Reading Critically Begins with Curiosity ~ Reading Craft #2
To be better readers, we must learn to suspend disbelief, and allow a book to shows us what it's meant to show; only then, can we judge it. Being curious is the first step we need to read critically.
As readers, we all probably had the experience of reading a sentence that doesn’t quite make sense, following a plotline that was perhaps odd, or even being introduced to concepts that seem strange or unneeded. Yet instead of closing the book, we keep going. That little act of patience is really an act of curiosity—and it’s what makes critical reading possible.
Critical reading is a complex skill that demands practice—for we need to read while assuming that what is written in the page is not all that the text is saying. This is about questioning the text, trying to gather the “meaning between the lines” or “the fine print” of a story, while keeping an open mind. It is about trying to understand the author’s intention, but thematically (e.g., what does the story mean?), and presentation-wise (e.g., why is this sentence written this way?).
It easier said than done, honestly.
As readers we have preferences about the themes, about the motifs in a story, about how things should be presented, and event about how sentences should be structured. Those preferences—those likes and dislikes—can easily become a bias that kills our curiosity, leading us to judge a book too early and without trying to understand authorial intention.
I am not saying: “Do not judge the book at all”, what I am saying is: “suspend disbelief, let the book show you what’s mean to show you, then judge it.”
Again, that’s critical reading at its finest, and it’s a skill we must endeavour to acquire and practice.
Thus, in today’s essay…
I will focus on one element of authorial intention—namely, a story’s presentation—and I’ll show you one strategy that I consider fundamental to read without judging: reader-induced curiosity.
Once we have introduced key concepts, I will show you two examples of award-winning books that require you to suspend disbelief. These books are speculative fiction (sci-fi, in particular), and they cover cases of a few paragraphs, to the book’s entire structure.
Are you ready? Let’s get reading undone!
