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Why Orwell Matters
by Christopher HitchensGeorge Orwell's body of work does not offer an easy categorization of his political stances. A product of English elite schooling, Orwell was posted to Burma as a colonial officer. Hitchens chronicles Orwell's experiences in that role and his subsequent evaluation of the brutalizing effects colonialism has on both the occupiers and the occupied. This led to a lifelong hatred of authoritarianism which led him to become a committed socialist. Like many socialists of the time, Orwell had great hopes for the Soviet Union. After witnessing Stalin's iron-fisted suppression of dissent during the Spanish Civil War he saw Stalin to be as great a danger to civilization as Hitler. Hitchens examines Orwell's exasperation at the refusal of his socialist comrades to accept that their hopes for the promise of Communism had been brutally and cynically manipulated and betrayed. Although Orwell was contemptuous of the Right, he has nonetheless been claimed by them, although uneasily. The Left has never been comfortable with Orwell either. How this has come about and why is the subject of "Why Orwell Matters". Hitchens' prose is always a joy to read, though his contrariarnism can be jarring at times. "Why Orwell Matters" is probably Hitchen's least polemic works. If you've ever wanted to get a better understanding of George Orwell - and don't want to wade through an exhaustive biography, this is the book for you.
Why Orwell Matters
by Christopher HitchensIn this widely acclaimed biographical essay, Christopher Hitchens assesses the life, the achievements, and the myth of the great political writer and participant George Orwell. In true emulative and contrarian style, Hitchens is both admiring and aggressive, sympathetic yet critical, taking true measure of his subject as hero and problem. Answering both the detractors and the false claimants, Hitchens tears down the façade of sainthood erected by the hagiographers and rebuts the critics point by point. He examines Orwell and his perspectives on fascism, empire, feminism, and Englishness, as well as his outlook on America, a country and culture towards which he exhibited much ambivalence. Whether thinking about empires or dictators, race or class, nationalism or popular culture, Orwell's moral outlook remains indispensable in a world that has undergone vast changes in the fifty years since his death. Combining the best of Hitchens's polemical punch and intellectual elegance in a tightly woven and subtle argument, this book addresses not only why Orwell matters today, but how he will continue to matter in a future, uncertain world. Christopher Hitchens, one of the most incisive minds of our own age, meets Orwell on the page in this provocative encounter of wit, contention and moral truth.
Why Poetry
by Matthew ZapruderAn impassioned call for a return to reading poetry and an incisive argument for poetry’s accessibility to all readers, by critically acclaimed poet Matthew ZapruderIn Why Poetry, award-winning poet Matthew Zapruder takes on what it is that poetry—and poetry alone—can do. Zapruder argues that the way we have been taught to read poetry is the very thing that prevents us from enjoying it. In lively, lilting prose, he shows us how that misunderstanding interferes with our direct experience of poetry and creates the sense of confusion or inadequacy that many of us feel when faced with it. Zapruder explores what poems are, and how we can read them, so that we can, as Whitman wrote, “possess the origin of all poems,” without the aid of any teacher or expert. Most important, he asks how reading poetry can help us to lead our lives with greater meaning and purpose. Anchored in poetic analysis and steered through Zapruder’s personal experience of coming to the form, Why Poetry is engaging and conversational, even as it makes a passionate argument for the necessity of poetry in an age when information is constantly being mistaken for knowledge. While he provides a simple reading method for approaching poems and illuminates concepts like associative movement, metaphor, and negative capability, Zapruder explicitly confronts the obstacles that readers face when they encounter poetry to show us that poetry can be read, and enjoyed, by anyone.
Why Read Moby-Dick?
by Nathaniel PhilbrickMoby-Dick is perhaps the greatest of the Great American Novels, yet its length and esoteric subject matter create an aura of difficulty that too often keeps readers at bay. Fortunately, one unabashed fan wants passionately to give Melville's masterpiece the broad contemporary audience it deserves. In his National Book Award- winning bestseller, In the Heart of the Sea, Nathaniel Philbrick captivatingly unpacked the story of the wreck of the whaleship Essex, the real-life incident that inspired Melville to write Moby- Dick. Now, he sets his sights on the fiction itself, offering a cabin master's tour of a spellbinding novel rich with adventure and history. Philbrick skillfully navigates Melville's world and illuminates the book's humor and unforgettable characters-finding the thread that binds Ishmael and Ahab to our own time and, indeed, to all times. A perfect match between author and subject, Why Read Moby-Dick? gives us a renewed appreciation of both Melville and the proud seaman's town of Nantucket that Philbrick himself calls home. Like Alain de Botton's How Proust Can Change Your Life, this remarkable little book will start conversations, inspire arguments, and, best of all, bring a new wave of readers to a classic tale waiting to be discovered anew.
