especially as a young adult--books about women that I felt to be somewhat exotic, yet also possessed of the kind of navel-gazing that so many of us engage upon as young people: for instance, D. H. Lawrence, Anais Nin, Doris Lessing [especially The Golden Notebook]. Escape was still prominent in my reading, as was pleasure. In fact, pleasure and escape will always be a part of the reason that I read - that is, when reading is meant for entertainment rather than work.

Something has happened to my taste, though, since I have become beyond middle-aged and caught up with the competing demands of parenting and work. Pleasure will always come first, but I'm a bit more particular about the nature of my pleasure reading. You see, junk food will always fill you up if you're in a fix. And who has time to cook on a regular basis the kind of wonderful, exquisite dishes that you only get on occasion? I've become addicted to really good coffee and pay for it. For the rest, I would love to fill my cupboards with excellent cheeses, the best cuts of meat, fabulous breads, and the finest herbs, but it's hard to get these ingredients in Lansing and I can hardly afford to eat like that on a regular basis. Books, however, are an exception to this rule. The best books are not the most expensive ones - in fact, they're often the cheapest [the classics are free online]! I can dine on the most exquisitely crafted and meaningful books for the same price as a filling but less than memorable book. BUT, and this is a big but, I still always seek pleasure in reading. It has first of all to be a good yarn, one that can transport me out of my daily reality. I'm willing to wait a few pages or even a chapter for the book to draw me in, but, after that, if the book has not enticed me I'm unwilling to move on. I'm not particularly fond of post-modernist fiction as pleasure reading, because I have to work too hard to read it, but, for instance, there are many 19th century British novelists who can tell a story with the best of them with beautiful prose that I can enjoy for nights on end.

So, like a good wine, or good cheese, the taste for good reading can be cultivated. But, we still all need that filling fast food once in awhile. I am always on a quest to find just the right read that is captivating, pleasurable, and nourishing all at once.