Pick-a-Shelf discussion

Knowing that the graphic novel The Arrival has pictures but no words, and knowing that many of us "read" books by listening to the audio version has got me to thinking what we really mean by the term "reading".

When have we READ a book?
Can you READ "The Arrival" even though it has no words?
Have you READ a book if you have ONLY listened to the audio version?
Is listening to the audio version significantly different than watching a BBC version of, say "Jane Eyer" or "Bleak House"?

Can you say you have "read" Lonesome Dove if you have watched the entire mini-series?

The answers to these questions are not very important, none-the-less, I find them interesting to consider. I would LOVE to have some of you weigh in on them.

For myself, in order to "read" a book, you have to have text to read or be read-to by someone else. Audio books are okay in my world (though I don't use them myself as I space-out while trying to listen) because you are read the text of the book.

Movies and mini-series don't count as far as I am concerned, because you are not reading/hearing the entire written story...it's an audio/visual condensation of the book. Likewise, The Arrival is not something you can read, but it is an involvement in a story by way of artwork (a story is told, but not by words -- just like any other paintings/drawings/etc). I have checked out The Arrival and found it very interesting, but I don't feel that I read it at all. This is not the same as other graphic novels -- most have words and can definitely be read.

I guess to me it depends - but interestingly enough, I just looked up read in the dictionary and this is what the first definition said - to look at carefully so as to understand the meaning of (something written, printed, etc.) - so I guess by the nature of the defintion alone - The Arrival could be termed reading even if it is a picture book only because you are trying to understand what each of the pictures mean

Interesting questions.

I don't think that watching a movie is reading because the director is the one that tells the story, not the writer. I feel that when you read, you make your own impressions of what the story is about but when you watch it in film, the director is telling his perspective. With the combination of music, pace, editing, lighting, etc. they can transform a story into something completely different.

I consider an audiobook as a form of reading although not as pure as a book because there's an artist doing the performance that can influence your feelings about the story.

The Arrival is interesting because like a book, everybody would be looking at the same thing but drawing their own conclusions. If you can read a face, couldn't you read a book with just pictures? :)

I think their needs to be a distinction drawn between reading and literacy and fluency. Listening to an audiobook is "reading" as it gives you the author's words. And I find it is a good way to "read" books that may be hard for me to get through on my own and can stretch me. Much like me reading a harder book to a younger child would. But I have to actually read words to be literate and the ease with which I read them and gleen their meaning is my fluency. Young children are taught to "read" the pictures of a book to help them decipher the text.

Part of the joy of reading and discussing a book is the different ways the same words can be interpreted. Watching a movie will never be reading. And I think one reason I don't really enjoy the graphic novel genre is I prefer reading the words over reading the pictures.

I like listening to audiobooks but I will at some point read the actual book.

I don't reallly like graphic novels but I think a book with pictures and no words could be classed as reading as it is just the opposite of a book with words and no pictures, instead of creating your own visual image you can create your own version of the story.

Movies and tv versions for me don't count as reading, when watching a movie or a tv programme I can't focus completely on it the way I can with a book my mind starts to wander and I think about other things.

Here's my take on reading:

Audiobooks: Yes
Wordless books: Yes
Graphic novels: Yes

Movies: NO
TV: NO

With the top three, your brain is working to create the story. With the bottom two, the story is there and you just have to sit and take it in.

Where would you guys say plays fall? For example, Shakespeare. If you are hearing the exact text as it's written, would that count as reading it, whether you watch a live performance or movie?

I would say no, personally, but I can't say exactly why. Maybe it's as D.G. says, and you're getting someone else's perspective and vision. Any thoughts?

I'm with Luann and her breakdown.

Vivian wrote: "Where would you guys say plays fall? For example, Shakespeare. If you are hearing the exact text as it's written, would that count as reading it, whether you watch a live performance or movie? "

Good question, I would say no also. It's almost like hearing an audio book, but there you do also have the scene setting and other non-verbal information. A play does not have these (except in a visual sense), so I guess to me a watching a play does not qualify, just like TV or movies do not.

Vivian wrote: "Where would you guys say plays fall? For example, Shakespeare. If you are hearing the exact text as it's written, would that count as reading it, whether you watch a live performance or movie?

I ..."


Interesting comment about plays. Have you ever seen Richard III staring Ian McClelan? It is set in a Nazi-like society but the words are verbatim Shakespeare. It is VERY good, but the director DEFINITLY interprets for you!

Great discussion guys. I'm glad you find/have found the topic interesting. Keep those comments coming!

I guess I never really answered my own questions.

I would say audio books are a "yes" as is any form of book with pictures (even with no words).

As for the TV and mini-series thing...I would also say no, but I feel a little ambivalent because from a cultural literacy point of view I think good adaptations for movies and plays get you familiar with the plot points of the story as much as reading the actual book does.

It actually makes me a little sad because once I have seen a Jane Austin mini-series (or Moby Dick etc) I tend to NOT read the book because I already know the story.

I guess there are 2 reasons to read a book:

One is to get the story, the tale. Good movies or mini-series can sometimes, albeit very rarely, give you that.

The second is the flow of the words and language themselves which movies/TV never give you in as much depth.