Why Read the Classics? (Penguin Modern Classics Ser.)
by Italo CalvinoThis collection of essays by the acclaimed author of Cosmicomics offers a fascinating, personal journey through some of literature&’s greatest works. Classics, according to Italo Calvino, are not only works of enduring cultural value, but also personal touchstones. They are the books we are always rereading in order to understand our world and ourselves. Here, Calvino introduces more than thirty works from his own ideal library in essays of warmth, humor, and striking insight. He discusses great authors ranging from Homer to Jorge Luis Borges, and from Charles Dickens to the Persian folklorist Nezami. Whether tracing the links between Ovid&’s Metamorphoses and Alain Robbe-Grillet&’s objectivity, discovering the origins of science fiction in the writings of Cyrano de Bergerac, or convincing us that the Italian novelist Carlo Emilio Gadda&’s works are like artichokes, Calvino offers a new perspective on beloved favorites and introduces us to hidden gems. &“This book serves as a welcome reminder that the great works are great because they can mean so much to readers, and Calvino is a most knowledgeable guide to all the best destinations.&”—San Francisco Chronicle
Why Read the Classics?
by Italo Calvino Martin MclaughlinTranslated by Martin McLaughlin, 'A classic book at bedtime, a seductive invitation to forgotten opportunities' The Times Why Read the Classics? is an elegant defence of the value of great literature by one of the finest authors of the last century. Beginning with an essay on the attributes that define a classic (number one - classics are those books that people always say they are 'rereading', not 'reading'), this is an absorbing collection of Italo Calvino's witty and passionate criticism. With thirty-six essays - including thoughts on figures like Homer, Hemingway, Borges, Tolstoy and Twain - Why Read the Classics? represents Calvino's own canon of great works and is full of the fascinating insights of the mercurial, incisive mind of a brilliant reader, as well as writer. 'One of the most inspiring justifications of great literature I've ever come upon' Sunday Telegraph.
Why Reading Books Still Matters: The Power of Literature in Digital Times
by Martha C. Pennington Robert P. WaxlerBringing together strands of public discourse about valuing personal achievement at the expense of social values and the impacts of global capitalism, mass media, and digital culture on the lives of children, this book challenges the potential of science and business to solve the world’s problems without a complementary emphasis on social values. The selection of literary works discussed illustrates the power of literature and human arts to instill such values and foster change. The book offers a valuable foundation for the field of literacy education by providing knowledge about the importance of language and literature that educators can use in their own teaching and advocacy work.
Why Reading Literature in School Still Matters: Imagination, Interpretation, Insight
by Dennis J. SumaraWhy Reading Literature in School Still Matters: Imagination, Interpretation, Insight explains how a reader's involvement with literary texts can create conditions for developing deep insight into human experience, and how teachers can develop these interpretive possibilities in school contexts. Developed from the author's many years of research, this book offers both a theoretical framework that draws from an interdisciplinary array of sources and many compelling and insightful examples of literary engagement of child, adolescent, and adult readers, as well as practical advice for teachers and other readers about how to create interesting and expansive sites for interpretation that are personally rewarding and productive. Why Reading Literature in School Still Matters: Imagination, Interpretation, Insight : *provides an overview of theories of human learning that influence beliefs about language, culture, and identity; *shows how these theories of learning influence beliefs about and practices of reading and interpretation; *introduces new ways to conceptualize reading that emphasize the relationship between individual and collective identities and language/literacy practices; *explains why access to information does not guarantee that understanding and/or insight will occur--by emphasizing the importance of "re-reading" and "close reading" this text shows that development of deep insight depends on interpretation skills that must be taught; and *presents a reconceptualized view of reading pedagogy. This is an essential text for education courses at both the undergraduate and graduate levels and a must read for teachers and for anyone interested in more deeply understanding how literary works of art can create conditions for learning about oneself, one's situation, and one's possibilities.
