We’ve all been there. Or some of us have. Anyone who cares about books has at some point confronted the Pushkin problem: when a missed — or misguided — literary reference makes it chillingly clear that a romance is going nowhere fast. At least since Dante’s Paolo and Francesca fell in love over tales of Lancelot, literary taste has been a good shorthand for gauging compatibility.Jezebel talked about the same idea last year as well.
While I wouldn't fault a person for reading stuff that was not my cup of tea, I would considered a relationship a no go if the guy was not a reader. They wouldn't have to read fast or even a lot, but they would have to at least read something and be ready to talk about it. I am librarian - you'd think it be obvious.
I count myself lucky that The Boyfriend is a reader. Granted, law school does have way of forcing reading on you. But that's besides the point. He's a reader by nature and it makes me giddy. Where I really lucked out is in our reading tastes - they coalesce quite nicely.
As teh librarian, he often asks me for leisure reading. Usually, I just peruse my own shelves and throw out some titles at him. He had never read Vince Flynn before asking me for some fun reading recommendations one day. I handed over the first book in the Mitch Rapp series and he proceeded to plow through them. Joy. He's now a book ahead of me and I keep meaning to catch up so we can talk about it.
The Boyfriend's reading material have also rubbed off on me. I don't think I would have ever gotten around to reading Colbert's book or Sedaris' Naked if he hadn't handed them to me. I've even begun to read court rulings and other legal documents. For fun. I am a nerd. (Copyright law, FTW!)
Needless to say, our reading habits, while still maintaining their individuality, overlap in such a way that we can read and discuss books often.
The Boyfriend even read Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, what a dear. Then again, it had zombies in it. Expect a review of World War Z to appear on this blog one day. Now if only I can sneak a copy of the unundead text onto his nightstand.
But I digress, this is a part of our relationship that makes me all warm and fuzzy. (Wanna date a librarian, ask her what she's reading.) Several of my friends and their significant others also swap reading materials. I've even heard tell of our book club selections floating around to the guys. While I know we do not always agree with our significant others, the fact that we get to talk about the same books puts a smile on my face.
What say ye - are reading habits a deal breaker?
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