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| On the platform, reading by Mo Riza (CC) |
I was reading The Age of Miracles while I waited for the subway last night. And I was feeling kind of tired and grumpy (not uncommon during rush hour), until someone interrupted me:
Woman (smiling): "Excuse me."
(She had to say it twice because like a lot of regular subway riders, my first impulse is always to ignore anyone who is trying to talk to me.)
Me (Gearing up to give directions on how to get to Niketown. This request happens a lot, and I will never understand why tourists want to go to Niketown so bad. It's a shoe store, folks.): "Yeah?"
Woman (Still smiling, even though I am being kind of standoffish): "Is that The Age of Miracles?"
Me (looking down at my book, even though I know what I am reading, durr): "Um, yeah!"
Woman (walking up the stairs toward her train): "It's so good. You'll love it!"
Me (calling after her): "Oh, cool! Good to hear that. Thanks!"
I got on my train, now smiling, and kept reading. A 30-second exchange with another reader is always a ticket out of a grumbly mood.
The way books connect people, even in the rush-hour subway, in the is pretty awesome.
When's the last time you had a random conversation about a book?
9 comments:
I can't remember the last time I've had one - now I'm bummed! People at the library sometimes comment on what I'm checking out, but I guess that's not random :)
Last spring, I was at a local high school to watch a play and I was reading Insurgent. Some teens were looking at me, like they wanted to say something, but they never did.
And now I keep singing to myself, "won't you take me to Niketown" to the tune of that disco song Funkytown
@Jennifer: Day, made. Next time I get asked for directions, I'm going to burst into song with that.
Aww, love this little story! (The Niketown bit totally made me laugh... people are nuts!) The last book-ish conversation I had with a stranger was with the clerk who sold me GONE GIRL. She raved!
Love this! I can't think of a situation like this off the top of my head, but I'm sure it's happened to me at some point. What a great way to make your day! :)
This is the downfall of ereaders...you can't see what people are reading and make comment...although sometimes, when I'm feeling very midwestern, I will ask an ereader what they're reading.
Strange about Niketown...of all the places to see in midtown...but maybe it's harder to find than other things.
As a bookseller, I disqualify myself from random conversations about books. :) They happen all the time.
That said, you will love AGE OF MIRACLES. I still haven't reviewed it on Goodreads because I simply have no explanation as to exactly why I was sitting in my bathroom happily crying when I finished it.
And Niketown--argh. They closed the bookstore I was working at to build one.
That happened to me once when I was reading WATER FOR ELEPHANTS. A lady tapped my shoulder as I was reading it on the subway and said how good it was.
I laughed at the part where you said you originally ignored her. I do the same thing! Haha, we New Yorkers can be so rude. (But for good reason!)
Glad I'm not the only standoffish rider. :)
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