FROM THE EDITORS February 25, 2002 Issue

Attention, book readers: slow down

Russ Gerber

IT'S Saturday morning, and once again the thick metal door of the soundproof booth shuts tight behind me. Settling into the swivel chair, I crack open the book I'll be reading for the next two hours and remind myself, Don't hurry.

It took about a year of volunteering at Recording for the Blind before I learned a profitable lesson about reading books—slow down, absorb. You're about to establish a relationship. If you get swept along by the accelerated pace all around you and just grab-and-read, you'll miss something important.

It didn't matter whether it was a textbook on brand marketing, a collection of short stories from Africa, or a Dickens classic, I discovered that about halfway into each session I was not only becoming familiar with the subject of the book, I was also getting to know its author.

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