Two Reasons to Pick Reading Over the Bachelorette

I have nothing against the Bachelorette. I have nothing against TV. And I won’t always blog about reading. But I found two links for Tuesday’s Pick-of-the-Week that may inspire us to pick up those dusty books sitting on our nightstand.

1)Vancouver is Awesome Book Club

I frequent this great website called Vancouver Is Awesome. They study, promote, and preserve Vancouver Arts and Culture, with a positive spin (from the Google profile). Something I really enjoy are the interviews with famous Vancouverites – ie. Ryan Reynolds, Michael J. Fox – on why their city is so great. I hope one day they add Joshua Jackson to that list of people, since, let’s face it, I’m still a Mighty Ducks fan at heart.  But this week I discovered a link on Vancouver is Awesome to their Vancouver Book Club. The club features local authors and subjects important to Vancouverites. This past week, they highlighted the book ‘Adventures in Solitude’ by Grant Lawrence in their secrets-to-taking-BC-Ferries post (fabulous on its own). So if you’re interested in supporting local authors/publishers, check out the rest of their list here.

2)Why Science Says Reading Fiction is Good for You

This one speaks for itself. My favorite part describes writing as a ‘co-conspiracy between reader and writer’ and ‘not just the writer’s creation.’ I love the idea of fiction as a collaboration between author and audience.

What do you guys think? Your favorite novels, are they a combination of effort on your part as well as the author’s? Or is it something you just consume? Let me know (and I will be much faster replying to comments on this one).