What is a Reading Room?

Posted byRebecca BuddPosted inClanmother, Readings, Rebecca, Rebecca's Reading RoomTags:, , , ,

The Power of Reading Spaces

“Hardy’s Cottage: Thomas Hardy birthplace Higher Bockhampton, near Dorchester, Dorset

A reading room is a designated space in a home or public area specifically designed for reading and quiet contemplation. It typically contains comfortable seating, good lighting, and shelves for books.

My definition of a reading room, however, is more expansive. Whenever I have a book in hand, I am in reading room. Taking a few minutes, in a busy day, to read gives me something to hold in my mind and provide a boost to continue on my daily tasks.

The Kilns: C.S. Lewis House, Oxford, England

Moments of literary respite offer a tranquil refuge within the chaotic rhythms of life, nurturing mind and spirit. Whether it is within the confines of a designated reading room or simply by holding a book in hand, the act of reading has the profound ability to rejuvenate and inspire us as we navigate through our daily responsibilities.

Creating a personal reading room can provide a peaceful retreat for reading, studying, and relaxing. It can offer a quiet space away from the distractions of everyday life, allowing individuals to focus on reading without interruptions. Reading rooms can serve as a sanctuary for personal reflection, intellectual growth, and the enjoyment of literature.

Monks House – Leonard and Virginia Woolf’s 17th-century country retreat Rodmell, Lewes, East Sussex

Reading Rooms have moved On-Line

Reading rooms have moved online, offering accessible platforms for literary exploration, research, and intellectual engagement in the digital realm. These virtual reading rooms create serene online environments where literary exploration and creative expression can thrive, enriching individuals’ literary journeys and connecting them with others who share a passion for the written word. From curated collections of free eBooks to digital libraries offering diverse content, online reading rooms provide an opportunity to connect with literary resources and historical archives from anywhere with internet access.

Some of my favourite “go-to” reading rooms include:

The Queen’s Reading Room: This is a charitable organization dedicated to celebrating and promoting the transformative power and enriching benefits of reading. The Queen’s Reading Room originated from Her Majesty Queen Camilla’s book club and has evolved into a thriving global online community, fostering meaningful discussions and unique insights by engaging with curated authors.

Project Gutenberg Reading Room: Project Gutenberg is a treasure trove of free eBooks, providing a digital space for literary exploration and discovery, with access to classic literature, historical texts, and works of various genres. They have a wonderful collection of audiobooks on Spotify

The Internet Archives Reading Room: This is a non-profit digital library offering a wide array of free resources, including books, movies, music, and more, serving as a valuable resource for educational, research, and entertainment purposes.

Open Culture: Open Culture is a website that offers a wide range of free cultural and educational resources, including online courses, movies, language lessons, eBooks, and audiobooks. The platform aims to promote lifelong learning and provide access to high-quality educational content to a global audience.

Rebecca’s Reading Room – A Virtual Reading Room

Walking the beach in. Victoria, British Columbia

Several years ago, I created a virtual reading room to document my thoughts and discoveries from reading books and poetry. I find that virtual reading rooms can serve as personalized spaces for contemplation and creativity. Welcome to Rebecca’s Reading Room, my space for literary exploration and creative discourse of beloved books, acclaimed authors, revered poets, and other visionaries of the written word.

My goal is to encourage a deep and profound awareness of our personal journeys. There is always a story to be read, an adventure to be imagined, and an idea to be understood.

Words give meaning to the present while expressing the universal hopes and aspirations of humanity, past and future.  Gertrude Stein once said, “A masterpiece…may be unwelcome but it is never dull.”   For me, books that challenge my “status quo” and test my firmly held beliefs may be uncomfortable, but they are anything but boring. 

The bond between writer and reader gives relevance to the exchange.  My goal is to understand the message in the spirit in which it was given and to embrace the diversity of accepted wisdom. In the end, it is about connecting with others, whether they live in our century or 2500 years ago.