Why Should the Devil Have All the Good Music?: Larry Norman and the Perils of Christian Rock
by Gregory ThornburyThe riveting, untold story of the “Father of Christian Rock” and the conflicts that launched a billion-dollar industry at the dawn of America’s culture wars. In 1969, in Capitol Records' Hollywood studio, a blonde-haired troubadour named Larry Norman laid track for an album that would launch a new genre of music and one of the strangest, most interesting careers in modern rock. Having spent the bulk of the 1960s playing on bills with acts like the Who, Janis Joplin, and the Doors, Norman decided that he wanted to sing about the most countercultural subject of all: Jesus. Billboard called Norman “the most important songwriter since Paul Simon,” and his music would go on to inspire members of bands as diverse as U2, The Pixies, Guns ‘N Roses, and more. To a young generation of Christians who wanted a way to be different in the American cultural scene, Larry was a godsend—spinning songs about one’s eternal soul as deftly as he did ones critiquing consumerism, middle-class values, and the Vietnam War. To the religious establishment, however, he was a thorn in the side; and to secular music fans, he was an enigma, constantly offering up Jesus to problems they didn’t think were problems. Paul McCartney himself once told Larry, “You could be famous if you’d just drop the God stuff,” a statement that would foreshadow Norman’s ultimate demise. In Why Should the Devil Have all the Good Music?, Gregory Alan Thornbury draws on unparalleled access to Norman’s personal papers and archives to narrate the conflicts that defined the singer’s life, as he crisscrossed the developing fault lines between Evangelicals and mainstream American culture—friction that continues to this day. What emerges is a twisting, engrossing story about ambition, art, friendship, betrayal, and the turns one’s life can take when you believe God is on your side.
Why Society is a Complex Matter
by Philip BallSociety is complicated. But this book argues that this does not place it beyond the reach of a science that can help to explain and perhaps even to predict social behaviour. As a system made up of many interacting agents - people, groups, institutions and governments, as well as physical and technological structures such as roads and computer networks - society can be regarded as a complex system. In recent years, scientists have made great progress in understanding how such complex systems operate, ranging from animal populations to earthquakes and weather. These systems show behaviours that cannot be predicted or intuited by focusing on the individual components, but which emerge spontaneously as a consequence of their interactions: they are said to be 'self-organized'. Attempts to direct or manage such emergent properties generally reveal that 'top-down' approaches, which try to dictate a particular outcome, are ineffectual, and that what is needed instead is a 'bottom-up' approach that aims to guide self-organization towards desirable states. This book shows how some of these ideas from the science of complexity can be applied to the study and management of social phenomena, including traffic flow, economic markets, opinion formation and the growth and structure of cities. Building on these successes, the book argues that the complex-systems view of the social sciences has now matured sufficiently for it to be possible, desirable and perhaps essential to attempt a grander objective: to integrate these efforts into a unified scheme for studying, understanding and ultimately predicting what happens in the world we have made. Such a scheme would require the mobilization and collaboration of many different research communities, and would allow society and its interactions with the physical environment to be explored through realistic models and large-scale data collection and analysis. It should enable us to find new and effective solutions to major global problems such as conflict, disease, financial instability, environmental despoliation and poverty, while avoiding unintended policy consequences. It could give us the foresight to anticipate and ameliorate crises, and to begin tackling some of the most intractable problems of the twenty-first century.
Why Study Linguistics (Routledge Guides to Linguistics)
by Kristin Denham Anne LobeckWhy Study Linguistics is designed to help anyone with an interest in studying language understand what linguistics is, and what linguists do. Exploring how the scientific study of language differs from other ways of investigating this uniquely human behavior, Why Study Linguistics: explores the various topics that students of linguistics study, including sound systems of language, the structure of words and sentences and their meanings, and the wider social context of language change and language variation; explains what you might do with a degree in linguistics and the kinds of jobs and careers that studying linguistics prepares you for; is supported by a list of links to additional resources available online. This book is the first of its kind and will be essential reading for anyone considering a course of study in this fascinating subject, as well as teachers, advisors, student mentors, and anyone who wants to know more about the scientific study of language.
