MINDFULNESS IN READING by Ella Berthoud
A book that meditates on words and wisdom in reading
Earlier this week I was in Canberra and chose to spend a delightful few hours at the National Library of Australia. While browsing the bookshop there, I stumbled upon Mindfulness in Reading and instinctively knew I should read it.
At 136 pages, this is not a long read but it is an insight into the way reading for pleasure can be life altering - something I can attest to and which I am sure, given you’re reading this, you probably agree with, too.
Berthoud talks about understanding the world through reading and how it can shape us as people: our values and beliefs, how we see and feel the world we live in. She reminds us of what made us readers in the first place - the books we read as children, reading with our loved ones before bed or with a torch under the doona. She writes of the joys that audiobooks can bring, reminding us of being read to by parents or teachers, and making reading accessible to more people. Berthoud also talks about one of my favourite topics: the joy of sharing reading - bookclubs, little libraries, giving books as gifts and random chats in bookshops with other readers (that so often result in perfect recommendations!).
What is lovely about this little book is that there are some practical tips in it too, to make reading more mindful and fulfilling, as opposed to forgetting a book’s content within a day of turning the last page. This might include writing a review (hello!), writing a “six-word memoir” or creating a book journal, complete with photos, quotes and ratings.
I will say that Berthoud’s constant recommendation to climb a tree to read a book doesn’t attract me. I love trees, but I am a 47 year old woman and I am pretty sure IF I made it up the tree, I’d need the fire brigade to get me down. Happy staying on terra firma, thanks!
My favourite suggestion is learning passages or poetry by heart. I cannot recite much poetry but I can certainly remember some, including Happiness by A.A. Milne (recited by Sir John Mills) and parts of The Owl and the Pussycat by Edward Lear (which we had read at our wedding). I also know many lines from my favourite novels.
If, like me, you are as interested in the culture of books as in reading broadly, you might enjoy this lovely little book, too.