“Everybody else is working to change, persuade, tempt and control them. The best readers come to fiction to be free of all that noise.” “Stop worrying about growing old. And think about growing up.” “Literature takes a habit of mind that has disappeared. It requires silence, some form of isolation, and sustained concentration in the presence of an enigmatic thing.” Philip Roth, the late American novelist.
At first glance, the quotations above appear disconnected. I think together they involve maturing, in part, with a good book.
The best readers make the best reading choices and avoid controlled agendas. I guess they seek maturity in a variety of ways and places. I believe as Roth suggests; the reading requires being enveloped. The quiet required is rare now.
I do my best when I write to engage and entertain. With persuasion, I try to write in a gentle, open-ended way. God willing, I am succeeding.
Pilgrim on a Long, Long Journey 