When people ask what you're reading....

[Liadin]

So I've always been very private about what I'm reading. I don't know why. I prefer the people around me not to ask, and find it especially annoying when people interrupt my reading to ask what I'm reading. (A lot of people seem to think reading in public places is my way of trying to meet people, because I've had plenty of total strangers approach me to ask this question. Wtf?)

Today I had a particularly annoying experience, reading in the breakroom at work. A coworker came in asked what I was reading. I muttered something (probably "nothing," which is supposed to mean "I'd rather not talk about it," although a surprising number of people don't understand that and persist in their questioning), and then he came and looked over my shoulder to see what it was. I was irritated. If I'm not volunteering information, it's because it's none of your business.

Anyway, I'm curious: does this reflect your experience at all? Or do most of you love to discuss your current reading material with anyone who will listen? Do some people actually like it when strangers or casual acquaintances interrupt them to ask what book they're reading?

[Starkess]

This really bugs me. People do it all the time, while I'm reading. Seriously, it's not that difficult to see what's on the cover. If you don't recognize it, PLEASE don't ask me what it's about. I'm trying to read! :tantrum:

The exception to this is good friends or family. I don't mind explaining about what I'm reading to them, as it's more likely that they actually care and may even have some interest in reading it as well. Situationally dependent.

[Lady Cheesevillage]

I hate it too. I've always hated it. I hated it when my mother asked me as a kid and I hate it when my husband interrupts me now. If I am reading leave me alone.

I'm slightly less likely to bite your head off if I've closed the book. Then I'm about 50-50. I'll talk to someone who seems genuinely interested, but not to someone who seems judgmental.

[Tyrellius]

Lift the book up slightly and use your left hand to tap by the title, carry on reading.

What is it about?

Use your right hand and tap by the blurb and carry on reading.

They persist.

Beat them with the book. :fencing:

(I hate people interrupting to ask btw)

[Ocean of Notions]

Depending on the situation, I don't really mind people interrupting my reading as long as their questions aren't stupid (ie: the title is right on the cover, why ask for it?) or they're someone I know well.

[Garlan the Gallant]

The worst type (and the most often thing that seems to happen to me) is when they ask, and then you begrudgingly tell them what it is to shut them up, and then you get some *snicker*, "Thats cute" bullshit.

I often feel a need to then defend the genre of fantasy. "Its not childish, its good literature, and I like it."

To which I usually get something like, "I am sure its good *snicker*/as long as it makes you happy *snicker*/ oh, is this the one with the kid that goes to the magic school *touches book*."

I always put this experience in a small box in the back of my mind. This is so that I know that I have to return the favor. However, this almost never happens because a) this person doesnt have any hobbies B) they like football, and my comments about, "is this the one where the one guy reaches into the crouch of the other guy (who bends over) to take a phallic-like object into his hands and passes it to another guy, who then gets gangbang-style tackled by two other guys?" rarely ever goes over well and c) I know that I will feel bad after doing like-wise.

But, dammit, leave me alone when I read. If you come over to me to just make fun of what I am doing, you are an evil and mean-spirited person.

Oh, and yes, I have never once before explained the book to a person who seemed genuinely interested.

[Bellis]

I don't mind. I ask others. I volunteer my opinion on what they're reading. It's how I meet people, really.

[Liadin]

I'm slightly less likely to bite your head off if I've closed the book. Then I'm about 50-50. I'll talk to someone who seems genuinely interested, but not to someone who seems judgmental.

I guess my issue with it is that 98% of the time, the person either wants to make small talk, or wants to categorize me based on what I'm reading (is she a romance chick? a sci-fi nerd? etc.). If someone came up to me and said, "Hey, I see you're reading X, what do you think of it?", and wanted to have an intelligent discussion about the book (maybe because they'd actually read it), I probably wouldn't mind. That never happens though.

[sologdin]

heh. best time this happened to me was when some girly in the cafe asked about my copy of adorno's negative dialectics. i handed it to her, and her head exploded.

[The Evil Hat]

If I'm in the process of reading, I have no idea why people assume I want to talk. If asked what I'm reading, I flash the cover and say "that." if asked what it's about, since I can be fairly sure that just about everyone I know doesn't want to actually discuss the book, I respond with the enlightening "stuff." Amazingly, that's conversational enough for some people to assume I want to keep talking. Maybe they'll even go so far as to ask "Why're you reading?" or some variant. Or perhaps: "What's happened so far?" I don't know, maybe you should read the book and find out.

I really can't see a reason to be charitable when someone asks a question like this, because it almost guarantee they're not a reader (and hence most likely have very, very, very little to contribute to the subject); if they actually read for pleasure, they likely know that reading a book =/= small talk time. The one exception to this was when, on a plane a year or so ago, the girl sitting next to me said, "Oh, I just read that and loved it!" when she saw I was reading Best Served Cold. Unfortunately, she first opened her mouth as the plane was landing, so not much came of it in the way of conversation, but still.

[Dumas]

If I like the person, I'd give a title and maybe try to explain what it's about. And then facepalm when I realise all they know about Rome is that it's in Italy or something similar. Or bite someone's head off when they say "Oh, Just like that movie" when it's not.

