The new introduction and afterword bring fresh relevance to this insightful rumination on the act of reading--as a path to critical thinking, individual and political identity, civic engagement, and resistance. The former LA Times book critic expands his short book, rich in ideas, on the consequence of reading to include the considerations of fake news, siloed information, and the connections between critical thinking as the key component of engaged citizenship and resistance. Here is the case for reading as a political act in both public and private gestures, and for the ways it enlarges the world and our frames of reference, all the while keeping us engaged.
Ulin, David L. David Ulin has lived in Los Angeles since 1991. From 1993-6 he was the book editor of the LA Weekly. He is currently on the board of the National Book Critics Circle, and writes regularly for the LA Weekly, Chicago Tribune, Newsday, and the Los Angeles Times.