Comments on: What Is Reading, Fundamentally? – BTT

By: Beth A.

Beth A. — Sat, 07 Jun 2008 05:32:01 +0000

I think it depends on the cookbook. I have cookbooks that are mostly recipes with a bit of extra writing, but I also have cookbooks that are extensively informative on the science of cooking. I sit down and read them, and often the recipes are incidental to the rest of what I’m learning. I suppose it comes down to the difference between a reference book and a textbook.

I treat Librarything as a way to catalog my entire home library, which means everything goes in. But I agree that it doesn’t all count as reading. When I compile my list of what I’ve read in the past month, it certainly doesn’t include dictionaries.

By: mellymel

mellymel — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 03:14:36 +0000

i agree with you…although i have been known to curl up with a cookbook now and then. i don’t add them to my “list”. and you are right, to each their own, any storytelling genre is okay with me, but not necessarily for me. i’ll take many pages bound together, thank you very much.

By: mashadutoit

mashadutoit — Sat, 31 May 2008 14:16:42 +0000

I like your point about storytelling as opposed to simply reading. Although I am so addicted to reading that I’ve been known to grab the nearest shampoo bottle to read the lable, when nothing else is available!
I wrote a post on storytelling on my blog that you might find interesting…
http://masha.nightcity.co.za/blog/2008/04/26/what-is-it-about-stories/

By: Amy

Amy — Sat, 31 May 2008 04:41:53 +0000

I’m hosting a read one book challenge at my blog for the non-bookish.

By: Literary Feline

Literary Feline — Sat, 31 May 2008 04:29:42 +0000

I think you make a couple of very good points in regards to what reading means to me. There is the fundamental definition–being able to read the written word in general, and then the enjoyment and seeking out of a story.

I admit that I do catalog cookbooks in LT, but I it sounds like I use the site for a slightly different purpose than you do. While I agree that I do not read those books by your meaning, they are books and they are in my home, therefore I log them in my LT library. My account is a record of all the books I own in general.

By: Rebecca

Rebecca — Sat, 31 May 2008 00:32:05 +0000

I enjoy cooking books. I would consider reading a cookbook as reading. I think it depends how you approach it. If I sat down and read the cookbook, I'd be reading it (and I can see myself doing that). If I referenced it as I made my dinner, I think I'd be using it.I wrote about audiobooks. Yes, the author is the one reading, but I am also engaged in it. It's reading, but a different type of it.

By: Linda

Linda — Fri, 30 May 2008 02:51:07 +0000

I think reading does include cookbooks, backs of cereal boxes, all of that. There are different purposes for reading though. Maybe the question should be more “what is reading for enjoyment.” Because there are all kinds of writing, there are all kinds of reading.

By: softdrink

softdrink — Fri, 30 May 2008 02:34:52 +0000

I’m with Eliza…any reading is good, be it thoughtful or mindless. Actually, I don’t think any reading is mindless…comic books still engage people, so how is that mindless?

By: mary

mary — Fri, 30 May 2008 01:27:08 +0000

i know a lot of people who would consider cookbooks as engaging! i have a few Italian cookbooks which spend many pages explaining the history of the food.

By: pussreboots

pussreboots — Fri, 30 May 2008 00:29:13 +0000

I catalog any book in GoodReads that I’ve reviewed (or will review) on my blog. This list includes a whole bunch of kids books. So far I’ve only reviewed one cook book and I can’t remember if I’ve added it my GoodReads shelf or not.