Poll (wait for it!): Why do you read?

[Mrs Mungo]

The books you hate thread made me wonder.

 

eta: I answered all of them except the last two. ;)

Edited September 12, 2010 by Mrs Mungo

[Dobela]

I voted for all but the last one. How much I like a book depends on mypurpose sometimes.

[Mrs Mungo]

I voted for all but the last one. How much I like a book depends on mypurpose sometimes.

 

That is what I'm wondering. Do people not like books because their expectations/purpose are not served at that moment or in general?

 

For example, I said I hated Good in Bed. It didn't really teach me anything, it didn't enrich me, it didn't give me knowledge, I didn't find it entertaining. I don't think I would *ever* like or would ever have liked it. But, The Gurnsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society is different. I think I would have liked it if I had been prepared for my reaction to it. I was told it was funny, I cried the whole way through. It would not have been my choice for an airplane book. Under different expectations/circumstances I would have liked it better, I think.

[nono]

I voted the last one....

 

and really my answer is: Because I can...

 

I just do it. Sure, a lot of your other answers are the offshoot of my reading, but not the driving purpose for me.

[Closeacademy]

I mainly read for pleasure/entertainment and a means to go someplace else. That is why I prefer books with a HEA (happily ever after) when it comes to fiction. I sometimes read other fiction books but they have to have a satisfying ending (read happy) with the bulk of loose ends tied up.

 

I don't like fiction books that have:

 

real life endings

kill everyone that I just invested 300 pages of reading into off

surprise endings that are just plain mean

 

And I especially hate The Mill on the Floss. That woman was evil to end that book that way. She could have given it a decent ending but she was mean and evil.

 

When it comes to non-fiction, I am reading to learn how to do something, gain information or just enrich my soul. :001_smile:

[Daisy]

I read for most of those reasons. Well, I could care less if I'm culturally literate or not.

 

I usually hate books that don't serve the purpose for which I read them and/or serve no other purpose than to graphically and gratuitously expose me to man's basest instincts.

[6packofun]

I should have added "other" because, although a few of the choices can apply, I also read for ESCAPE. I read to take my mind off of the here and now and allow my mind to go on holiday, so to speak.

[Rosie_0801]

I voted for all but the last one.

 

Me too. Why didn't you put "It is essential for my mental health" as an option?

 

:)

Rosie

[Heather in WI]

I answered all except the last two, too.

 

I'm usually reading 3-10 books at a time. Which one I pick up at any specific moment depends on which need from one of the reasons above that I need to fill. :)

[jenL]

I should have added "other" because, although a few of the choices can apply, I also read for ESCAPE. I read to take my mind off of the here and now and allow my mind to go on holiday, so to speak.

 

:iagree: Reading is my solace and refuge; it always has been. I also "need" to read to fall asleep at night. It helps to relax me.

[meet me in paris]

I checked every box but the last two. :)

 

Being a librarian, I've learned to read a lot of books that I wouldn't choose for myself... sometimes I'm really glad I read them. Other times, I read enough to get the gist and then put it down. I'm not maniacal about finishing books... at. all. If I don't like it, I won't finish it. My time is precious! But I've never regretted picking up even a bad book, because then I can talk other people out of it. ;)

[mommaduck]

Need an all of the above answer LOL!

[elise1mds]

I love to read for almost any reason! My list of books that I seriously dislike is fairly short. Most of that list includes books that have a poor or nonexistant plot or are just plain poorly written. I may not always crave reality, but I do like realistIC!

[StephanieZ]

I voted other.

 

I read b/c reading is like air or food or water to me. I can't go a day w/o a book. . . and must read before going to sleep no matter how exhausted I am.

 

I couldn't pick one of your reasons b/c it was either alloftheabove or more likely some other unnamed reason that I can't explain well. Perhaps it is simply some clearing of the mind that reading provides by transporting me into some other world. . . whether it's Harry Potter or Team of Rivals or Power of One. . . there is always at least one (usually several) books awaiting me at the end of the day to help my mind shift gears. Maybe it is most akin to meditation? (Which I cannot do to save my life.)

 

I Just. Must. Read.

[Alenee]

I answered to several of them including 'other'. My 'other' is to check-out from my surroundings. ;)

[ElizabethB]

All of the above, plus:

 

I can't help but read!

 

Actually, when my food allergies first got really bad during my son's pregnancy, I was too tired to reading anything but a few paragraphs from the Bible or a page or two from a magazine. Anyone who knew me knew there was something seriously wrong with me!!

[Kathleen in VA]

I answered to several of them including 'other'. My 'other' is to check-out from my surroundings. ;)

 

That's my "other" as well.

 

ETA: I checked them all, except the last two and then realized I had this "other," too.

[kitten18]

I read fiction for entertainment and pleasure.

I do almost all of my reading before I go to sleep and honestly, I just don't want to have to think very hard. Before the kids were born, I was more ambitious in the types of books I chose, now I just want to read books that are fast and easy.:leaving:

[IsabelC]

All of the above.

 

I evaluate books according to how much I get out of them for the amount of effort I put in. So one book might be good because it's easy to read in a few hours when I'm feeling tired, but quite entertaining. Another book might take a bit more concentration and thought, but be correspondingly interesting/inspiring. If I ever don't finish a book, it's usually because what I was getting out of it wasn't worth the effort required to read it.

[Miss Sherry]

Me too. Why didn't you put "It is essential for my mental health" as an option?

 

:)

Rosie

Good one. :lol: But seriously, I do read when I am stressed. Reading can be very good medicine. :001_smile:

[KidsHappen]

I can't help but read!

 

Anyone who knew me knew there was something seriously wrong with me!!

 

This is me as well. When I come home from the library without a single book or I can't find anything on my shelf that I want to read, I know depression is setting in and I need to get into see my pdoc before I crash. It is basically a gage of my mental health.

[elegantlion]

I voted all but the last one.

 

My other is varied:

 

- because I keep signing myself up for year long reading challenges. :D

- because I am working toward being a novelist, so some of my reading is to help me see what I want to emulate or avoid.

- because I read threads here and keep adding to my amazon list. :lol:

[min]

I said "for pleasure" but I could equally have picked most of them...

Min

[newbie]

Escape

[RoughCollie]

I chose the first 6 reasons. I love to read. If I don't have a book to read (which rarely happens) I feel completely at loose ends. Somehow, I think books anchor me.

[cdrumm4448]

Because if I can't read I can't live.