Rebecca

Published by Rebecca Budd

Blogger, Visual Storyteller, Podcaster, Traveler and Life-long Learner

75 thoughts on “What is a Reading Room?”

    1. Thank you Carolyn for stopping by RRR and for your heartening comments. As Jorge Luis Borges once wrote, “I have always imagined that Paradise will be a kind of library.” Sending hugs your way!!!

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    1. Thank you Dave for your comments. You have one of the most amazing on-line reading rooms. You generate topic that invite life-affirming discussions. I look forward to meeting up with you on Sundays. I am sorry to hear that you had a power outage today. YIKES.

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  3. This is fascinating, Rebecca. I knew about Gutenberg, but not the others. I am most impressed with Rebecca’s Reading Room. I love that video on the shore. I hope you have a great week ahead.

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    1. I am delighted that you stopped by, Dan. I have been following Gutenberg on Mastodon, which has given me a great deal of reading ideas – sometimes too many. Open Culture is -as Liz Gauffreau , a Rabbit Hole looking for someone to step in. The amount of knowledge is mind-boggling. I have been following Internet Archives’s focus on lending scanned books. The Queen’s Reading Room has a wonderful Instagram account that provides readings and interviews. Thank you for your heartwarming comments about RRR. Looking forward to our discussions!!!

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  4. Thank you for this lovely post Rebecca. I love seeing the reading room of Virginia Wolfe! My reading room is curled up on the sofa or sitting outdoors at lunch while at work. I truly enjoyed this ❤️

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    1. Thank you for stopping by, Holly, and for your comments. We visited Monks House last summer during the heat wave, which offered a welcomed cool oasis from the sun’s heat. We had book our visit well in advance because National Trust limits the number of visitors/day. The National Trust takes great care in preservation of these iconic settings. I was alone in this room when I took the photo looking out into the garden and felt the energy Virginia must have felt when she read in her reading room.

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  5. Must. Not. Continue. Down. Open Culture. Rabbit Hole. But I will! It looks as though free MOOCs aren’t dead after all? I look forward to exploring more of Open Culture. Beginning writers who are trying to learn the craft need access to credible courses and workshops that won’t rip them off. Anyway, thank you for this post!

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    1. I am delighted that you enjoyed this post, Liz. During Covid, I was heartened by the creative work of these on-line reading rooms as well as the museums, art galleries and archives. They reached out to where we were – in our homes during a time when social distancing was in place. I just signed up to an amazing course through Open Culture “Art Through Time: A Global View”! You are so right – Must.Not.Continue.Down….. Yikes!

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  7. Great post Rebecca. I love you thoughts while walking on the seashore. I didn’t grow up with reading rooms We just read wherever we could find a comfortable place to read.

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    1. Thank you for joining me on the beach in Victoria, British Columbia. Don and I were trying out a new lavalier that promised to capture my voice from a far distance. I was surprised how well it came out. I thought that there would be static. Technology is evolving!!! Like you, I believe that reading rooms are wherever we can find a place to read.

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      1. I did not know that. What an amazing article. I feel more inspired than ever to enjoy my reading chairs. This reminds me that I was sitting in one of my favourite chairs during our conversation on Katherine Mansfield.

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  9. I read a lot, and I can do it in any room or any place. 🙂 I do appreciate those who prefer a quiet space, and I had no knowledge of virtual reading rooms so thank you for the introduction. I downsized several years back so I prefer to utilize my local library. They participate in wowbrary.org which allows me to get a weekly email listing of all the new books and magazines acquired by the library. It’s a wonderful thing, and happy reading.

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    1. Thank you for the wowbrary.org link, July which I thoroughly enjoyed viewing. How wonderful that you have that benefit available. You just reminded me of “Big Library Read” which my sister Sarah, introduced to me a couple of years ago. https://biglibraryread.com/. It is a Global ebook Club.

