Importance of the art of reading and writing
We all know that we can know everything from books. If you love books and have a reading habit, you should not worry about friends and some other company. Books can be your good friends and company. In some way, you can make books like your brothers and sisters. Books can easily be your friends and family but will not be enemies and peace killers if you read good books. For some reason, if you do not have family or friends and cannot have an opportunity for sightseeing and travel, you can make your own world with books even in that situation. Only the thing about it is you need to love books. That is certain.
We know in most of the developed and advanced countries people love books. They have a very praiseworthy reading habit and love books. Books and reading materials are essential for the people of those countries, such as rice and lentils for Nepalese and Indians in their countries. They buy books as they buy other essential things. They have extensive, wellequipped, well-organized, well-facilitated libraries from which they can get any books on any subject according to their interest and needs.
On the other hand, many of the people of underdeveloped Asian and African countries do not have the necessary reading habits and habits of loving books. They buy books not as essential as foodstuff, but as luxury except the textbooks. They do not have good libraries and cannot have good library services. So, in general, they do not even know how to use the libraries and find the books and articles they need and the services they can have from there. Because of that, most people do not even know how to handle books. They have no idea about the importance of the preface, introduction, indexes, and bibliographies. They do not know the art of reading. This truth I could tell you from my own experiences. I never heard about those things till I entered Tribhuvan University Central Library and the Library School in India. I had never heard my teachers and professors talk about those things and teach the students in Nepal. No doubt the situation has changed a lot. Because of the development of computers, IPad, iPhones, etc., in some way, you have a library at home or in your pocket now. Similarly, there are many advanced educational institutions in our country where the students are advanced in handling books and knowledge. Still, we have most people to whom we need to teach the students how to handle the books and know the advantage of reading the preface and introduction. We need to educate them on how the introduction of the book gives you an idea about the subject and content of the book and how the indexes of the book help them find out specific information available in the book. We certainly should acquaint them with the catalogues, bibliographies and indexes and how it works as the key to the knowledge in different subjects, and how these tools help them in the literature search they need. At the same time, we must acquaint our students with the importance of many varieties of dictionaries and encyclopedias and how these books help them know different meanings and use of the same words in various contexts and knowledge of universal subjects. These books look simple but play an essential part in learning, and people get a tremendous advantage in the learning process by knowing their handling techniques. Undoubtedly the topic should be in our courses in schools and colleges if it has not been included. We should have a modern library using an orientation program for all the students in colleges and schools, taking them to an organized library if they do not have it in their institutions. I have an experience where the students coming from colleges to Tribhuvan University Central Library get lost there searching for their needed reading materials when they come from the colleges where they did not have a good library. I started this program at Tribhuvan University Central Library in 1971 after I participated in the Multi-National
Librarian Project under the International Visitors Program sponsored by the US Department of State and Graduate School of Library and Information Sciences, the University of Pittsburgh in 1970. That was an unforgettable landmark in teaching the teachers and students about using the vast number of books and literature available in the library and library's many sections. and its valuable library services.
Photo of young librarians from 15 different countries in the US in 1970. Back row from left to right No 5. Narayan Prasad Mishra (author) and 6. Dr. Harold Lancour, Dean of Graduate School of Library and Information Sciences, University of Pittsburgh and a wellknown library expert in the USA.
In developed countries, people teach their children the art of reading and writing, about which our people, in general, are ignorant because these topics do not come into our discussion and are not taught in schools and colleges. When we read, we know we sometimes do not know the meaning of some words, even sometimes not only the reading materials written in foreign languages but your own language. For that, you have to have an excellent standard dictionary to consult. In that case, if you make a dictionary book of the words (notebook) you consulted would help you enrich your learning and writing vocabulary.
At the same time, if you read the books on the subjects of your interest, this would naturally increase your reading habit. It would be like watching the TV or movie of your interest. Reading should be engaging and enjoyable, so we should read only the books we want. It does not mean that you should not read books for your study or business needs. Similarly, keeping the book's record with its brief synopsis would be an invaluable help for your future writings. In addition, if you could note down the questions you have after reading, the valuable comments about good and bad would be a valuable treasure for your knowledge. It would always be better for all.
As a writer, sometimes you need to give references and citations of the books and articles in your writings to what you want to refer to. At the same time, you may need to make indexes to include at the back of your book for pointing specific information about people, geographical names, or subjects available in your book. You need to know how to make standard indexes and bibliographies for it. The basic knowledge of making these things is undoubtedly essential for the art of good writing. An American novelist, short story writer, poet, and social activist, the first African-American woman to win the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction.
Planning is vital in all aspects of our life. It is also the same for reading and writing. You may have a good story or excellent article on an important subject in your mind. But just keeping in mind or just thinking would not do anything. It would be best if you put these things into practice. We know our lives are full of problems, obstacles, and difficulties - social, political, economic, health, birth, death, accident, bad health, sickness, kids problems, office, business responsibilities, ailing family members, etc. So there are always some or other complications and interruptions in your writings, and they are inevitable. Amid all these problems, we need to proceed to fulfil our goal. So try to make a plan, time, and schedule for your reading and writing as you make for your eating and sleeping. You will certainly achieve what you wish, and you will be able to read and write what you like.