PERENNIAL READING

Doesn’t everyone have a ‘to-be-read-again’ list of books that equal, or exceed, in length a list of books that still need to be read? Maybe it’s a written list, maybe it’s one held in your mind as a vague and various bunch of books that were exceptionally good reads. Maybe it’s a sub-liminal list from which books only spring to mind when triggered by a word, scent, sight, or even a song heard long ago while reading that book. Then you get that all-over, tingly, mystical frisson that sends a message to your brain saying, oh,yeah, I should read that again, soon. Maybe now. And somehow you manage to get hold of that book from off a dusty shelf, from your mother’s house, out of an unpacked box of books from your move twenty years ago. Or you just happen to see it in a yard sale for five cents. That’s kismet.

My to-be-read-again list is unwritten. I’m not sure what’s actually on that list, but I’m darn sure there is a list, and I think it’s the sub-liminal kind.

I looked up sub-liminal and discovered it’s equally acceptable spelled with or without the hyphen. That’s interesting. Another interesting thing is my discovery of WICTIONARY. I looked further and discovered that Wictionary is a Wiki-based Open Content dictionary. I kept looking and probing and maybe never would have gotten back on track with this post if I hadn’t glanced at the clock. I stopped in the middle of reading all about Beowulf Clusters. At this hour enough is enough. (Ten PM.)

Sub(-)liminal still means what I thought it meant, and then a little extra:“Below the threshold of conscious perceptions, especially if still able to produce a response.”!

Ok. I take those bold italics to mean that I might not get that frisson if the subliminal message to read a specific book:

a. is past it’s expiration date, meaning I’ve moved on past that book to bigger and better books, or;

b. I’ve actually just re-read that book and the message fell on a satiated sense, or;

c. the last time I re-read that book I hated it and the message fell on a repugnant sense.

I looked up repugnant in Wiktionary just to make sure that at ten:eighteen I was still conscious.

It’s from the Old French, (borrowed from the Latin, pugnare – to fight). Repugnant means, “to oppose, to fight against.” If I hated a book that much I suppose I would fight against it, no matter how many subliminal messages I received to the contrary.

I’d love to hear about lists that don’t wreak havoc on the sub_concious.

I’d love to hear what books are on those lists!