      “Big Library Read (BLR),facilitated by OverDrive, is a reading program through your library that connects readers around the world with the same ebook at the same time without any wait lists or holds.”

      The next read is “Wild New World” by Dan Flores. Should be interesting.

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    1. I am thrilled that you joined me in my reading room, Luisa. I am so pleased that we have connected. Grazie per la tua amicizia e per aver creato post straordinari che incoraggiano tutti noi!!!!

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  11. My reading rooms are usually outside. Right now I enjoy reading at the beach or on my sunny terrace. As a child on the farm, I read outside, on haystacks, large rocks or in the barnyard when the weather would allow. I have fond memories of reading on boats, ferries and airplanes. I have always loved the idea of having a house with a library/reading room, but really anywhere I can read in peace is a reading room for me. Thanks for the virtual reading rooms you have suggested as well as your own. xo

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    1. I can just imagine you as a child, sitting on a haystack reading a book, Darlene. You remind me so much of Anne of Green Gables, who had a passion for reading. I believe that Amanda has always been with you, since the beginning. I agree wholeheartedly with you – whenever I have a book in hand, no matter the location, I am in a reading room. Thank you so much for your heartwarming comments.

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  12. Your reading room post is like a balm for my heart, dear Rebecca! I very much love to read together with friends we can also discuss the content of the book. Thank you so much for your various proposals:)

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    1. I LOVE our conversations, Martina. Your recommendations have been invaluable addition to my reading experience. Like you, I enjoy reading with others and sharing thoughts on how books have influenced my thinking over the years. Sending hugs across the miles!!!

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      1. It’s really amazing how a relationship between two people, who never see each other, can grow, Rebecca!:)
        By the way I have ordered “The age of active Wisdom” by Bateson Mary Catherine. Hugs towards you, too!

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      2. I know you will enjoy this book, Martina. I especially appreciated this quote:

        “as we age we have not only to readdress earlier developmental crises but also somehow to find the way to three affirmations that may seem to conflict. … We have to affirm our own life. We have to affirm our own death. And we have to affirm love, both given and received.” Mary Catherine Bateson, Composing a Further Life: The Age of Active Wisdom

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  13. I loved listening to you while you were walking on the beach, Rebecca. So lovely and peaceful. And thank you for this soothing post about the importance of reading and quiet spaces for those books that pull us into other worlds, stirring our emotions. I have a special corner in our home for writing, but for reading, I usually nestle into my favorite corner on our sofa.

    Have a lovely day, and I responded to your email. ❤️

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    1. I am delighted that you joined me in my reading room, Lauren, This idea came out of my first blog, OnTheRoadBookClub. When I walked to work (it was a half hour walk), I would listen to an audiobook. I wrote my thoughts as I went along. Now, that I am working from home, I thought that Rebecca’s Reading Room was more in keeping what I was doing now. I have attached a podcast to this site and plan to read poetry, and discuss books. I would love to recite your poetry, if you agree!

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  15. Hi Rebecca. I loved this and the idea of having a great reading room. The beach is ideal and loved your reading room. I wasn’t aware there were online reading rooms! ❤

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    1. Hi Debby, I know that I responded to your comment and yet I cannot seem to locate your comment or my response. There are WordPress mysteries that will never be resolved. But one thing is certain. The beat is an ideal reading room!! Sending many hugs your way!

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  16. Rebecca, I love that cozy looking green room — the perfect tint of green for a room. No matter its configuration, a quiet space for reading opens mental doors that let that room become any shape or place we want. Maybe I’ll recline on the luxurious cushions for a ride (while reading of course) on the flying spoon John Fogerty mentions in a song. :D Hugs on the wing.

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    1. Oh, I agree wholeheartedly heartedly, Teagan! The room becomes any shape or place we want when we have a book in hand. May I join you on the flying spoon. What fun!!!

