Why I'll Never Be As Well Read As Rory Gilmore

Let me start off by saying that yes I do know that Rory Gilmore is a fictional character and that she didn't actually read all the books that she said did. However knowing all of this has not stopped Rory Gilmore from becoming one of the most beloved reading icons of our time. There are lists on goodreads.com that are dedicated to her books and reading challenges that ask the question 'can you read as many books as Rory Gilmore?' Book nerds all over the place have taken the test on www.listchallenges.com that has a list of 339 books that were mentioned through out the entire 'Gilmore Girls' series and asks 'how many have you read?' I've only read 67 of the 339 books listed which according to the site puts me in the top 25% of challenge takers. For a goodreads list of Gilmore Girls titles go here.

Taking into account that fictional characters have often become ideals for us I set my sites on Rory Gilmore as a reading icon. Basically I hope to be just like her when I grow up. In the sense that she reads everything. I pride myself on being an eclectic reader, I'm not sure if I am one but I certainly like to think of myself as one. But even so I'm sure that I could branch out even further into unknown reading waters and every time I rewatch the 'Gilmore Girls' series I am reminded that there is still so much more for me to read.

Rory doesn't discriminate when it comes to reading, Dorothy Parker, Sylvia Plath, Jane Austen, Tolstoy, books about beatniks in Venice beach, history, fiction, philosophy, she reads it all because she loves the act of reading and retaining knowledge. She reads newspapers daily and not just the Stars Hollow Gazette but papers like the New York Times, and the Wall Street Journal, she knows what is happening in the world. I admire her for this non-discrimination in her reading, I know that I have some discriminations, as do we all, when it comes to reading. Most of us, no matter how book nerdy we are, stick to one genre or sub-genre. Young adult, mystery, romance, paranormal romance, fiction, 'chick-lit,' teen, we can't help ourselves we find an author or genre or series that we can't put down and we get stuck. It's usually very hard for us to break out of our molds and venture into uncharted territories. I try to force myself now and again to try something new or pick up something that someone has suggested to me that I feel isn't really my style. But I know no reader that is as voracious and widely read as Rory Gilmore.

The reason I could never be as well read as Miss Gilmore is simple, I never read the newspaper, and quite a few of the books she has read are ones that I will never pick up. According to www.listchallenges.com one of the many books that were mentioned in the series was 'Middlesex' by Jeffrey Eugenides now I tried three times to read this book and was unsuccessful each time. I just couldn't get into it no matter what, the same with 'The Kite Runner' by Khaled Hosseini I tried and tried but just couldn't get through it. Rory never puts a books down, she tries everything once and moves on to the next. I can't do that, if a book doesn't grab me or the writing is awful or the story so stupid that I just can't get into I have to put it down. Not to say that either of those books are poorly written and I know for a fact that they are both extremely popular books but they weren't my cup of tea.

Rory Gilmore is an inspiration to me, an inspiration to read things that have never tried before, an inspiration to try movies and music that I have never heard of before. I hope one day to be almost as well and widely read as her but I never will be because I know myself and I have limitations on my reading. No matter how hard I try to break out of my molds, one day reading Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes mysteries and the next Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate events and then the next 'Snuff' by Chuck Palahniuk, I just know that I won't be able to pick up 'Beowulf' or 'The Art of War' and sit down and read them cover to cover. I know they are important books and to be fully well read these are ones to read but they aren't books that I will read. I know this about myself and fully except my limitations as a reader.

Reading is about the pleasure of entering a new world, meeting new people, learning something new. If a book isn't bringing pleasure to the reader then the reader has every right to put the book down and start something new. I am very adamant about enjoying what I read so if a book and I aren't getting along then I will graciously put it aside, thank it for its time and move on. Rory Gilmore is a true reading fanatic and will never say no to a book or a subject which is why she has been an icon for book lovers every where. This is why I could never be as well read as Rory Gilmore, I have my few discrimintations. But I intend to keep on trying.