Why Study the Media?
by Professor Roger Silverstone"It's easy to be snobbish about media culture; the great merit of Roger Silverstone's book is to make the reader understand just how important that culture is." - Richard Sennett, New York University "A remarkable book which argues for a new paradigm for the study of the media." - Daniel Dayan, Centre National de la Recherche "A persuasive and sophisticated discussion of the role of the media in modern life at the threshold of the twenty-first century." - Ellen Seiter, University of California "A very important book, one that moves media theory and argument on at long last. This is an attempt to get people to think differently about the media - not just when they are writing essays, but also when they are arguing about media in everyday life." - Simon Frith, University of Stirling The centrality of the media, all media, to human experience - from the conduct of everyday life, to the exercise of power, to the creation of culture - is inescapable. We live in an intensely mediated world. Yet the academic study of the media has rarely made its own insights accessible and relevant to those outside its own limited sphere. Indeed it is constantly under attack for its lack of rigour, apparent failure to address the needs of industry and its inability to tell us anything substantive about the world in which we live. Written as a manifesto and in order to set a new intellectual agenda, Why Study the Media? argues for the importance of the media in our culture and society and the consequent necessity of taking the media seriously as an object of enlightened but rigorous investigation. At once human and humane, Why Study the Media? will be welcomed by all those in search of new ways of thinking about our mediated world.
Why Surrealism Matters (Why X Matters Series)
by Mark PolizzottiAn elegant consideration of the Surrealist movement as a global phenomenon and why it continues to resonate Why does Surrealism continue to fascinate us a century after André Breton’s Manifesto of Surrealism? How do we encounter Surrealism today? Mark Polizzotti vibrantly reframes the Surrealist movement in contemporary terms and offers insight into why it continues to inspire makers and consumers of art, literature, and culture. Polizzotti shows how many forms of popular media can thank Surrealism for their existence, including Monty Python, Theatre of the Absurd, and trends in fashion, film, and literature. While discussing the movement’s iconic figures—including André Breton, Leonora Carrington, Salvador Dalí, René Magritte, Man Ray, and Dorothea Tanning—he also broadens the traditionally French and male-focused narrative, constructing a more diverse and global representation. And he addresses how the Surrealists grappled with ideas that mirror current concerns, including racial and economic injustice, sexual politics, issues of identity, labor unrest, and political activism. Why Surrealism Matters provides a concise, engaging exploration of how, a century later, the “Surrealist revolution” remains as dynamic as ever.
Why the Humanities Matter: A Commonsense Approach
by Frederick Luis AldamaIs there life after postmodernism? Many claim that it sounded the death knell for history, art, ideology, science, possibly all of Western philosophy, and certainly for the concept of reality itself. Responding to essential questions regarding whether the humanities can remain politically and academically relevant amid this twenty-first-century uncertainty, Why the Humanities Matter offers a guided tour of the modern condition, calling upon thinkers in a variety of disciplines to affirm essential concepts such as truth, goodness, and beauty. Offering a lens of “new humanism,” Frederick Aldama also provides a liberating examination of the current cultural repercussions of assertions by such revolutionary theorists as Said, Foucault, Lacan, and Derrida, as well as Latin Americanists such as Sommer and Mignolo. Emphasizing pedagogy and popular culture with equal verve, and writing in colloquial yet multifaceted prose, Aldama presents an enlightening way to explore what “culture” actually does—who generates it and how it shapes our identities—and the role of academia in sustaining it.
Why the Long Joke?
by James ThomasThis is a very silly book. If that's not your thing, then at least buy it for a wayward niece. Inside, you'll find thousands of ideas: dozens of stories, poems, diagrams, lists and cartoons, along with hundreds of jokes and approximations thereof. Is this the funniest book ever published? Well, that's very nice of you to suggest, but at least read it first. James Thomas, what wrote the book, is the elected President of Twitter. But don't let that put you off. He works hard at this nonsense, and has several other irons (books) in the fire (not literally). Why The Long Joke? is the consequence of several years of throwing away Brilliant Material in favor of Ultimate Stupidity. A difficult process, but as you'll see, the results speak for themselves.Inside you'll find countless nuggets of comedy bronze, including "How to Write a Sentence"; "Edgar Allan Poe Goes to a Music Festival"; and "The Three Letters from Saint Paul to the Venusians." Do not, also, miss the author's original illustrations, such as "Dinosaurs of the Future" and "How to Tell If You're Dead"--they're exactly as useful as they sound.
Why the Romantics Matter
by Peter GayWith his usual wit and élan, esteemed historian Peter Gay enters the contentious, long-standing debates over the romantic period. Here, in this concise and inviting volume, he reformulates the definition of romanticism and provides a fresh account of the immense achievements of romantic writers and artists in all media. Gay's scope is wide, his insights sharp. He takes on the recurring questions about how to interpret romantic figures and their works. Who qualifies to be a romantic? What ties together romantic figures who practice in different countries, employ different media, even live in different centuries? How is modernism indebted to romanticism, if at all? Guiding readers through the history of the romantic movement across Britain, France, Germany, and Switzerland, Gay argues that the best way to conceptualize romanticism is to accept its complicated nature and acknowledge that there is no "single basket" to contain it. Gay conceives of romantics in "families," whose individual members share fundamental values but retain unique qualities. He concludes by demonstrating that romanticism extends well into the twentieth century, where its deep and lasting impact may be measured in the work of writers such as T. S. Eliot and Virginia Woolf.
