Reader's Fave

I recently interviewed Dan Bigelow for our 53rd installment of Reader's Fave, a casual interview with someone who shares their favorite book. Bigelow lives in the Elochoman Valley.

We began our discussion with one of Bigelow's favorites, the classic fantasy novel "The Hobbit" by J.R.R. Tolkien. "I can't remember a time [when] I haven't read it," he said. "I maybe read it six to eight times in grade school. It's a much simpler book compared to the 'Lord of the Ring' series. 'The Hobbit' is an entryway into that thought; it makes you want it. 'The Lord of the Rings' makes you a better reader; it challenges you. It mastered the fundamentals of writing. I like head-changing books, but I still like Jack Reacher type books, too. Ideally, I want to feel different after I read a book. I want that emotional effect, but my favorite in the last 10 to 15 years is 'Piranesi' by Suzanna Clarke. I almost wept after reading it. I'd read her other books, and it's the exact opposite of everything previous she'd done. It's about a guy living the best life. He's a wonderful human; just a good person. It just had this powerful emotional effect on me, and maybe made me wiser. There is nothing compared to the book 'Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell' by Suzanna Clarke. I just want to hug it again. Also, the books 'The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down' by Anne Fadiman and 'The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat' by Oliver Sachs changed the way I practice medicine. The kind of empathy this shows, it inspired me to find them; to look for them. Barbara Tuchman, author of 'The Historian,' changed my view on things. Right now, I'm reading 'The Past is Red' by Catherynne Valente. She's kind of a witchy poet writer, but this book is a lot less poetic than her other stuff."

Sharing how he became a reader, Bigelow said, "I remember I wanted to know what words meant, so my mom initially taught me. I can't remember a time when I didn't read. Also, famous comic-book writer Stan Lee taught me to read. I was reading 'Spider Man,' and mom would explain certain words to me. When I was headed off to Kindergarten, I was sitting on the bus. I was nervous, and then we pulled up to the school, but it was the 'wrong' school and I started getting all anxious. This third grader, Scott Haley, came up and sat down next to me and explained the bus would soon pull up to our school. He showed true kindness, and we went on to become friends and read at each other's houses. We reinforced each other. Scott is kinder than I am. He supported me in my reading, and I'm a better reader because of it. I try to recognize kindness, decency, and intelligence when I see it. After reading 'Piranesi,' I bought three copies for friends. One of them I sent to Scott. We still see each other to this day. In high school I was in the honors English, AP, class, but they'd have you read these dystopian novels. I thought, 'They're trying to make me read these?' I was bored with them. There was this whole world of fun books to read. Why these? The class was terrible. It's like eating kale. Why start people with that?"

When asked about his favorite format for reading, Bigelow said, "I do Kindle for travel. I was reading a book about Ataturk, the founder of modern Turkey. [It was] a big, thick book. I was carrying it all around. It caused me to go to Kindle for travel. I usually do light stuff for travel, like Jack Reacher. Audio? Somebody talking to me? Never. I listen to music. It doesn't meld with my work flow." Pointing at the rather large, private library in his basement, he concluded, "Everything else is physical books."

May you wonderful Wahkiakum readers find certain books which change your way of thinking, and have a powerfully emotional effect on you.