Most of the time we practice our passion in between the demands on us from work, family, friends, exercise and routine life maintenance. After all, reading can be done any time and almost any place and in many different ways. In that way, it is like eating. Fast food can be grabbed and wolfed down in minutes. A home-cooked meal can be made in 15 or 30 minutes and be good. But sometimes we should indulge ourselves with fine food in a splendid setting. Our reading also deserves these times of distinction. So, with apologies to Julia Child for borrowing her opening lines in Mastering the Art of French Cooking to create this column, I proceed.

This is a recipe for the busy reader who can be unconcerned on occasional with time, responsibilities, cares, the work-exercise-play syndrome, or anything else which might interfere with the enjoyment of something wonderful to read. Written for those who love to read, this recipe is as detailed as I have felt it should be so the reader will know exactly what is involved and how to go about it. Here then is my recipe for a luxurious reading experience. Note that it works best when the finest ingredients are carefully chosen ahead of time. While it is true that basic reading demands only two elements—you and the book—it is equally true that quality dining and reading, epicurean experiences of the highest sort, must be planned with care. With that in mind, here we go.

For one person.

Ingredients:    
You
One book, carefully chosen
One bookmark
One pencil, sharpened
One pair reading glasses (if necessary)
Drink
Seating
Lighting
One or more cats (optional, but strongly recommended)

Advance Preparation: Remove your worries and set aside.

Directions: Combine your book of choice, bookmark, pencil and reading glasses. Arrange on a low-rise table. Prepare your preferred drink—wine, water, hot chocolate, hot or iced tea or coffee—and along with a coaster, add that to the mixture on the table.

Your seating can be prepared in any number of ways depending on your preferences and the weather. A grassy area and a sunny day, for example, may need only a blanket. An overstuffed chair on a cold, rainy day will require good lighting and perhaps a small pillow or throw. A spring afternoon may require nothing more than a full-length sofa. Whatever your choice, the ingredients must be of high quality.

When everything has been combined, settle in. Pick up the book. If it is new, open by gently pressing open the front and back covers. Fan the pages, stopping several times to again press the pages open and allow the book’s stiffness to yield to your fingers. Put the open book to your nose and inhale the fragrant scent. (Remember, this is an experience to be savored, not devoured.) Take a sip from your drink. Call the cats to join you.

Now—read, and savor. You have Mastered the Art of Fine Reading. 


Special Event: Next weekend, April 29-30, is the 11th Annual Los Angeles Times Festival of Books, which is held on the gorgeous UCLA campus in west Los Angeles. If you possibly can go, do! This is one of the most acclaimed book festivals in the world—and rightly so. This year, it will host 400 authors, six outdoor stages with continuous entertainment, 97 indoor panels and one-on-one conversations, book signings, a movie screening, poetry readings, more than 300 exhibitor booths and about 130,000 happy booklovers.  Saturday’s hours are 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., and Sunday’s hours run from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Admission is free to all events, though parking costs $8. Their web site can be found at http://www.latimes.com/events


Since her childhood days of Mother Goose, Lauren has been giving her opinion on books to almost anyone who will listen. Lauren shares her home with several significant others including three cats and nearly 1,000 books that, whether previously read or not, constitute her to-be-read stack. She can be reached at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it