Why They Can't Write: Killing the Five-Paragraph Essay and Other Necessities
by John WarnerAn important challenge to what currently masquerades as conventional wisdom regarding the teaching of writing.There seems to be widespread agreement that—when it comes to the writing skills of college students—we are in the midst of a crisis. In Why They Can't Write, John Warner, who taught writing at the college level for two decades, argues that the problem isn't caused by a lack of rigor, or smartphones, or some generational character defect. Instead, he asserts, we're teaching writing wrong. Warner blames this on decades of educational reform rooted in standardization, assessments, and accountability. We have done no more, Warner argues, than conditioned students to perform "writing-related simulations," which pass temporary muster but do little to help students develop their writing abilities. This style of teaching has made students passive and disengaged. Worse yet, it hasn't prepared them for writing in the college classroom. Rather than making choices and thinking critically, as writers must, undergraduates simply follow the rules—such as the five-paragraph essay—designed to help them pass these high-stakes assessments.In Why They Can't Write, Warner has crafted both a diagnosis for what ails us and a blueprint for fixing a broken system. Combining current knowledge of what works in teaching and learning with the most enduring philosophies of classical education, this book challenges readers to develop the skills, attitudes, knowledge, and habits of mind of strong writers.
Why to Kill a Mockingbird Matters: What Harper Lee's Book and the Iconic American Film Mean to Us Today
by Tom SantopietroTom Santopietro, an author well-known for his writing about American popular culture, delves into the heart of the beloved classic and shows readers why To Kill a Mockingbird matters more today than ever before.With 40 million copies sold, To Kill a Mockingbird’s poignant but clear eyed examination of human nature has cemented its status as a global classic. Tom Santopietro's new book, Why To Kill a Mockingbird Matters, takes a 360 degree look at the Mockingbird phenomenon both on page and screen.Santopietro traces the writing of To Kill a Mockingbird, the impact of the Pulitzer Prize, and investigates the claims that Lee’s book is actually racist. Here for the first time is the full behind the scenes story regarding the creation of the 1962 film, one which entered the American consciousness in a way that few other films ever have. From the earliest casting sessions to the Oscars and the 50th Anniversary screening at the White House, Santopietro examines exactly what makes the movie and Gregory Peck’s unforgettable performance as Atticus Finch so captivating.As Americans yearn for an end to divisiveness, there is no better time to look at the significance of Harper Lee's book, the film, and all that came after.
Why Translation Matters
by Edith GrossmanWhy Translation Matters argues for the cultural importance of translation and for a more encompassing and nuanced appreciation of the translator's role. As the acclaimed translator Edith Grossman writes in her introduction, "My intention is to stimulate a new consideration of an area of literature that is too often ignored, misunderstood, or misrepresented." For Grossman, translation has a transcendent importance: "Translation not only plays its important traditional role as the means that allows us access to literature originally written in one of the countless languages we cannot read, but it also represents a concrete literary presence with the crucial capacity to ease and make more meaningful our relationships to those with whom we may not have had a connection before. Translation always helps us to know, to see from a different angle, to attribute new value to what once may have been unfamiliar. As nations and as individuals, we have a critical need for that kind of understanding and insight. The alternative is unthinkable." Throughout the four chapters of this bracing volume, Grossman's belief in the crucial significance of the translator's work, as well as her rare ability to explain the intellectual sphere that she inhabits as interpreter of the original text, inspires and provokes the reader to engage with translation in an entirely new way.
Why We Gesture
by David McneillGestures are fundamental to the way we communicate, yet our understanding of this communicative impulse is clouded by a number of ingrained assumptions. Are gestures merely ornamentation to speech? Are they simply an 'add-on' to spoken language? Why do we gesture? These and other questions are addressed in this fascinating book. McNeill explains that the common view of language and gesture as separate entities is misinformed: language is inseparable from gesture. There is gesture-speech unity. Containing over 100 illustrations, Why We Gesture provides visual evidence to support the book's central argument that gestures orchestrate speech. This compelling book will be welcomed by students and researchers working in linguistics, psychology and communication.