If I don't know or actively dislike the person, I'd either ignore them or say something equivalent to "sod off."

[Rhadamanth]

I don't read in public very often, I get distracted by all the people easily. When I do, I usually tell people the name of a book I'm not reading to see if they're paying attention. Funny how often they aren't.

[Eponine]

I guess my issue with it is that 98% of the time, the person either wants to make small talk, or wants to categorize me based on what I'm reading (is she a romance chick? a sci-fi nerd? etc.). If someone came up to me and said, "Hey, I see you're reading X, what do you think of it?", and wanted to have an intelligent discussion about the book (maybe because they'd actually read it), I probably wouldn't mind. That never happens though.

I have to admit that I categorize strangers based on what they're reading. When I'm traveling, I try to covertly look at the covers of other people's books. Even the times that I see something that looks interesting, it's almost always a New York Time Bestseller type of book.

I'd like if people talked to me about what I was reading, but it rarely happens and is usually small talk instead of real interest. If I'm reading my Kindle, almost always someone asks if I like it, if it's easy to use, etc. I don't mind answering, but I don't have a gift for extending conversations if I don't hit it off with a person right away, and if I don't and they keep talking, it's awkward.

Once in the airport bookstore, some guy recommended Night Watch to me. I appreciated that. We didn't make any more conversation though.

[Larry.]

I get this online on my blog when asked not just what I am reading, but how I am able to read so fast. I just developed a form response that covers issues of reading speed and reviews. I believe it makes a lot of sense.

[Liadin]

Once in the airport bookstore, some guy recommended Night Watch to me. I appreciated that. We didn't make any more conversation though.

You're lucky. Last time a random person tried to recommend a book to me, it was a librarian who saw that I was interested in fantasy and recommended Fiona McIntosh.

[BookWyrm]

Unless it's a beautiful woman looking to make my acquaintance, then I'm short-fused about being interrupted in my reading, no matter how reasonable the interruption.

I agree with Lady Cheesevillage, if someone seems genuinely interested then I'd likely engage in talk for awhile.

I especially hate it when the book becomes an ice breaker for further unwanted talk.

[WrathOfTinyKittens]

This annoys me as well.

What really gets on my nerves is when I'm lying next to my girlfriend at night, reading before we go to sleep. She'll turn to me and ask me, "Whatcha doin'?" to which I'll reply, "Reading." She then sometimes asks me what I'm reading, despite the fact that she knows very well what I'm reading, both because she is my left side and can therefore see the cover, and also because it's probably the same damn thing I was reading last night and the night before.

I suspect at times that she does it just to annoy me.

It's a minor annoyance, not worth noting in the grand scheme of our relationship, but an annoyance nonetheless.

[Lummel]

So I've always been very private about what I'm reading. I don't know why. I prefer the people around me not to ask, and find it especially annoying when people interrupt my reading to ask what I'm reading. (A lot of people seem to think reading in public places is my way of trying to meet people, because I've had plenty of total strangers approach me to ask this question. Wtf?)

...

Anyway, I'm curious: does this reflect your experience at all? Or do most of you love to discuss your current reading material with anyone who will listen? Do some people actually like it when strangers or casual acquaintances interrupt them to ask what book they're reading?

I haven't had alot of reading related interuptions, if somebody had read the book or something else by the author, I wouldn't mind. On the whole that's my rule, if I've read the book or something by the author I'm happy to make contact (readers of the world: unite!), though usually something silly like saying that I enjoyed that. I've noticed that mentioning that you disagree with the politics of Jane Austin to somebody reading Mansfield Hall tends to be a bit of a conversation killer.:ohwell:

heh. best time this happened to me was when some girly in the cafe asked about my copy of adorno's negative dialectics. i handed it to her, and her head exploded.

That must have been messy. When the police arrived did they say "this happens alot, that book should come with a health warning".

I have to admit that I categorize strangers based on what they're reading. When I'm traveling, I try to covertly look at the covers of other people's books. Even the times that I see something that looks interesting, it's almost always a New York Time Bestseller type of book.

I'd like if people talked to me about what I was reading, but it rarely happens and is usually small talk instead of real interest.

I find what other people are reading facinsinating, particularly if they are not reading a bestseller, textbook or film tie in, its a glimpse into somebody elses cultural life. One of my neighbours is an elderly lady and she reads what I think of as elderly lady books, so those written by Miss Read & Co, I find this very pleasing. No doubt one day I'll catch sight of her reading some violent japanese comic and all my preconceptions will be turned upside down.

[kungtotte]

It could always be worse.

[Mentat]

I recently blundered horribly trying to explain Anathem to a person who'd never read Stephenson (or any SF, for that matter...). It was embarrassing. They ended up saying 'Atheist monks treasuring knowledge? Not very realistic then, is it?'. It was one of these occasions in which there's too much cultural difference to effectively explain something. I can explain ASOIAF to you, but you have to have at least some kind of history/fantasy background knowledge or it's like speaking to people from another planet...