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  17. Hi Rebecca, this is a lovely article. I like the idea of a reading room. I have lots of books shelves all of the place but I don’t have a specific place I read. I listen to audio books or Alexa reading when I drive, do art, and/or other tasks that allow me to focus my mind elsewhere while I work. I usually read in bed for 30 minutes to 1 hour at night.

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    1. Robbie – what better way to end the day than by reading. I just figured out how to use Alexa for reading. (I continue to learn) Reading rooms have fascinated me, even as a child. My father created a library wherever we lived. Sometimes they were small places, but they were always part of our living arrangements . When we moved, our books were the first things that were packed.

      I am interested in exploring women’s reading clubs in the Victorian age. I believe they were instrumental in providing intellectual stimulation and social interaction for women during a time when their educational opportunities were limited. I read that these clubs offered a space for women to discuss literature, exchange ideas, and engage in intellectual pursuits that were often reserved for men.

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      1. Hi Rebecca, I am sure that was the case. Women were very suppressed during that time period. I think Queen Victoria was a most dreadful and cruel woman. Alexa isn’t great on diversity of accents, but her voice isn’t annoying to me so I don’t mind her.

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  18. Thanks for the links to virtual reading rooms. Good resources to a one.

    During the pandemic we turned one of our guest bedrooms into an official reading room. We took out the bed, brought in two plump occasional chairs with an ottoman, added lamps, and for the win… took off the closet doors and turned that now open space into bookshelves. It’s a nice retreat.

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    1. What a wonderful idea, Ally! I wish I could beam over to your house to sit in on of the plump occasional chairs and have a conversation with you about books. I learned a great deal during the pandemic. That I could turn my condo into a coffee shop, tea salon, workout gym, movie theater, and library. It was all about how I accepted change. The on-line resources were invaluable. Many thanks for stopping by and for your comments. Very much appreciated!!

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  19. Rebecca,

    You know how to invite with open arms and open mind.

    How could someone not want to visit your reading room, nor want to curl up in their own with a book?

    Gertrude Stein’s words ring true. It brings to mind books like “The Good Earth” by Pearl S. Buck. A masterpiece wherein often the information was new and disturbing to me. The lessons learned from that tale told still resonate with me decades after reading it.

    Writing is an art. I believe reading is also an art. One can read words, or one can read a story. One may see it go by in their mind, like a movie.

    Thank you for the treasure trove of reading room resources you have listed here today!

    Go forth and read!

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    1. Oh my, Resa! I had goosebumps when I read “Reading is an Art!” I still have those same goosebumps as I respond to you. I have never considered the possibility that reading is an art form. Of course it is!!!

      I scurried across the internet and can now confirm that reading can indeed be considered an art form. It involves interpreting symbols on a page to create meaning, engaging the imagination, and evoking emotions. The ability to comprehend complex ideas, empathize with characters, and visualize different worlds all contribute to the artistry of reading. Just like any other art form, reading requires practice, skill, and appreciation for the craft in order to fully immerse oneself in the experience.

      I LOVE our conversations Resa. You are a treasure!!

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      1. My dear Rebecca,
        I have known you are a reading artist, since I met you.
        You are also somewhat of a groupie of the written word and writers. I love that about you.
        To say you are a fan undersells your passion.

        I LOVE our conversations, too!

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  20. After writing this comment, I must get over to your reading room, Rebecca. I always wanted a library in my house, floor to ceiling books with a ladder, a comfy chair, and a sunny window seat. Instead I have a writing room, and I’m satisfied with that. How wonderful that we have virtual reading rooms and that reading isn’t something we do solo. I love sharing thoughts about books and picking up books recommended by others. It’s like sharing magic. ❤

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    1. Hi Diana! I am delighted that you stopped by. You will recall that I had been thinking about creating a virtual reading room for several years. RRR was to be an extension of my blog “OnTheRoadBookClub” which has been retired and integrated into RRR. I would like to post your poem “The Elephant Child” in the “Poet’s Salon” which I will be creating this week. Would that be okay?

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