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I Don't Read! - Literature - Nairaland

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Two Short Stories. If You Don't Read Them Don't Bother Criticizing / Many Nigerian Writers Are Good, But We Don't Read / Blacks Don't Read: They Are Still Our Slaves--whiteman (2) (3) (4)

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I Don't Read! by Nobody: 6:46pm On Jun 14, 2010
This is my greatest literary shortcoming. I don't read more than newspapers, and sometimes magazines. I also glance through a number of interesting books on history of Nigerian politics, especially between indepence till now, but they are not usually more than 50 pages.

I read newspapers a lot, from primary school, and till now. But that is the end.

I respect people that are wide-read and try to be like them. I am a public affairs commentator but my very limited knowledge of history and systems doesn't make my writings rich enough to my satisfaction.

I like to be knowledgeable in history, international politics(I'm a little versed in local politics), philosophy, and in fact every field of knowledge, even if little, but I'm not comfortable with my current knowledge. I don't read novels too, neither do I watch films. I know a little about football, that's all.

I won't say I'm lazy but I think it's more of lack of interest. I try to develop interest, but it just isn't coming. I bought Obama' Audacity of Hope at teh Airport in December, and till today, six montsh after, I have not read twenty pages.


I want to be wide read. How do I go about it!!!!!
Re: I Don't Read! by SisiKill1: 7:44pm On Jun 14, 2010
Pick up a book.
Re: I Don't Read! by Nobody: 8:41pm On Jun 14, 2010
i don pick up Obama's 'Audacity of hope' for six months, I neva read 25 pages.

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Re: I Don't Read! by Orikinla(m): 1:49pm On Jun 15, 2010
Your state of mind determines what you read and how much you read.

Do not force yourself to read until you can enjoy it.

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Re: I Don't Read! by MyJoe: 6:11pm On Jun 15, 2010
Interesting op.

I have the same problem of reading. But in spite of that people think I have a good grasp of various fields, particularly my areas of interest which include history, international politics, anthropology, classics, visual arts, religion, and philosophy. If you read my articles in the national dailies you may think so too. One way of developing knowledge is interest. For example, I know nothing about football, and that is because I have zero interest in it. When you have interest in something you need to pursue it. For example, I want to be highly knowledgeable about finance and economics, but I have not had opportunities to learn much. You have to have natural intellectual curiosity (this is different from vulgar curiosity) to enjoy gathering knowledge.

Possible solutions to your "problem:

1. Listen: Listening to international radio stations is something I thoroughly enjoy. There is no subject under the sun - from Cambodian wildlife to African politics, from Navajo architecture to space exploration - that is not talked about on radio. I suggest you listen to a few of the international stations and then stick to one that meets your standards of objectivity. Buy audio versions of books and listen to them in the car and at home on weekends.

2. Read wider: From what you currently enjoy reading, you can easily expand. I think what works for me is having a hyper-curious mind. If I am reading an article by Edwin Madunagu and he mentions something I am unfamiliar with, say, Gramsci's paradox, you can safely bet your salary that I will not go to bed that day till I have found who Gramsci is and what his paradox is all about.

3. Hire a driver: One reason many don't read is that they can't find the time. I assume you live in Lagos where everyone knows what the traffic situation is like. That is good time to for reading. If you can conveniently afford it, hire a driver and read in the car.

4. Read here and there: It is not those big books that will get you where you want. Reading short articles in magazines and encyclopedia can open your mind.

5. Read novels: If you don't like stories, this will be difficult. I used to sit with the grandma to listen to folktale. I suggest you try an interesting novel and see how it goes. Since what you are looking for is ecclectic knowledge, I won't suggest classics which are for the philosophically inclined. Even modern thrillers or "best sellers" are not so sure to get you what you want, so you need to choose authors carefully. For example, John Grisham sticks closely to his area of interest, Law, and teaches you little or nothing else. But try pick up Wet Work by Buckley and see the vast amount of info packed into those pages - you at once learn about the history of Spanish conquest of South America, the international drug trade, military tactics, marine lives, Native American anthropology, and much else. And he does this without boring you for a moment, a problem many have with Forsyth's treatises.

I’m very busy now so this will have to do, unless I recall anything else.
Re: I Don't Read! by Nobody: 6:52pm On Jun 15, 2010
If you read my articles in the national dailies you may think so too.
I write in national dailies too, but I don't go beyond what I know, and I know little about the past or current happenings in some parts of the world. For the fact that I did a little of philosophy and politics in school, I should be able to write a page on Karl Marx, or Max Weber or Frederic Engel but I can't do three lines on Stalin, Hitler, etc. I'm not sure I can write a page on world wars 1&2 or the ottoman empire or the crusade . These are few of the areas I wish I know about, but due to my poor reading culture I know little about them.

