Print v iPads: books win!‏

Although e-book readers might be heralded as the future of literature but a new report shows that it's still quicker to read the old-fashioned print version of a book. However, the study found that although traditional printed books are faster and 'more relaxing' to read, but iPads and Kindles are 'more satisfying'.

The UK's reading secrets

Today is World Book Day. Earlier this year over 1,300 people took part in an online survey about their reading habits. They were given a list of 10 books and asked which they had lied about reading. Two out of three people admitted lying about reading a particular book to impress someone, the survey released to mark World Book Day found. George Orwell's 1984 and Leo Tolstoy's War and Peace are among the books people are most likely to have lied about reading, according to the poll.

In addition, 41% of respondents confessed to turning to the back of a book to read the end before finishing the story and 48% admitted to buying a book for someone else and reading it first.

Library Free Day: Sat 21 Feb

A special event is being held across libraries in Leicestershire where literally everything is FREE! On Saturday 21st February, until 5pm, if you’ve forgotten to take a book back recently or if you’ve been too scared to take it back for a while, now’s your chance, as you won’t have to pay a penny in overdue charges.

The event celebrates the free nature of libraries - everybody knows it’s free to join the library, you can borrow books for free and most people know libraries have computers, with access to the internet via broadband which is also free, but what else can you get for nothing that day? No overdue charges, free DVD hire, free CD hire, free talking book loans, free requests, and free printing (note: some conditions apply).

Link: Find your local library

A book a week in 2009?

Have you ignored the warning against making New Year resolutions? Did you decide that you wanted to "read more books" in 2009? If so, Penguin books have selected 52 "top titles to get you excited about reading all throughout the year".
Each month has suggestions in each of four categories: Must Read, Healthy, Wealthy, and Wise. Visit the 52 Books website or download and print off the reading list.

Do Nothing... Christmas is Coming

In 2007, Do Nothing to Change Your Life encouraged us to nurture our inner slob. Now, Do Nothing... Christmas is Coming turns to what, for many, is the busiest time of the year. For every day of Advent, Stephen Cottrell provides short, practical steps to help us slow down, take time out - amd resist the pressure of the Christmas whirl. Described as "an Advent calendar with a difference", this gift book is perfect if you need to slow down during Advent - or if you know someone else who needs an injection of calm!

Advent resources

Having looked at various aspects of preparing for Christmas, surely the most important is preparing ourselves to encounter Immanuel - God with us - afresh this year. Many Christian publishers have ranges of Advent books - daily meditations or readings to use in the weeks leading up to Christmas Day (and often beyond to Epiphany). These include: BRF, CWR, and the Good Book Company. Last year the Church Times ran a review of Advent books.

There are also free web resources:

• Lifewords have a Christmas site which is loaded with useful resources for church and community (powerpoints and screensavers, audio downloads, invites, service and assembly outlines) all free to download and adapt for your own context
  
• Lifewords are also publishing Advent devotionals (1-12 December) which you can receive by email or read on the Advent blog
  
• Scripture Union publish a free to download Advent Bible Reading Guide
• The Evangelical Alliance offer an Advent Prayer Guide for 2007
• rejesus offers three short meditations on the Nativity and a range of other Christmas resources (including Christmas carol karaoke!)
• The ReSource website has some Poems for Advent
• The Cyber Hymnal can provide you with the words (and music) of many Advent hymns and Christian Aid have a Carol Sheet to download
  

Holiday reading (5)

An earlier blog highlighted the books MPs are reading on holiday and I've now spotted that the Archbishop of York is sending every MP in the country some summer reading. Dr John Sentamu is sending MPs the 100-Minute Bible and the book Do Nothing to Change Your Life. The latter is "a guide to slowing down" written by the Bishop of Reading, Rt Rev Stephen Cottrell, and was published earlier this year. The book urges its readers to create pauses in daily life to benefit their own, and society's, health and well-being - it argues this fresh perspective of relishing every moment with a greater attentiveness will improve our relationship with God.

Do Nothing to Change Your Life is a passionate plea for the nation to ditch endless 'to do' lists, constant streams of emails, and an increasingly 24/7 culture. The book was published following news that an international study had shown that the pace of life in our cities has increased by 10 per cent in the last decade. Dr Sentamu says that he wants "to encourage our nation's elected representatives to slow down during their holiday and in that place of quiet and stillness to enter into the presence of God".

Holiday reading (4)

Following earlier posts on summer reading, we can now see which books MPs will be reading during their summer recess. The article summarises this by saying that "that the Tories are swotting up on Gordon Brown - while Labour politicians are questioning the existence of God".

Holiday reading (3)

Here's another perspective on our summer reading: reading to the glory of God. This doesn't just mean only reading "Christian" books, as this article On Reading from Desiring God ministries discusses. The author says that reading "can help us to know God and ourselves, gain vicarious experience, increase our perception and imagination, train our minds to think critically and logically, and teach us self-discipline". The article finishes with some suggested further reading.

Holiday reading (2)

In the first post in this series I discussed different approaches to acquiring books for holiday reading. If you like the deliberate approach to book selection (as opposed to the accidental approach), here are some suggestions if you have read all the books by a favourite author and are hungry for more.

• Who Else Writes Like...? A readers' guide to fiction is an established reference book designed to help anyone who enjoys reading fiction to expand the number of writers they read. It answers the dilemma facing those who have exhausted the output from a particular author: "What shall I read next?" Your local public library should have a copy.


• The literature-map website is an interesting idea. Its a visual search tool for authors - the closer two writers are on the "map", the more likely someone will like both of them. Just type in a name to find an author on the map.


• Another approach is provided by whichbook, a website that helps readers find books by genre, setting, plot etc. Instead of starting from the overwhelming choice of books available, whichbook starts from the reader and provides an intuitive way to find books to match their mood. The intention is to enable each individual to build the elements of that elusive 'good read' we are all looking for but don't quite know how to define.

Holiday reading (1)

How do you choose what books to read on holiday? Do you save up books you have purchased or received as gifts over the past year so you can feast on them on holiday? Do you pick up books in charity shops so you can leave them behind and lighten the load in your suitcase when you return home? Maybe you rely on your hotel or youth hostel having a "library" (sometimes just a shelf) where you can borrow and/or deposit books.

My summer reading tends to contain all three of the above elements. This summer my serendipitous reading included a couple of books I picked up from just such a holidaymaker's library. One was Toast: The Story of a Boy's Hunger by Nigel Slater - an autobiographical sketch of his childhood. While I found the writing funny, poignant and disturbing, I enjoyed the way a number of his food memories resonated with me (i.e. the days when lemonade lorries visited weekly and the great Angel Delight vs Instant Whip debate).

Read any good books recently?

The BBC reports on research conducted by Manchester University that shows that, contrary to popular expectation, Brits spent more time reading in recent times than they did in the 1970s. that shows that people in the UK are reading more than they did a quarter of a century ago. These findings fly in the face of many people's assumptions about modern Britain as "a nation of dumbed-down MP3-toting philistines who prefer computer games to the mind-expanding delights of a good book".

Meanwhile, Christian Research comment on the WorldBookDay poll which found that The Bible is the nation’s sixth most indispensable book. Over 2,000 people voted, nominating 10,000 different titles between them. The overall winner was Pride and Prejudice getting 20% of the votes, followed by Lord of the Rings with 17%. You can read the full results here.

Watch out for a forthcoming blog series on summer reading.