I’ve had to read scads of non-fiction in my day, but I haven’t read a whole lot of fiction. I’m reading A River Runs Through It again (after 15 years or so), and am still trying to wade through Ulysses with varying success. I’ve read quite a bit of Steinbeck, and enjoy him greatly. I can think of a few other novels I’ve read and liked and forgotten the names of some that I didn’t.

I’m learning to appreciate more as I absorb the thoughts and descriptions of wordsmiths. Their efforts to make text come alive both helps me visualize their world and, by extension, find better ways to express and explain my own. And I am more aware of the nuances and interactions with others in daily life. The more fiction I read, the clearer and more descriptive my thoughts and connections become, both to myself and (hopefully) others as well (this post notwithstanding :-)

And if that’s not reason enough to read more, I’m not sure what is.