It is sorely tempting to review an imaginary humourous gift book here; a sort of Bluffers Guide to Reading because Bayard's thesis is that many conversations about books are dialogues of the deaf. He postulates that we operate within three 'libraries': the virtual, the inner, and the collective. The collective is the true intersection of the inner libraries of the participants in a discussion whereas the virtual is the stated or implied intersection. Furthermore, the contents of our inner library is a fluid mixture of fluid constructs. Our memories and perceptions of each book are in constant flux. This has a profound effect on our attitude to reading and to the discussion of books.

All of this is explored in a series of essays in which a specific book about books is both the subject and object. Eco's post-modern Name of the Rose is likely to be widely familar to an anglophone reader but most of the references are to French works. Bayard is so punctilious about his descriptions of each work that the reader need feel no discomfort at any ignorance even though, by his own account, the author is as unreliable as any narrator.

I picked this up intending to give it a quick skim but I found myself devouring every word. And in so doing I undermine part of Bayard's structure: He has no abbreviation for close reading; the best that I can offer is HB and SB++. ( )

The best part of this book was the cover. It was an quick read, but apparently I do not share the humor or supposed wittiness of the author. The only chapter I gleaned anything from was iii; Books You Have Heard Of which discussed Umberto Eco's The Name of the Rose. I had actual heard of this book and so it was interesting, easy to relate to and not above me. I felt like the reason I didn't get this book was because the author was French and so his frame of reference was way different than mine. ( )

Great discussion of the place titles hold in the social/cultural landscape and how we orientate ourselves in that space - thus obviating the need to have actually read the titles cover to cover. Wonderful. ( )

Until last month, I hadn't written a Book Note in just over two years. I admit that's a long hiatus, but I was still taken aback at an email that asked, "Does that mean you haven't read a book since 2006?" I blog, therefore I am? Courtesy of Pierre Bayard's How to Talk About Books You Haven't Read, I now have the perfect retort for the next hiatus: "That all depends on what you mean by read." According to Bayard, we have many ways of relating to books beyond not reading, including skimming, skipping, forgetting and glancing at covers. "As cultivated people know," Bayard tells us, "culture is above all a matter of orientation. Being cultivated is a matter of not having read any book in particular, but of being able to find your bearings within books as a system, which requires you to know that they form a system and to be able to locate each element in relation to the others." This book is a delightful antidote in a society that holds reading sacred. It does indeed encourage you to talk, guilt-free, about books you haven't read, but more than that will make you remember why you love reading in the first place. ( )

This book seemed to go against every belief I have ever had about books and reading. I was told from when I was very young that the more I read the more I learn. I did not feel comfortable with the fact that this idea was being challenged. I began reading this book with intense skepticism and the intense desire to find something wrong with Bayard's argument. Instead, I found myself agreeing with him.

There are always books we cannot make ourselves read or we start reading them numerous times only to give up and put them back on the shelf. These books induce headaches, misery and coma-like sleep states. We force ourselves to sit through hours upon hours of unpleasant reading all the while retaining nothing of what we read. We could easily be reading something enjoyable or doing something more important. If we simply must read this book a skim is definitely preferable to hours of torture.

I found myself employing Bayard's techniques without even knowing it. I have a feeling I will keep doing so. The is the type of book that teaches you without you even knowing it. The only criticism I have is that there were simply too many quotes. It made the prose seem choppy. Other than that, this is definitely worth a read even if it seems you will not agree.