Lesson14 Habit of Reading
I read a lot of history, a little philosophy, and a good deal of science. My curiosity was too great to allow me to give much time to reflect on what I read; I could hardly wait to finish one book, so eager was I to begin another. This was always an adventure, and I would start upon a famous work as excitedly as a reasonable young man would go in to bat for his side or a nice girl goes to a dance. Now and then journalists in search of copy ask me what the most thrilling moment of my life is. If I were not ashamed to say, I might answer that it is the moment when I began to read Goethe's Faust.
I have never quite lost this feeling, and even now the first pages of a book sometimes send the blood racing through my veins. To me reading is a rest as to other people conversation or a game of cards. It is more than that; it is a necessity, and if I am deprived of it for a little while I find myself as irritable as the addict deprived of his drug. I would sooner read a timetable or a catalogue than nothing at all.
irritable 易怒的, 急躁的
阅读的习惯
我读了很多历史书，一些哲学书和大量的科学书籍。我的好奇心太大了，使我根本就没有多少时间来反思我读的内容。我几乎等不及看完一本书，就急切地开始读下一本。阅读总是一个探索的过程，我总是兴高采烈地开始读一本名著，就像是一个有理智的小伙子急着要替自己的一方去击球，或者一个漂亮的女孩急着要去参加舞会。经常会有寻找新闻题材的记者问我，我一生中最激动人心的时刻是什么。我可以大言不惭地说，是我开始读歌德的《浮士德》的时候。
我从来就没有失去过这种感觉，即使是现在，翻开一本书的前几页有时也会使我热血沸腾。对我来说，阅读就是休息，就像其他人会选择闲聊或者打牌。不只如此，阅读是我生命中的必需。一刻不能阅读，我就会烦躁不安，就像一个瘾君子没有了毒品。如果没有东西可读，我就会去读时刻表或者产品目录之类的东西。 |