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The e-volution of
reading A famous American novelist and essayist, William Styron, once said: "A good book should leave you... slightly exhausted at the end. You live several lives while reading it". This conveys the power of the magical world that gets weaved between the cover pages of a book. Change being the only permanent thing in this world, the reading habit cannot escape getting metamorphosed over time.
However, "relaxed" does not go very well with the fact-paced tech era. The current e-age has spelt its charm on reading habit of people as well. The tech generation is all set to replace connoisseurs of the scent and feel of the printed version of books. A Chennai- based renowned writer and illustrator of children's books, Ashok Rajagopalan says, "Technology feeds the pace at which we work and play, and the pace feeds the technology."
The actual word How has the content evolved over time? Do written words still open the innumerable vistas, do they still hold the key to the worlds beyond imagination? The ardent readers feel that books continue to do their bit in this aspect, however, they are not the only ones which open the myriad fascinating worlds for people today. The world, which is living up to its new image of being a global village, has many more doors and windows now. Accessing information, watching foreign movies, visiting even unheard of places — have all become routine activities for a large section of our society. Hence there are many more ways than just the books to know, understand and experience the world. Changing expectations As the needs of different times change, so do expectations from books as well. Ashok says, "A majority of people are looking for fast reads. Publishers and writers cater to this impatience. The luxury and necessity of establishing the setting a la Austen is long gone, and we plunge into the action in Chapter One." Indian writing is in a very exciting phase and it is actually coming of age. Current anxieties There are less taboo topics now and authors exercise the liberty to write anything and everything under the sun. Jash who has already proven her creative ingenuity through her first two books: Wordkeepers and Sky Serpents, talks about the trend in writings for young adults. She says, "Young adult literature is going through a no-holds barred phase. There are stories involving current anxieties, broken homes, abandoned children, fascism — these weren't so much a part of this genre earlier. But it is an indicator of social change, our lives involve single parenting, messy divorces, children forced to grow up too soon nowadays." Ajay Arora, who runs Capitol Book Depot, Chandigarh says, "Historical and mythological fiction are two genres that have picked up over the last decade, thanks to the authors like Alex Rutherford, William Dalrymple, Amish Tripathi, who have made these genres more readable and more relatable." Do classics stand tall? One wonders if classics lose their sheen and appeal with time or do they remain as lustrous as they ever were. What is termed as contemporary today has all the potential to become a revered "classic" tomorrow. It just needs to pass the test of time and equally enthuse the generations to come. Jash says, "When the Victorians read Dickens, they were reading a contemporary writer. Today's acclaimed books will hopefully throw up more 'classics' in half a century. No book should be judged early, for we don't know whether any of us will be read in a hundred years." There is no dearth of diehard fans of classics who can vouch for them being eternal. Leela Gour Broome, a sensitive writer of books like A Flute in the Forest, says, "Classics will never lose their appeal. The Harry Potters and Chetan Bhagats of this era will fade away, as time will show and the phrase ‘old is gold’ will prove right." Neha Kalra, a Chandigarh-based language enthusiast and a budding writer feels the same and is of the view that, "classics can never lose their charm but young people need to be guided to read them." Gadgets overtake literature When electronic gadgets are threatening to claim their share, could reading patterns remain unaffected. Their lure is hard to resist whether it is in the form of video gaming, whatsapping, facebook updating, chatting or many others that keep joining the list every single day. With so many attractions vying for one's eyeballs and attention, a book lying on the bookshelf keeps waiting patiently for its turn. And when the need to read arises, smartphones, tablets, iPads are often being used as portable libraries. The electronic version of the books is making our choice wider and bags lighter. That these gadgets have increased the convenience factor and have provided easy and cheaper access to literature, is an unquestioned incentive. Ashok Rajagopakan says, "If I wish to read Alice in Wonderland, to my child at bedtime, I download it in almost an instant. I bought the first book of the Shiva Trilogy at a store, but the rest as eBooks online. Five minutes and Rs 113 later, I could return to Neelkanth's adventures." Abhinav, an IIT graduate and an avid reader says, "There is a huge shift towards eReading and this is evident from the fact that Amazon and Flikart have started offering eBooks for sale. Tab reading is fast emerging as a preferred medium because of its convenience." Though eReaders and handheld devices have been instrumental in redefining the reading habits of people, there is no denying the fact that this tech world is full of distractions whether it is in the form of an incoming call, an incoming mail, notifications or the temptation of browsing a site which is just a click away. There are more serious threats to the literary field which cannot be ignored. Irreverence for language rules, entry of slangs and sms lingo in literature is marring the charm of reading chaste language. Rajagopalan says, "eBooks are not only easier and cheaper to procure, but are also easier and cheaper to produce. There are many ebooks out there, natural habitats for typos, grammatical errors and shoddy writing. The casual attitude towards the rules of language could disfigure the face of literature." Discussing literature Talks about books, authors and publishers are on the rise and all is not noise. Book cafes and libraries are a haven for readers, while book fairs and book festivals are keenly awaited by them. There are umpteen platforms virtually in the form of book blogs and web sites dedicated to literature. Abhinav who is a book reviewer and blogger himself says, "A big change in how people pick books to read is that they read reviews before purchasing books. Goodreads is a good platform and the reviews are very helpful." As Indian literary field is marching ahead to tap its potential, caution must be taken that Oscar Wilde's statement does not become a reality - "In old days books were written by people of letters and read by the public. Nowadays books are written by the public and read by nobody." Intellectual patron vs fashionable Rajagopalan says, "Every field has two kinds of patrons: the intellectual patron and the fashionable one. What is in vogue today may or may not last for years. If it does, it becomes a classic eventually. Whether Rowling or Bhagat produced good literature is not the question with many of their readers, the fashionable kind. Moreover, publishing houses are not charitable institutions, but businesses. Shakespeare scripted masala plays in an attempt to appeal to all sections of the Elizabethan crowd, but now he is the Giant of English Literature. Harry Potter would be treated as part of the classics two generations hence." Lure of gadgets When electronic gadgets are threatening to claim their share, could reading habit remain unaffected. Their lure is hard to resist whether it is in the form of video gaming, whatsapping, Facebook updating, chatting or many others. With so many attractions vying for one's eyeballs and attention, a book lying on the bookshelf keeps waiting patiently for its turn.
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Reading, to register and
understand every single word with rapt attention was the way during
1950s to 1970s. With limited resources and a narrow range of books to
choose from, a few those were available were tasted, swallowed, chewed
and digested completely. With availability restrictions ceasing to
remain as stringent, new era of readers emerged, who enjoyed the
experience of reading at relaxed pace.
