Thank you, Neal. What is so frustrating is that one is caught up in all of it, no matter how clear-eyes one is and how hard one resists. BTW, I also recently re-read Great Expectations and was surprised at how wonderfully it still holds up. The writing is so entertaining. Well, anyway, cheers to long books and deep conversation. I enjoyed this.
I would recommend the book "Stolen Focus" by Johann Hari. He's a journalist who explores our short attention spans from multiple angles.
I actually read "War and Peace" also, but it took me 11 years to finish. I found the military maneuvers the hardest to get into, which is the bulk of the book. I have to stress that it wasn't 11 continuous years of reading. I got distracted many times and read other things.
As far as longform content. WordPress does feature a blog called Longreads.com. There may be other sites that feature long stories, but I agree with you that they do seem to be quite solidly in the minority.
Excellent recommendations, thanks Louise. I recently ordered 'Amusing Ourselves To Death' by Neil Postman. Originally published in 1985 it apparently contains a great deal of modern wisdom!
Well said Neal if we can encourage reading from a young age, as JK Rowling did with the Harry Potter series what a huge impact on young readers that was. Then reading is one of life’s greatest pleasures. Even if we struggle with some books (as l did with Captain Corellies Mandolin) or Dickens there is a whole world of books out there so get started 🤗🤗
Ah, love the bit about music. I can still remember going to the shop to buy an album and opening it like a treasure. For many- Dan Fogelberg comes to mind- I would eagerly read all the lyrics before carefully removing the record from its sleeve and placing it on the turntable.
When I need to reset my attention span, I read John Muir. I focus on every word and feel his excitement about the natural world. Puts things into perspective.
Totally agree mate.
It’s a conscious choice to try wean yourself off ‘fast food’ content and consume more steak, as it were.
There will, I hope, always be enough people that enjoy the finer things in life …
Is that THE Matt Sutton? Where you been? Thanks for reading and commenting (even if you're not the real Matt Sutton!)
LOL I Literally just saw this.
I am the real Matt Sutton - I think ;)
(Presuming that anything is real).
Enjoy your writing and insights buddy so thanks for getting them out there :)
Thank you, Neal. What is so frustrating is that one is caught up in all of it, no matter how clear-eyes one is and how hard one resists. BTW, I also recently re-read Great Expectations and was surprised at how wonderfully it still holds up. The writing is so entertaining. Well, anyway, cheers to long books and deep conversation. I enjoyed this.
Thanks Karin, comments like this certainly soothe the frustration. Am still doing battle with GE but I'm enjoying the fight! Best, N
I would recommend the book "Stolen Focus" by Johann Hari. He's a journalist who explores our short attention spans from multiple angles.
I actually read "War and Peace" also, but it took me 11 years to finish. I found the military maneuvers the hardest to get into, which is the bulk of the book. I have to stress that it wasn't 11 continuous years of reading. I got distracted many times and read other things.
As far as longform content. WordPress does feature a blog called Longreads.com. There may be other sites that feature long stories, but I agree with you that they do seem to be quite solidly in the minority.
Good post. Thanks.
Excellent recommendations, thanks Louise. I recently ordered 'Amusing Ourselves To Death' by Neil Postman. Originally published in 1985 it apparently contains a great deal of modern wisdom!
That looks like an interesting book, too. I may have to check it out.
Well said Neal if we can encourage reading from a young age, as JK Rowling did with the Harry Potter series what a huge impact on young readers that was. Then reading is one of life’s greatest pleasures. Even if we struggle with some books (as l did with Captain Corellies Mandolin) or Dickens there is a whole world of books out there so get started 🤗🤗
Ah, love the bit about music. I can still remember going to the shop to buy an album and opening it like a treasure. For many- Dan Fogelberg comes to mind- I would eagerly read all the lyrics before carefully removing the record from its sleeve and placing it on the turntable.
When I need to reset my attention span, I read John Muir. I focus on every word and feel his excitement about the natural world. Puts things into perspective.
And Dickens is so worth it!