I’ve always been intimidated by Moby Dick. I suspect that the sheer mass of the book and its purpoted depth ‘frightened’ me. Or maybe it’s something else – I dunno. It can’t only be the size – cause I often demolish numerous 400/500 page books within a week….
No – maybe the complexity then. At any rate, a few weeks ago I decided to take a stab at it again – on my Palm. Granted, I didn’t think it’d work – I was just enamored with the idea. But, surprisingly, the results surprised me. I started reading and the more I read – the more I wanted to continue reading. I think the big thing that helps is the fact that each page on the Palm is bite sized. It’s easy to keep moving on – there’s no mass, no “Omigosh this thing is heavier than …” nothing. Quite useful innit. I think also, I truly understand the difference between decent and great prose. I truly feel transported into the world that Melville creates. I can _see_ the bar, understand the feelings…sympathize. All this to an extent much more than that I can achieve with most books.
Gotta keep reading….