Ismatu, I read this on my lunch and I will read it again and again so I can fully absorb the weight of what you've communicated to me. Literacy is integral to our survival.
I have been listening to audiobooks recently of books I have already read instead of consuming new media and it is haunting how I try to convince myself that it is equivalent to absorbing something new. Highly enjoyed this essay despite the fact that it was somewhat struggling to read because Reading Is Hard now that I don't do it as often as I should.
i’m so excited to read this. thank you for including audio with your writings, i often find it easier to hear and read along than just one, and i’m sure many others do too. thanks for making it accessible. ❤️🔥
you have definitely affirmed me in the debate i was having with myself about the state of the world and myself in it. i was considering going to college again, majoring in community advocacy and social policy, and getting more degrees after that just so i can access the literature that would be available, so that i could better serve all of us. now i know i must. thank you
Wow, I read the whole thing. As a statistically consistent gen Z myself, thank you for sharing Ms. G. This is coming at a time in my life where I’m really evaluating my habits- including screen time and media consumption. Genuinely feeling motivated for change after reading this. Your approach and acknowledgment that it is hard genuinely resonated with me enough to make and account for substack and comment this. Great and inspiring work xx
I agree that the written word has an immense importance and value. I struggle with the audio of the written word not being of the same value, because I think that written word can manipulate and twist meanings in ways that spoken word does as well. But maybe it depends on whose voice is in the recording (text to speech vs. The Author)
'Boredom being the space for expansion' gave me whiplash from the double take. My auntie used to say to me "only boring people get bored" and I have since learned to keep myself entertained entirely too well. Fiction wasn't enough; after a while I could only ever see myself as a hedonist hobbling from one dopamine hit to the next. My TBR pile is higher than my credit card debt now. And given the trajectory of this haggard societal facade, I know which one is more urgent to clear.
Here in Nigeria, schooling is a money making trade, and institutions like JAMB defines the future of the citizens... And I have friends who just want to pass an exam and stop any reading and enjoy them... I love reading, and I believe the love of it is pleasant, and I started working on a book on it in 2020, and I stopped, because of the attacks I got when I shared my ideas with secondary schools around me...
I am going back to working on my book now, I believe Africans has to be liberated too. Thank you for this...
Your point about practicing and expanding reading capacity resonated—recently when I was trying to read The Hundred Years’ War on Palestine by Rashid Khalidi I felt my brain knocking against its upper capacity for historical/political texts. I devour fiction but have trouble focusing on nonfiction. It’s definitely a muscle I have to exercise more often.
i feel this essay in my bones. as someone with AuDHD who has been told they are very well-spoken their entire life, you inspire me to pick up the pen and overcome the stress response i get from writing. i need a way to dump my brain onto a page and create something meaningful. i’ve been reading angela davis and i’m going to move onto james baldwin (i find he and i have a similar soul in our writing from what i’ve read that feels observant and personal), and you have inspired me to do so. thank you 🫶
i feel this essay in my bones. as someone with AuDHD who has been told they are very well-spoken their entire life, you inspire me to pick up the pen and overcome the stress response i get from writing. i need a way to dump my brain onto a page and create something meaningful. i’ve been reading angela davis and i’m going to move onto james baldwin (i find he and i have a similar soul in our writing from what i’ve read that feels observant and personal), and you have inspired me to do so. thank you 🫶
I need to say fuck more on the internet. Awesome fucking post. Also, I think you’re right. I too hate reading and yet, here I am.
Thank you for your work
Ismatu, I read this on my lunch and I will read it again and again so I can fully absorb the weight of what you've communicated to me. Literacy is integral to our survival.
I have been listening to audiobooks recently of books I have already read instead of consuming new media and it is haunting how I try to convince myself that it is equivalent to absorbing something new. Highly enjoyed this essay despite the fact that it was somewhat struggling to read because Reading Is Hard now that I don't do it as often as I should.
“You never have to burn the books if no one ever wants to read them in the first place.” - completely took my breath away. Thank you for this. 🙏
i’m so excited to read this. thank you for including audio with your writings, i often find it easier to hear and read along than just one, and i’m sure many others do too. thanks for making it accessible. ❤️🔥
you have definitely affirmed me in the debate i was having with myself about the state of the world and myself in it. i was considering going to college again, majoring in community advocacy and social policy, and getting more degrees after that just so i can access the literature that would be available, so that i could better serve all of us. now i know i must. thank you
also, thank you for your work! i feel your love all the way in NC
Wow, I read the whole thing. As a statistically consistent gen Z myself, thank you for sharing Ms. G. This is coming at a time in my life where I’m really evaluating my habits- including screen time and media consumption. Genuinely feeling motivated for change after reading this. Your approach and acknowledgment that it is hard genuinely resonated with me enough to make and account for substack and comment this. Great and inspiring work xx
I agree that the written word has an immense importance and value. I struggle with the audio of the written word not being of the same value, because I think that written word can manipulate and twist meanings in ways that spoken word does as well. But maybe it depends on whose voice is in the recording (text to speech vs. The Author)
'Boredom being the space for expansion' gave me whiplash from the double take. My auntie used to say to me "only boring people get bored" and I have since learned to keep myself entertained entirely too well. Fiction wasn't enough; after a while I could only ever see myself as a hedonist hobbling from one dopamine hit to the next. My TBR pile is higher than my credit card debt now. And given the trajectory of this haggard societal facade, I know which one is more urgent to clear.
Here in Nigeria, schooling is a money making trade, and institutions like JAMB defines the future of the citizens... And I have friends who just want to pass an exam and stop any reading and enjoy them... I love reading, and I believe the love of it is pleasant, and I started working on a book on it in 2020, and I stopped, because of the attacks I got when I shared my ideas with secondary schools around me...
I am going back to working on my book now, I believe Africans has to be liberated too. Thank you for this...
Your point about practicing and expanding reading capacity resonated—recently when I was trying to read The Hundred Years’ War on Palestine by Rashid Khalidi I felt my brain knocking against its upper capacity for historical/political texts. I devour fiction but have trouble focusing on nonfiction. It’s definitely a muscle I have to exercise more often.
i feel this essay in my bones. as someone with AuDHD who has been told they are very well-spoken their entire life, you inspire me to pick up the pen and overcome the stress response i get from writing. i need a way to dump my brain onto a page and create something meaningful. i’ve been reading angela davis and i’m going to move onto james baldwin (i find he and i have a similar soul in our writing from what i’ve read that feels observant and personal), and you have inspired me to do so. thank you 🫶
i feel this essay in my bones. as someone with AuDHD who has been told they are very well-spoken their entire life, you inspire me to pick up the pen and overcome the stress response i get from writing. i need a way to dump my brain onto a page and create something meaningful. i’ve been reading angela davis and i’m going to move onto james baldwin (i find he and i have a similar soul in our writing from what i’ve read that feels observant and personal), and you have inspired me to do so. thank you 🫶