Do you like books? Sure you do! But some books are large and heavy, and while those books are perfect for reading at home, they are not convenient for those times when you must walk a long way with a book, or when you're alone at a restaurant, or getting the car tuned up, or flying around in an airplane, or any of the many, many other things you do all alone like a ragged pariah. That's why whenever your "main read" is a big, heavy hardcover book, I recommend purchasing a companion volume, that is, a small, portable paperback to take with you out in public. Aside from the injury you may do to yourself trying to tote around a big, heavy book or the impossibility of finding room for it amidst the silver and china on a "table for one," people might think you are trying to come off as an "egghead." That's no way to make friends! It also helps if your secondary book is made up of short pieces, things you can read at a sitting or two. That way, your concentration on or immersion in your "big book" waiting for you at home will not be spoiled. Do I practice what I preach? You bet I do! That's why I got myself a copy of MUSIC FOR CHAMELEONS by Truman Capote. A month or so ago, at a nearby tapas restaurant, a VP at Cartoon Network said I would like it. "But read the one about the rattlesnake first," she said. I have no idea which one is the one about the rattlesnake. I asked her today, and she said that she regretted having given me instructions... that everyone should read a book in his or her own way. I practically begged her to tell me which one had the rattlesnake in it but she refused. Now I'm just going to be thinking, "Is this the one with the rattlesnake?" every time I read a story. It might make me tense with anticipation! But her lips are sealed. This has been one in a series of tips. Good night.
