This was a treat from beginning to end, as Ann Hood wrote about a handful of books that were important to her in her youth. So much of her experience was mine as well, although I figured out from the context that I was about 4 years ahead of her in age, and a couple more in schooling (due to my starting young and skipping a grade along the way). Like Hood, I read Marjorie Morningstar at a young age and loved her; I was intrigued and baffled by what I know now were relatively tame and vague sex scenes in that and other novels; I remember the CBS evening news in the background (although it's Richard C. Hottelet, not Walter Cronkite, who speaks in my mind); I remember Johnny Got His Gun making the rounds of older schoolmates, particularly boys who might be drafted and sent to Viet Nam, although I never read it myself; I used to choose books from the library shelves for their size, because nothing was better than getting lost for days and days in a sprawling 600+ page story that covered two or three generations; I was drawn to books that took place "out there" somewhere, China, or Russia, or Africa, or even California. All of these shared experiences with reading made this is one of the better "books about books" that I have read in a while. Your mileage may vary, if you are of a different age, and these particular books are not part of your history in the same way.
Reviewed in 2017 ( )

"I believe that magically the book we are supposed to read somehow appears in out hands at just the right time" (126).

Ann Hood grew up in a small town in Rhode Island, the children of Italian immigrants, who always dreamed of traveling beyond and becoming a writer. In this book of ten essays or Lessons she learned from books, Hood explores the many ways that reading is not an escape from life, but a way to live.

I generally love getting a glimpse of a reader's relationship with books, but I had a tough time with this one. I admit, some of the fault may lie with me as a reader. First, I didn't realize they were essays until I was partway through. I'd been reading it as a connected narrative and was growing impatient with repeated thoughts and not being able to follow what was happening chronologically. Next, Hood grew up during the 1960s and read a lot of books that I have not. Usually even when an author's personality or experience is markedly different from mine, I can connect with shared favorite books. I've only read one of the books that Hood mentions as seminal in her life, and I didn't like it - the others, I've heard of but have no interest in. There were moments where I could glimpse a fellow book and language lover, such as when she talks of reading the right book in just the right moment or having family members that didn't understand how she could be reading instead of playing outside. But most of the time I was bewildered by her precocious reading and wondering if she's really as elitist as she sounds when she almost apologizes for loving a book that she's since grown to realize isn't as well-written as she once thought. If you're a reader and love books about books, though, don't let my ambivalence discourage you. It's a short book worth spending the time to read, and you may discover it connects with you better than it did me. ( )

I find this type of book interesting, but this writer seems too self-absorbed. Growing up in the same time period, I expected to relate to her stories of growing up with books, but didn't. I've read other books of this sort and took away suggestions for future reading, but didn't. Surprisingly after making much of her immigrant roots and small town upbringing, the fact that both her and her brother attended college when many didn't is just a casual mention. ( )

Highly recommended for anyone who loves books. Thank you, Ann Hood, for stirring up so many long-forgotten memories of growing up reading. ( )

This is a lovely book about books. Written so very well, each page is a joy. Ann Hood takes the reader on a wonderful journey of books that changed her life. Weaving the title of the book with the story of how and why the particular book led the author on a marvelous path, I read the book in one sitting, relating to many of which I had read.

Highly recommended! ( )