1. Listen: Listening to international radio stations is something I thoroughly enjoy. There is no subject under the sun - from Cambodian wildlife to African politics, from Navajo architecture to space exploration - that is not talked about on radio. I suggest you listen to a few of the international stations and then stick to one that meets your standards of objectivity. Buy audio versions of books and listen to them in the car and at home on weekends.
I'm poor at this too. The only thing I listen to in radio is football, football only. I have apathy for radio, local or international. I try to listen to or watch CNN, BBC, Discovery etc but I easily get bored and switch back to sports channel.

3. Hire a driver: One reason many don't read is that they can't find the time. I assume you live in Lagos where everyone knows what the traffic situation is like. That is good time to for reading. If you can conveniently afford it, hire a driver and read in the car.
I agree this may help but I don't think it's complicated. While I may be able to afford the 35K I'll be paying the driver monthly, there are a number of social/family considerations that will not make me hire a driver at this age/level. Also I don't think driving is a major issue as I don't spend much time driving, I use my car only on weekends and use public transport most times on weekdays.
4. Read here and there: It is not those big books that will get you where you want. Reading short articles in magazines and encyclopedia can open your mind.
Yes I do this and it's been very helpful. Read newspapers and magazines and short journals very well. But another weakling here is that I don't read international mags like Time, The Economist etc much as I would like to be doing. There was a time I was buying them on weekly basis but after going thru the cover stories and I dumpedthem inside thcar they kept piling up without reading. I stopped. buying later.

5. Read novels: If you don't like stories, this will be difficult.
I don't read novels. Highly averesed to it. 200 pages? I ahve resinged to fate here.


Listen to Grannies? yes, i did this growing up. Witjh Grandpa being a first republic politician, most of what I know about first republic politics are from his mouth. Plus few readings later in life I know more about first republic Nigerian politics.
Re: I Don't Read! by MyneWhite1(f): 6:19pm On Jun 16, 2010
You really have to learn to read novels. You can start by Finishing Obama's book.
Re: I Don't Read! by iice(f): 4:28am On Jun 17, 2010
You have to have interest in what you are reading or you'll be stuck with either staring blankly at the pages or cramming the story. Pick a book with a subject you are interested in and start with that. Your interest in other subjects/topics come at different times and at different paces.

[s]I hope never to use the word interest for 2 weeks[/s] grin
Re: I Don't Read! by dominique(f): 8:52pm On Jun 17, 2010
i don't think there's a gray area when it comes to interest in reading. it's either you're interested or not.
Re: I Don't Read! by spikedcylinder: 12:17pm On Jun 18, 2010
Do you think you'll enjoy reading fiction?
Re: I Don't Read! by Nobody: 3:50pm On Jun 18, 2010
spikedcylinder:

Do you think you'll enjoy reading fiction?
I doubt it, honestly. I don't like make-beliefs(films, fictions etc). I will not mind knowing about them though, but even areas like history, philosophy that I like to know about, I find it diificult to read on them.
Re: I Don't Read! by spikedcylinder: 4:13pm On Jun 18, 2010
Ah, I doubt you might ever really like books. Non-fiction is usually a difficult terrain to enter by none-readers. I was thinking you start with some light Nigerian fiction and see how it goes from there.
Re: I Don't Read! by slap1(m): 11:17am On Jun 19, 2010
Hmm, talk about irony! I read everything written in English I set my eyes on, I even read from newspaper clips I pick on the road! There was a time I followed my English lecturer to quite a distance just to read thd writings on the cover of the book he was holding. My only ephemeral handicap as a student is financial. I love reading so much that I buy books with monies entrusted to me. @Jarus, what do u do with your spare time? Try reading with an aim to criticize, not to enjoy, your interest may thus spark off.
Re: I Don't Read! by kunletech: 2:48pm On Jun 19, 2010
You wana read wide?
Simple step:
Create a desire for reading in your mind.
Once u do that, Your mind will do the rest work by searching for the same people of you type, and it will help you to always be at the right place to get your desire knowledge
Re: I Don't Read! by Nobody: 12:15pm On Aug 03, 2010
@jarus

the problem is your obvious preference of certain activities to reading. the good thing is that u want to start reading but dont know how to stay focussed while doing it. between these two, there is always some middle ground. i had a similar problem till i discovered the root cause of it. i discovered that i loved being on my laptop every single idle minute of my life doing one thing or another. i really found it hard to pick up paper-backs to do any reading except for magazines, journals, e.t.c. then one day i managed to read en e-book(rich dad,poor dad) that totally blew me off and ever since, i've been hooked on e-books. i read evrything under the sun except for romance(hmmmmnnn.) i guess i found another use for my computer. try getting an e-reader, and also audio books. these will save u a lot of hassles.
Re: I Don't Read! by djayxpro: 2:39pm On Aug 04, 2010
@MyJOE
U ve got good point dere. I read everything else except my course textbooks. I think my prob is i love to c new tins and learn new tins. FSB(Biology) gives me dat bt others. Physics only repeats wat i'm tired of learning. It's always einstein,bohr,thompson, rutherford, newton, same formulas. Old stuff. Z my case got a remedy?
Re: I Don't Read! by semid4lyfe(m): 7:44pm On Aug 05, 2010
Jarus:

This is my greatest literary shortcoming. I don't read more than newspapers, and sometimes magazines. I also glance through a number of interesting books on history of Nigerian politics, especially between indepence till now, but they are not usually more than 50 pages.

