Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-08-28

/ possible to read two. three, four or
more books at once, without losing
track of any one Of them or without
being forced to place any blame any
where.
In some instances 1t is what might
be termed reader vigor which impels
one to begin another book before the
first one is finished. This state OF
mind usually comes when the reader
is in possession of several new books
at the same time.
| He Is so eager to read them all that
he finds himself dipping into the second
| one before the first has been finished
He likes both so well that he picks
up a third in an idle hour, and be-
comes so interested that he is half WY
through 1t before he realizes that he
has begun.
Thus, without meaning to, he has
three good books in the reading at one
and the same time. If all happen to
be works of fiction, and the reader has
leaky memory, he may find that he
becomes confused In picking up any
one Of them. He may discover that
each one loses something Of the mar
rative rush which is the inherent right
Of every well told story.
These are losses which can be offset,
of course, by a good memory, and a
power which Is born with one, that of
being able to plunge Immediately into
a story again at any time without loss.
Those who do not possess this power
will be wiser If they stick to one book
at time, before going on to another.
The one best way to read two or
more books safely at once Is to Danish
from ones life the old fallacy about
reading every word Of book that one
reads.
There is nothing that makes reading
q bore like the feeling that one must
read every word whether 1t interests
him or not. This method is taught chill
dren, In order to train them TO dtsa-
greeable tasks. but when one grows up
he is supposed to put away childish
things.
One Of the most tyrannical things is
this teacher-imposed habit. Thousands
of men and women take most of the Joy
out of reading for themselves by tire
somely beginning a book at the first
word and personally inspecting every
single word that comes between 1t and
THE End"
All this Is unnecessary. The enjoy
able type OF reading is that which
rather skins through book. for IT is
not separate words which matter. in
any type book, but rather the total ef-
feet which comes from the combination
of those words.
A dictionary contains all the words
there are, but it takes a writer to put
them together so that they mean some
thing, so that they inspire thrill. inter-
est, call pictures into being, making the
dead live again.
The happy thing is that It takes a
reader. too. It was Walt Whitman who
first called for great readers. He VINO
loves books and reads them with happy
interest may set up claim to being
great reader.
To read q book doggedly. deter
minedly, is less than to read 1t, happily,
completely. There is completeness
which reads whole paragraphs or even
pages at a gulp. not exactly missing
words, but not being bound down by
them, either.
He who reads fast has better chance
to come out even In his race with half
a dozen books than the fretfll. con-
scientious man who will not willingly
miss a word lest he condemn himself
to some obscure literary hell.
Whether 1t is right or wrong to read
more than one book at time depends.
in the last analysis. upon the reader in
the case. He is both the Judge Of books
and reading-and himself.