Unread Books...

In Italo Calvino's If on a winter's night a traveler he provides a description of being in the bookstore and seeing all of the books that you pique your desire. He speaks about the books you've always wanted to read, books you've told people you've read but never have and feel like you finally should, books that you planned to read after you've read other books, and the plethora of other books that attract you. He then uses the rest of traveler to explore the infinite possibilities of novels and their effects on the lives of the reader. This got me thinking about making the decision and commitment to read a book.

Each time we choose to read, to pursue the direction of one story, we also are choosing not to pursue other stories. I believe that most people have said to themselves 'I have always wanted to read that book.' It seems that every time we have to make a decision about what book to read, there is always more than one option. Sometimes, for some readers, there may not be though. Having just read the first Harry Potter book and having the second one available allows a lot of people to indulge their insatiable desire to continue the story-- was there really any other option than pursuing the second book?

Although the techniques and interpretations of one book can possibly be infinite like a verbal cosmos we still allow ourselves to come completely immersed in one story, as if it is being written page by page in front of our eyes. We root for Jesus and think that just maybe Pontious Pilate is going to pardon him of any offense placed on his head. Perhaps Grendel and his mother might slay Beowulf and end his heroic journey. Is Frodo going to actually be able to destroy the ring? Pursuing one story is undertaking an endeavor, a commitment to follow the path and discover what is at it's end.

But what about all the unread books? If a reader reads one book how is he/she supposed to consider the book that he/she did not choose? Was the cover fairly boring? Did the reader consider the author a hack? Subject matter not interesting? Maybe Barnes and Noble didn't have the book you really wanted? This begs the question: to any given reader does a book exist until it has been read by that reader? To not read a book is partially to deny it existence. However, it can exist in the sense that you've heard about the book, maybe some friends discussed it over coffee, or a cute girl you know was telling you about it while you hung on every word like a trapeze swinger. But the unread book, approximately a 8" x 5" x 1" space given the work, can allow you a space to navigate so large that until you have read it the book will remain like distant places you know only by name and would love to explore through touch, taste, sound, and sight as you glimpse them through an airplane window.