I read newspapers a lot, from primary school, and till now. But that is the end.

I respect people that are wide-read and try to be like them. I am a public affairs commentator but my very limited knowledge of history and systems doesn't make my writings rich enough to my satisfaction.

I like to be knowledgeable in history, international politics(I'm a little versed in local politics), philosophy, and in fact every field of knowledge, even if little, but I'm not comfortable with my current knowledge. I don't read novels too, neither do I watch films. I know a little about football, that's all.

I won't say I'm lazy but I think it's more of lack of interest. I try to develop interest, but it just isn't coming. I bought Obama' Audacity of Hope at teh Airport in December, and till today, six montsh after, I have not read twenty pages.


I want to be wide read. How do I go about it!!!!!
Hmmm. . . .me thinks the OP's problem is he started off reading with the wrong books (newspapers, magazines) and ön the serious issues (politics, history, ecönomics etc). Now his reading interests/range is fixed and he can't seem to break out of it. Besides, he didn't follow the right pathway, lol. He should have started with the mundane fairy tale novels (Enid Blyton), grown into the mystery novels (Famous Five, Secret Seven, Nancy Drew, Hardy Boys, Agatha Christie,James Hardly Chase  etc), picked up the mature fictional novels (Frederick Forsyth, Jeffrey Archer, John Grisham, Dan Brown etc), read autobiographies/biographies, Motivational/Inspirational books before reading books/newspapers on the more serious issues like history, politics and economics.   

Op needs to start reading novels and watching films tøo. Although novels and movies are not always historically accurate, you can pick up a lot from them.

Frederick Forsyth for example  writes fictional novels on espionage & international politics and his works have covered historical issues such as the Biafra War, The Jewish Holocaust, the Cuban Missile Crisis, The Cold War & the Nuclear Arms race, The Balkanization of the Soviet States, The Falkland War, Israel-Arab conflict & the six-day war, etc etc. It was his reference to these cónflicts that piqued my interest and made me do my own independent reading to bring myself up to speed on them. Now I read everything under the sun leisurely except academic texts.   


TV & Movies also help. . . .Op can learn a lot from historical documentaries & movies such as The Last King of Scotland, The Great Debaters, Malcolm X, Pearl Habour, Cry Freedom, Sarafina etc.

ALL these will stimulate his interest and expand his areas of reading.
Re: I Don't Read! by Nobody: 9:38am On Aug 06, 2010
semid4lyfe:

Hmmm. . . .me thinks the OP's problem is he started off reading with the wrong books (newspapers, magazines) and ön the serious issues (politics, history, ecönomics etc). Now his reading interests/range is fixed and he can't seem to break out of it. Besides, he didn't follow the right pathway, lol. He should have started with the mundane fairy tale novels (Enid Blyton), grown into the mystery novels (Famous Five, Secret Seven, Nancy Drew, Hardy Boys, Agatha Christie,James Hardly Chase etc), picked up the mature fictional novels (Frederick Forsyth, Jeffrey Archer, John Grisham, Dan Brown etc), read autobiographies/biographies, Motivational/Inspirational books before reading books/newspapers on the more serious issues like history, politics and economics.

Op needs to start reading novels and watching films tøo. Although novels and movies are not always historically accurate, you can pick up a lot from them.

Frederick Forsyth for example writes fictional novels on espionage & international politics and his works have covered historical issues such as the Biafra War, The Jewish Holocaust, the Cuban Missile Crisis, The Cold War & the Nuclear Arms race, The Balkanization of the Soviet States, The Falkland War, Israel-Arab conflict & the six-day war, etc etc. It was his reference to these cónflicts that piqued my interest and made me do my own independent reading to bring myself up to speed on them. Now I read everything under the sun leisurely except academic texts.


TV & Movies also help. . . .Op can learn a lot from historical documentaries & movies such as The Last King of Scotland, The Great Debaters, Malcolm X, Pearl Habour, Cry Freedom, Sarafina etc.

ALL these will stimulate his interest and expand his areas of reading.

Wish I ahve raed all those books you mentioned, but they sound Greek to me.

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