the underdog
Saturday, November 12, 2005
Those of you that know me know that I love reading. Those that don't know me will just have to figure it out for themselves. I'm currently going through a very good reading spree, starting with Paul Auster's Book of Illusions, then a quick read of Holes by Louis Sachar, which I actually read before many years ago, then the surprisingly amazing Self, by Yann Martel (who later wrote The Life of Pi) and now I've started on another Auster book, Oracle Night, which is showing serious promise. Book of Illusions, Self, and Oracle Night are all books about writers, and for some reason I find that really interesting. Another 'writing book' that I liked was Haunted by Chuck Palahniuk.
I mention these books because recently I've started to realise my fondness for writing. I don't trust myself to write a book or a play (at least not now) so this little black page on the web will have to do. I guess my fondness for writing stems from my appreciation of the written word. I think the creativity behind a novel is staggering, and I have great respect for anyone who manages to do it (unless they're writing something like the bridges over madison county).
What I love about books is their portability. A book is usually rather small, welcome in backpacks and free to go anywhere. What really amazes me is that this small pile of glued paper is actually an enormous world to which I've been invited, should I turn the cover. People tell me that they think reading is boring, but to me, reading is what I do to keep from getting bored. What's truly boring is a 20-minute bus ride (or worse, a 40-minute train ride) without anything to do. Of course, with the PSP breaking sales records around the world, soon portable cinema will be a reality (though I can't imagine anyone who would spend €25 on a movie that can only be watched on a 4.3inch screen) but cinema can't compete with literature. Sure, it competes in profit, popularity and status, but in my opinion, films lack the subtlety of the written word. When I was reading Book of Illusions, I started picturing it as a movie (which was appropriate since the book is about a film-maker), trying to think about how sequences would be done, but there's so much on each page that can't make it to the screen. Every meander of the narrators mind would be impossible to show on film (at least not in an interesting way) and each vague description would have to be transformed into something tangible. Reading is a very personal activity, since everything imagined exists only in the mind of the reader, and I think that movies take that soul out of the story.
However, despite these anti-film ramblings, I love movies. A short visit to my house would be enough to prove that (piles of DVDs everywhere that counts) and a short conversation with me would imprint it on your mind. Movies are a very different medium than books, and so are used with different intents. There are things that movies can do that books can't, and they too are very subtle. My favorite one to look out for is the soundtrack. Some people don't acknowledge the impact that a good soundtrack has on a movie. The right song, with the right images to go with it, are usually what get the viewers reaching for the Kleenex.
I don't know. I began this post talking about how books are better than films, but now I find myself going back on what I said and promoting movies. Truth be told, I love books and I love movies, and each have different ways of reaching people (or simply entertaining them) but I have a special thing for reading. I guess I kinda like the underdog.
you're that much closer to knowing me.
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