Love living with literature

TREVOR Noah hit the nail on the head when in one of his comedy shows he spoke of how people hated to read aloud in the classroom.

When called on by the teacher to read a chapter, it was usually met with “Ai ma’am, I can’t do it”.

And while we may laugh at the humour behind it, realistically speaking, it’s not a joke.

Recent research has shown that 80% of Grade 4 pupils cannot read. Shocking!

And March is the most apt time to talk about reading because it will be SA Library Week from March 19.

Social media has led to the degeneration of the English language, where people spell “divine” as “devine”.

I often wonder if using text shorthand is a poor excuse for not being able to spell.

Reading was a big culture in the community when I grew up.

Everyone went to the library. It was as common as going to buy milk and bread.

You had to put your name on the waiting list for the Sweet Valley High books.

Even though in the latter part of my school years I did enjoy going to the library to sneak in a few extra minutes with my boyfriend – who is now my husband – reading was a big thing.

We borrowed as many books as the librarian would allow us, while scowling at us over her glasses.

“It’s due back next week and that stamp makes it final.”

God forbid if there was a fine due on those books.

It was not only the money that one had to pay, but the shame associated with taking in the books late.

It’s been years since I visited the library, I must admit, but it was one of my greatest joys growing up.

As an adult I am still an avid reader. I often buy books or borrow books from my friends.

A great journalist-turned-editor once told me, every time you read and find a new word, keep it in under your keyboard and introduce it in your next story.

As humans, learning is never done, and in saying that, neither is reading. We are learning constantly.

I pray that parents today not only buy books for their kids but take them to the library.

It not only opens your world to spelling “divine” correctly or knowing the difference between “their” and “there”, but learning about the world.

They say children do what their parents do, and not what their parents say.

Reading was a culture in my home. My dad spent his evenings taking in novels and the newspaper. Ironically I became a journalist.

But let’s get our children back to the library and away from the video games and television.

I can assure you, it would definitely be “DIVINE”.