…Thoroughly I find I have to treat it as a sort of hobby and set about
it seriously. I begin by making a map on one of the end-leafs: then I put in a
genealogical tree or two. Then I put a running headline at the top of each
page: finally I index at the end all the passages I have for any reason
underlined. I often wonder—considering how people enjoy themselves developing
photos or making scrap-books—why so few people make a hobby of their reading in
this way. Many an otherwise dull book which I had to read have I enjoyed in
this way, with a fine-nibbed pen in my hand: one is making something all the
time and a book so read acquires the charm of a toy without losing that of a
book”
~C.S. Lewis, letter to
a friend
Lewis really made this into a
fine art in ways I never thought of. I have to admit, I'm intrigued ... perhaps
I should be doing that ... hmmm...
