Booked!
published: Saturday | January 18, 2003

"The person who doesn't read is no better off than the person who can't read." - Stephen Covey, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, p. 296

Leonardo Blair, Staff Reporter

MARLOW THOMAS loves to read. While some people would rather sit shamelessly glued to their television sets, computers or video games, Thomas prefers to pull out the latest best seller.

The 27-year-old architecture student reads at least one novel each week and completes many in just a day or two. "As a matter of fact," she says, "I read anywhere, anytime, any occasion. As long as there is something to read I will read it." You can catch her with her books on the bus, in a taxi or at the hairdresser.

She has an insatiable thirst for knowledge and experience, some of which she can only find in books she says. After cultivating the reading habit since age 14, Marlow says it's now a lifestyle, not a chore as many who read solely for academic purposes might think.

"Sometimes if a book is really good and I don't finish it in the night I read it right through to the following morning or until I fall asleep," she says while waiting at her hairdresser on Wednesday. Tucked away in her handbag was a 350-page novel called Firm Ambitions by Michael A. Khan, which she had bought the day before. "I'm almost finished with that one too.

"Reading has broadened my vocabulary somewhat. It has broadened my world. It's something so different from watching TV. It's much better because there are no commercials."

Like Marlow, there are many persons who like to read although most may not harbour that insatiable drive. Still, like 25-year-old Treviene Harris, they will always remember the last good book they read. "I read The Plague by Albert Camus well over a year now. It was riveting. It was a really, really, really good read," says Harris.

While there are readers like Marlow and Harris, the question still remains: Is it true that Jamaicans don't read?

Chrishina Richards, a 22-year-old reading for a Bachelor of Arts degree at the University of the West Indies believes it's true that Jamaicans are not readers. "I don't think that much reading goes on in Jamaica because many of us are illiterate. For those of us who can read, I still think there isn't enough reading going on," she says.

PEOPLE ARE READING BOOKS THAT OFFER SOME FORM OF HOPE

There is no official study to confirm or deny this perception. However, representatives of local bookstores and the Jamaica Library Service (JLS) say that while the market for textbooks and other academic literature has been showing steady increases over the years, there is a very faithful community of general readers who are demanding more of the latest best-selling titles, usually originating in the United States.

"You have some people who are dedicated readers -- not as many as we would like -- but they are very interested in the self-help books, science fiction, westerns, the latest best-sellers. Which sometimes we are short of," says Patricia Cuff of the JLS.

"Our challenge is to find the quantity of material required by our readers to match the needs which are very real. People want to read -- separate and apart from reading for academic purposes," she adds.

Marketing manager at Sangster's Bookstores, Chris Green, says the picture, of general reading book sales, show that Jamaicans are now reading for more than just academics. "People buy a lot of novels by Caribbean writers, self-help books, inspirational books and motivational books. Any book which offers some form of hope is selling," he says.

Director general of the JLS Patricia Robertson, explains that "resources are always a challenge and books are expensive. The majority of the readers in the Jamaica library service are in the junior category and account for 63 per cent of its membership while the remaining 37 per cent are adult members.

Mrs. Robertson explains that while the reading needs of each community across Jamaica is varied, the JLS has been trying to meet the various demands on literature across the island.

Since last December Sangster's has partnered with the JLS to encourage the public to purchase books and donate them to the library of their choice. You simply go into any Sangster's Bookstore, browse through a list of books selected by the JLS and choose one or more titles. The books are delivered by Sangster's.

Mrs. Robertson says the library hasn't done any accounting on the books that are being selected yet, but based on feedback, "there has been quite a lot of excitement.

READ AT LEAST 3 BOOKS THIS YEAR

"I would say by far the greater number of our readers are women," explains Green of Sangster's. "You have sectors of the market that read a lot. Sometimes families will come in and make one time purchases. However, we need everybody to start reading. It would make for a better society if we all were reading more," he says.

"What we have found is that in terms of general books, persons are asking friends and relatives to purchase books for them when they go overseas. We are trying to develop the market and trying to encourage every Jamaican to read at least three books this year."

For those of you who want to start reading lists of your own but think that the books are too expensive you might want to follow Marlow's lead. She says she purchases books at the pharmacies and little bookstores like Readers in Liguanea where she can get popular used titles for a third the price they go for in the larger book stores. "I love going to the used book stores because I get it cheaper. I bought this book for $200. If I take it back I'll get $100. I can't afford to buy one book for $700."