I would have said initially
that I generally shy away from genre fiction, but looking at the genres that
Saricks identifies in our text book I can see that literary fiction is the
genre I typically prefer (2009). I’m a
complete nerd and watch quite a bit of genre film but there’s something about
the amount of time that one spends with a book that makes me lean toward the
slightly pretentious attitude that that amount of time should only be spent
with “great” books. That said, I do have some typical genre
reading experience and preferences, namely fantasy novels. I love Tolkien and have read most of Robert
Jordan’s “Wheel of Time” series (I’ve read the beginning and end faithfully,
but there is a book in the middle that you can absolutely skip), and I intend
to start on George R. R. Martin at some point. I’m not sure why I like fantasy so much, it’s
just scratches an itch with its castles and heroism and often melodramatic
staging that extends to my choice in travel destinations, preferences in board
games, and style of dress (I’m kidding about that last one). As for my more pretentious leanings, I enjoy
conversations of ideas and literary fiction seems to often extend the
conversation of ideas and even define the conversation in our culture. Reading and discussing and becoming a part of
that conversation is satisfying to me.
Some of my favorite authors that I would describe as literary fiction
are Ernest Hemingway, Thomas Mann, and Jean Rhys.
Working at my library I have become
responsible for the management of two book clubs. Reading the books suggested by the members of
the club has widened my reading experience and gotten me out of my comfort zone
many times, often to my delight. I’ve now
read many books I would not have read on my own and have enjoyed the conversations
surrounding every book. I include this
as part of my reading profile because I think that reading books together is,
for me, an important part of who I am as a reader (and as Saricks points out in
Chapter 1 of our textbook, even an “obligation” I have as a librarian, (2009)). Just as I’m often interested in the “conversation”
that literary fiction seems to dabble in, I’m also interested in general in the
“conversations” that the reading of any book can initiate.
Work Cited:
Saricks,
J. (2009). The Readers' Advisory Guide to
Genre Fiction. Chicago, IL: American
Library Association.
Great reading profile! I never think that you're a "pretentious" reader. You like what you like! I'm glad you included reading outside of your comfort zone. There are quite a few books I never would have picked up on my own but now have become favorites because of book clubs!
ReplyDeleteDear Craig,
ReplyDeleteI can relate a lot to enjoying the film genre. I probably know more about the development of Star Wars and its individual films than many people, since I have read large books that describe the making of those films, such as The Making of Star Wars by J. W. Rinzler. Also, I suppose that I am a nerd, although I believe that I am more critical and cautious than most nerds. There is a dark side to nerd culture, which makes me wary of its benefits.
I’ve never read Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time series, although I actually did check out one of his books. However, I didn’t read the book, since I wasn’t feeling comfortable about it. I did end up skimming through character descriptions and detailed explanations of certain aspects from the series though an informational website. At first, I was intrigued. However, after I read through a number of descriptions, I slowly realized that these characters were rather stereotypical and unsatisfying. Despite its depth, the Wheel of Time series feels fairly vapid for a fantasy series. However, I respect your positive opinion on the series, and I understand that actually reading the books of the series may be different than skimming through online explanations of the content of the books.
I understand your preference towards the fantasy genre in terms of romantic castles and chivalry. I agree that there is something attractive about the fantasy genre in this respect, but I like to view certain fantasy novels as more than just vague impressions. Each fantasy novel should have a unique voice from its author, or it should exhibit unique themes. Otherwise, regular books in the fantasy genre would quickly become boring. Also, I don’t appreciate the fact that literary fiction is defining our culture. The Lord of the Rings series has shaped cultural perceptions for a number of years, especially since Peter Jackson’s films recently renewed and influenced cultural impressions of the books. I actually recorded and watched Ralph Bakshi’s film version of some of the books of Lord of the Rings in order to gain a different perspective on the books and Jackson’s films. It was actually quite interesting and enlightening to experience a different film adaption of parts of the Lord of the Rings series.
Reading the content of unfamiliar books will generally engender further content. That is the purpose of discussion. Personally, I am a bit wary of book clubs. I attended a book club about the books of Stephen King at a nearby library for an assignment in another library science course this last autumn, and I somewhat disliked it. The club’s programmer permitted a very open discussion of Stephen King’s works, and individuals began to passionately rant or subjectively discuss Stephen King’s works. It disturbed me to an extent, since their arguments were similar to typical arguments found on YouTube videos. These arguments were passionate, but they were often not critical or lacked substance in some manner. Nevertheless, I understand that these book clubs are aimed at focusing on content, and this emphasis on content can create connections to more pieces of relevant information that can be both fictional and practical towards real life.
I would say that The Wheel of Time is melodramatic overall and thus in many ways the characters are a little stereotypical. Perhaps the most subversive thing about the series is that it somewhat originated out of a desire to respond to the sprightly response of Frodo to be the doomed savior of the world, "I will take the ring to Mordor!" by exploring what might be a more realistic, human response of considering just running away ... ala Rand Al'Thor. I'm not sure Jordan actually pulls this off convincingly, but the first several books are, at least for me, a rollicking good adventure story.
DeleteI think you're onto something with your suspicion of literary fiction. I first became suspicious of my own love of it in a Creative Writing class in college when it struck me that all of the criticisms we were leveling at each other's poems had little to do with the general populace's perception of what a poem should be and were almost completely aimed at satisfying the parameters of a very specific "club" of fiction. Thoughts?
I jokingly tell people I was weaned on the Dragonriders of Pern series, so I get your love of fantasy. I also think that there is just something about reading books with big stories that makes our lives make a little more sense. I mean, who doesn't love that, often, the most "normal" character in a fantasy book becomes the hero (or anti-hero?).
ReplyDeleteI've forced myself to read outside my zone the last couple years. I've discovered some great stuff...and some not great stuff. I guess that's part of it. That, and the freedom to not feel like you HAVE to love it all!
I think my love of fantasy might have started with a mild addiction to watching The Neverending Story and early exposure to Terry Gilliam's Time Bandits. You're right, too, that the extra large metaphor of an epic fantasy does lend a sort of fabulous frame to sometimes view our own lives in. = )
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