Why We Read What We Read by Lisa Adams and John Heath

Okay, we've got a bar bet that can't be beat.

Why We Read What We Read by Lisa Adams and John Heath is the second book I've read for the Dewey Decimal Challenge and the first one I can recommend. Ms. Adams and Mr. Heath have read a wide range of best selling books, just about all the major ones from the last few years, and come up with an entertaining and enlightening overview of what Americans read most.

Why We Read What We Read is divided by genres. The authors take a look at diet and self-help books, religious and spirituality books, relationship guides, romance novels, political nonfiction, adventure thrillers, literary fiction, Oprah books and, of course, The Da Vinci Code. While their book is a serious study, their approach is humorous, much like that of a very smart student who prefers to sit in the back row passing notes. For example their take on Sean Covey's The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People:

His treatment of each habit can be monumental; for instance, his presentation of the fourth habit, "Think Win/Win," reaches nearly mock-epic proportions. To the uninitiated, this practice would appear to need little defence, but Covey spends thirty pages arguing that win-win is generally superior to other possibilities, such as, for example, lose-lose. There are charts listing all the possible permutations, with analyses of the pros and cons of each. Clearly, Covey often doesn't quite know when to stop (he is the father of nine, in case one is looking for further evidence). And he's got graphs and pictures. This is a project born for the boardroom, with enough diagrams to inspire even the most ineffective middle-management wannabe.

One of the good things about reading books about books is that you can become familiar with so much without actually having to read it all. I do read bestsellers, though not many best selling self-help books, diet books, or relationship books. Why We Read What We Read is certainly one way to fill in this whole in one's education. Men are From Mars, Women are From Venus by John Grey, The Proper Care and Feeding of Husbands by Dr. Laura and Relationship Rescue by Dr. Phil, and so many other titles are all summed up as follows:

They may be physically dissimilar brothers, but the DNA nevertheless proves their connections; a preference for celebrity authorities; simple analyses of problems; quick and relatively easy, comfortable fixes; and an appeal to our deepest preconceptions (and fears) about the roles of men and women. The multicolored messiness of real-life partnering is filtered through nature's (or God's) chromosomal prism to prove that only the ends of the spectrum actually exist, red versus blue; Mars versus Venus; male versus female. The differences between genders are exaggerated and caricatured to the point where surrender is the only reasonable response.

The authors examine two sub-sets of books on spirituality: Christian books and books on New Age Spirituality; two genres that are often at war with each other. The arguments each set of books present is examined fairly, if a bit snarkily, but as the authors conclude it is impossible to prove an argument about spirituality--one either believes or one doesn't. Even if the Bible or some other text is quoted as evidence, one must believe that text and also believe that it is being interpreted correctly, often by someone who cannot read it in its original language.

The book concludes with a look at literary fiction and non-fiction and at Oprah books. I admit that I was surprised to find that there really is no "Oprah book." Ultimately, the authors find no real difference between the books on Oprah and the rest of the best selling literature of the day. What they did find was that Oprah and her audience read for one main reason, realness. They all wanted a story they could identify with, place themselves inside, as though it could or did happen to them. This may be one reason why Oprah became so angry with James Frey once he admitted that his memoir A Million Little Pieces was largely fictional. (For the record, I read it and I knew it! No one gets a root canal with anesthetic.)

If you're looking for a book that will add a few titles to your TBR stack, I don't think Why We Read What We Read will help you. But it will give you some insight into what's on the best seller list and to why so many people are buying a reading the same books. It may also give you some food for thought and more than a few laughs on the way.

Please stop by tomorrow for an interview with the authors of Why We Read What We Read, Lisa Adams and John Heath.