Fahrenheit 451: What's That in Celsius?

There is a really fascinating article in today's New York Times about an owner of a used-book store who wanted to thin out his stock. Finding he could not give away the books to libraries or thrift stores, he decided to burn them

I find this interesting on so many levels: the owner has said that not reading a book is the same as burning it; he said he was burning the books to protest the lack of reading in this country (citing a study that showed less than half of adults say they read for pleasure[!]); and, of course, the parallels to the novel and film "Fahrenheit 451."

This lack of reading and burning of books is so foreign to me. I am reading constantly. I always have a book in my car so that I can read at lunch, or whenever I am waiting at a doctor's appointment. I go through, easily, 20-30 books a year -- and these are big, long biographies or histories, not simple little short books.

Reading is, for me, as essential as food or air. I love to read as much as I love to write. Our house is filled with books. Our garage is filled with books. We are constantly buying books -- mostly from thrift stores (great selections of really offbeat subjects), independently owned book stores (like the one in Tempe we visited Friday), and online (we admit it) because the prices are so great.

I have long held that I do not trust a person who does not have any books in his/her house. I feel uncomfortable being around people who do not read -- even if only trashy novels (at least they read).

Reading is more than fundamental: it's essential.

The article will be found here.

[Illustration by Matt.]