True or false II

In my last post (“True or false,” Feb. 12) I listed some quotes about literature to be found in Matthew Pearl’s The Last Bookaneer. Let’s continue that exercise today.

Strangers talking over piles of books do not remain strangers for long.

False. I wish it were true, or more true than strangers talking over piles of clothing or stacks of lumber not remaining strangers, but I don’t think it is. I have had good conversations with strangers in bookshops and at book fairs without ever learning the other person’s name or making plans to meet later in a coffee shop. It takes more than a few minutes of good conversation to turn strangers into friends.

A man must never think reading a book makes him special.

True. But that’s true of most achievements, from making a million dollars to scoring the winning touchdown or winning a blue ribbon at the county fair. Once you start thinking you are better than others, you are in trouble.

Books inspire a man to embrace the world or flee it.

True. At least sometimes. The statement suggests it’s a matter of either/or. Rather I think some books sometimes encourage readers to become more involved with the world around them and others who live in it. Meanwhile other books are read in part to escape the world, at least for a few hours. That’s often why we read thrillers, romances, sci-fi adventures, murder mysteries and so forth. A good book can do both.

Authors do not create literature; they are consumed by it.

False. This statement just seems silly to me. Of course authors create literature. If not them, then who? Are they consumed by it? Well, some are. Others are just trying to make a buck.

For readers, books are a universal salve. When we are hot, we read to feel cooler; when we are cold, we read to warm up; tired, books wake us; anxious they calm us.

False. Oh, I find it true for me, and I imagine it is also true for most people with a passion for books. But how many people have such a passion? For most of mankind, a book is not what they would turn to for a “universal salve.” Others might choose their television or a good stiff drink.

Literature is about now. Its pulse comes from today, not yesterday or even tomorrow.

True. Historical novels are really about the time they were written, not the time being written about. Science fiction is really about today, not tomorrow. More accurately, literature is less about the time it was written than the time it is read.

We’re not done yet. More next time.