Why We Love Middle-earth: An Enthusiast's Book about Tolkien, Middle-earth, and the LotR Fandom
by Shawn E Marchese Alan SistoFor Fans of the Tales of Tolkien, Middle-earth, and More"...a great resource for readers and film-viewers who are new to Tolkien and curious about all things Middle-earth.” —Corey Olsen, The Tolkien Professor and president of Signum University#1 New Release in British & Irish Literary Criticism and EncyclopediasLearn about the man who wrote The Lord of the Rings in this Middle-earth treasury. Full of answers to common questions asked by readers to learn about Middle-earth and the fandom, this book about Tolkien celebrates Why We Love Middle-earth. The Lord of the Rings omnibus for all. Who wrote The Lord of the Rings? What details are in the movies, books, and other stories—and how do they tie together? Intrigued by Amazon’s new show The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power? What’s the story as Tolkien told it? Dive into Middle-earth’s expansive lore with Why We Love Middle-earth, a fandom book about Tolkien’s work.The perfect companion for any Middle-earth traveler. Written by beloved Tolkien commenters of The Prancing Pony Podcast, Shawn E. Marchese and Alan Sisto, Why We Love Middle-earth is the ultimate guide to the fandom. Newcomers and existing fans of Tolkien will revel in the dragon’s hoard of information inside.Inside, find:A brief history of Tolkien’s creation of Middle-earth, including facts you likely never knewA recommended reading order for Tolkien’s major works, and the reasoning behind itAn introduction to some of the real-world influences that inspired TolkienAn overview of some of the most popular branches of the fandom, including adaptations, collecting, languages, and moreOriginal illustrations of Middle-earth by illustrator Emily AustinIf you enjoy fandom books or a good book about Tolkien’s works such as Atlas Of Middle-Earth, Recipes from the World of Tolkien, or Why We Love Star Wars, you’ll love Why We Love Middle-earth.
Why We Need Ordinary Language Philosophy
by Sandra Laugier Translated by Daniela GinsburgSandra Laugier has long been a key liaison between American and European philosophical thought, responsible for bringing American philosophers such as Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau, and Stanley Cavell to French readersOCobut until now her books have never been published in English. "Why We Need Ordinary Language Philosophy" rights that wrong with a topic perfect for English-language readers: the idea of analytic philosophy. aFocused on clarity and logical argument, analytic philosophy has dominated the discipline in the United States, Australia, and Britain over the past one hundred years, and it is often seen as a unified, coherent, and inevitable advancement. Laugier questions this assumption, rethinking the very grounds that drove analytic philosophy to develop and uncovering its inherent tensions and confusions. Drawing on J. L. Austin and the later works of Ludwig Wittgenstein, she argues for the solution provided by ordinary language philosophyOCoa philosophy that trusts and utilizes the everyday use of language and the clarity of meaning it providesOCoand in doing so offers a major contribution to the philosophy of language and twentieth- and twenty-first-century philosophy as a whole.
Why We Need the Humanities: Life Science, Law and the Common Good
by Donald DrakemanAn entrepreneur and educator highlights the surprising influence of humanities scholarship on biomedical research and civil liberties. This spirited defence urges society to support the humanities to obtain continued guidance for public policy decisions, and challenges scholars to consider how best to fulfil their role in serving the common good.
Why We Read: On Bookworms, Libraries, and Just One More Page Before Lights Out
by Shannon Reed*NATIONAL BESTSELLER**A Good Housekeeping Reads pick*A hilarious and incisive exploration of the joys of reading from a "beloved and wonderful writer" (George Saunders), teacher, bibliophile, and Thurber Prize SemifinalistWe read to escape, to learn, to find love, to feel seen. We read to encounter new worlds, to discover new recipes, to find connection across difference, or simply to pass a rainy afternoon. No matter the reason, books have the power to keep us safe, to challenge us, and perhaps most importantly, to make us more fully human.Shannon Reed, a longtime teacher, lifelong reader, and New Yorker contributor, gets it. With one simple goal in mind, she makes the case that we should read for pleasure above all else. In this whip-smart, laugh-out-loud-funny collection, Reed shares surprising stories from her life as a reader and the poignant ways in which books have impacted her students. From the varied novels she cherishes (Gone Girl, Their Eyes Were Watching God) to the ones she didn&’t (Tess of the d&’Urbervilles), Reed takes us on a rollicking tour through the comforting world of literature, celebrating the books we love, the readers who love them, and the ways in which literature can transform us for the better.