I am so disappointed in the reading habits of people lately. It seems like readers either don't care, don't have time, or are just being lazy "sheep" following more "sheep" to the reading table. The "Fifty Shades of Grey" phenomenon has me baffled. The arrival of this first in a growing line of books, written by E.L.James, was greeted mainly by reviews of a fairly negative nature, but which spoke of salacious and 'spicy' subject matter of the book. Most reviewers agreed that the book was poorly written, aimed at titillating the senses of the young and the not-so-young who are on the look-out for a bit of naughtiness. Well, the books (and more that followed) took off at such a rate that they have been making and dominating the 'best seller' lists for weeks.
The only way these spurious pieces of literature could have been knocked off their 'best seller' perch was by the emergence of a book written by J.K.Rowling. And so it happened. But now, the J.K.Rowling book, "The Casual Vacancy" has well and truly usurped the top position in the best seller list. (At a cost of $A40, mind you!). Does no one think for themselves any more? Do very few poeople bother to browse in a book store (or on-line) or read book reviews? I feel I am alone in my choice of reading matter. Today I am reading a book titled, "Thirty Years in a Turtleneck Sweater" by Nick Warren. It's an old-ish book; a memoir written lovingly - and well - by a son, telling the story of what his father endured as he played such an important role in the national (UK) Building Workers' strike of 1972. The heartfelt anecdotes in the book are a (painful) pleasure to read. The next book on my reading list is "Sickened", another memoir; this time by Julie Gregory. The book tells of a childhood dominated by the (hard-to-imagine) Munchausen by Proxy syndrome. Can't wait! Am I ,then, the odd one out in an individual choice of reading matter?
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Author notesI choose to comment on social issues and write creatively on a variety of subjects - for a variety of audiences.
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