Reading

Much of the story conveys the importance of reading, which Mary Ann successfully conveys to her son Will, and which Will spends much time and effort conveying to the reader as the story's narrator. Will and his mother discuss seemingly every issue by reading and exchanging books, and Mary Ann goes so far as to say that reading is the opposite of dying. She does not feel as though books are a kind of passive entertainment, but rather they are powerful methods for transmitting ideas and effecting positive social change. Books are mentioned in every page of this book, and both Will and his mother seem to enjoy stories that themselves are mainly about reading other books, making this story a book about book about books, in a very real sense. Will's life at the beginning of the story revolves around books, as he is involved in the...