Things that you think . . .
The other day, I was driving along the stock lane at the farm and I heard a tune I quite liked, with an unpretentious English voice talking to me over the melody. I pricked up my ears when I heard: ‘ Did you know that Dickens invented 13,000 characters in his lifetime?’
Oh good, I thought. An interview on literature and turned up the volume slightly, before realising as the chorus began, that I was in fact listening to a song.
Some more facts ensued:
* In 1450, 100 books were printed.
*Last year, 1 million books were published and a new book is printed every 30 seconds.
*The narrator said ‘it would take me 15 years just to read the titles on every book printed.’
And the song went on. Finally the back announcement was made and I discovered I had been listening to a Nick Hornby/Ben Folds song and decided then and there it was an i-tunes investment.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6G5JaicYuVU
For those who don’t know Nick Hornby, 
check wikipedia for a quick bio, but for me, Nick Hornby will always be the man who wrote About A Boy. 
The book and the movie burrowed under my skin. 
Hornby has a knack, in my mind, of weaving the inadequacies of his characters’ personas into a beautiful tapestry. His books seem to be written with an undiluted honesty but with enormous empathy as well, and I am charmed by that.
And now here is said Nick Hornby writing a song that is quirky and fact-laden but has writing between the lines that you all really should listen to.
But I wondered – for all those struggling writers out there, what does it feel like when you are looking for a publisher and you hear that 1 million books were published in 2009.
That a new book is printed every 30 seconds.
Can a writer ever envisage themselves as part of such phenomenal statistics?
Well according to Nick Hornby it’s all to do with Things That You Think.
And I’ve decided to think that I can . . . eventually . . . somehow . . . some day.
Curiouser and curiouser… I shall listen
It’s great Simon, I love it!
Love it! Thanks for the link. I, too, highly respect Hornby–High Fidelity revealed nuances of the male mind to me that made friendships with boys so much easier. Even way back in high school when that was supposed to be much harder than it should be 🙂
It was serendipity to have the radio on whilst moving stock!
great find! love it. i read and enjoyed About a Boy awhile ago.
Perfectly subtle irony between the lines isn’t it?
I ‘m fond of Nick Hornby. And About a Boy is the first book I read by him. Then the movie was one of those rare cases in which I’m not disappointed by an adaptation. I loved it too. I like working both with the book and with the film with my students. They are lovely and full of hints for discussion.
Thanks for this post!
It’s a pleasure, MG. I always think how lucky your students are to have the kind of lateral thinking teacher you seem to be.