Small screens, shared books and hibernation

I’m not a big fan of winter. All I want to do during this coldest, dreariest time of year is hibernate, so every evening I climb into bed by 9:30 or 10 p.m. There, I turn out all the lights and use a headlamp or small book light to read. The ambiance of a dark room, with spotlight on whatever story I’m engrossed in, adds an element of magic and theatricality to the reading experience.

Do I read books every night? Please—it’s 2022. Some nights (OK, a lot of nights) I watch Netflix on my laptop or phone instead…On nights I do read, my bedside book collection includes The Book of Delights by Ross Gay, a collection of essays I got last summer at the C. Burr Arts library. The paperback wasn’t a typical library loan, but a gift — mine to keep as part of One Maryland One Book (OMOB), an annual program put on by the Maryland Humanities Council since 2008. ‘One Book’ is chosen from statewide recommendations sent in by librarians, teachers, and citizen readers. Suggested titles must fit into a certain predetermined theme, which for 2021 was Hope.