For those of you who read The Wall Street Journal (heck, even for those who usually don't), today's Journal (the issue dated February 2, 2004)contains a fine article by Ray on the "Opinion" page (page A18) entitled "Remembrance of Books Past." Highly recommended reading!

Is there an electronic version?

Yes, but it is available only to Wall Street Journal on-line subscribers, of which I'm not one. I picked up a copy of the paper yesterday at a local newstand.

I went and photocopied it from our library. For those who don't have access to it, it basically includes the idea of a theoretical sequel to F451, where you see all the "book people" remembering their books, and speculating on what parts they would remember wrong.

He suggests a little exercise where we each pick our own top ten novels, outline them in detail (from memory), then go back to the books and see where you screwed it up.

His final challenge is:

"Go find your bliss, name your favorites, and see if your long umbilical memory has been cut or you are still wonderfully tied to the things you loved in libraries a long time ago." (WSJ, Feb 2, 2004.)



[This message has been edited by Mr. Dark (edited 02-03-2004).]

Mr darke could you send me a copy of the article, here it is difficult to access the articles. Thank you!!!

No problem: Just email me your complete mailing address again (I don't know where the one I got last year is).

Don't know if this helps, but dreamed last night I was talking to Ray and told him the idea for "Remembrance of Books Past" was right, as in 40 years of both reading and watching "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" I haven't learned to recite it. I always get stuck at "his heart was two sizes too small" and am not 100% on all the words before that though I can pretty well fake it.

I understand children exist who have memorized chapters of Harry Potter.

We had quite a discussion here about memory in days of yore.
(but I can't remember exactly when...)

Yeah, I didn't remember this thread either. Thanks be for the search function!

Memory isn't important. What is important is remembering.