I don't much care what link or search engine got you here. Instead, I'd love to know what path you took in life to get you at least vaguely interested in a site named "slow reads."

Few people start off wanting to read slowly. I was assigned to the poor readers' table in first grade because of my slow reading, and a vague shame of being a slow reader stuck around me for years.

I was reading a lot faster by the time I came down with a middle-age identity crisis, though. For around two years after it started, my crisis led me to very slow readings of spiritual writers who have stood time's own slow test. I began to learn how to feed my heart with my books.

Slow reads is about reaching our hearts with our books. I hope the site suggests a different set of reading skills, just as some of your books may suggest a different sort of living. The site steers near the intersection of reading and meditation where things start to slow down.

You might start slow reads with the links under the "introduction" label at left. They include two splendid articles about slow reading from poets Dave Bonta and Teju Cole.

Feel free to respond with comments to any article or post. Also, if you'd like to contact me, please email me at peter at slowreads dot com. Perhaps you would share your own slow-reading story!

- Peter

 |

Posted April 2007