Russian writer Vladimir Nabokov believes that a good reader is one that has an imagination, a good memory, vocabulary and artistic sense. A good reader will re- read work, often multiple times. Nabokov refers to literature as art, such as a picture on a wall. The viewer doesn't scan a painting with their eyes in an orderly fasion, left to right, top to bottom. The viewer sees an image whole, not one line at a time. A good reader needs to be able to do the same. In this sense, a reader should read with their mind, not their eyes. Nabokov also states that a good reader " Should notice and fondle details. ", meaning that the reader should treat literature as if it is a new world, one completely different than ours, with different meanings and interpretations of the obvious. Once the reader has analyzed and studied this new world, with their imagination, using a scientific approach to register and decipher the details, then the reader can make the connections to his own world.
I do believe with Nabokov on his theory about what a good reader is. I too believe that imagination and the ability to look at literature as an art form is important. As a child I grew up listening to my grandpa telling stories about his life. Without a doubt his imagination embellished what he claimed to be true stories about growing up as a child, orphaned to his grandparents' in the blue hills of Kentucky. I also added my own imaginative twists to their stories. Even though I have never been to Kentucky, in my mind I know exactly what those hills look like. I believe that I am a good reader, not as great as Nabokov would have me be, but good none the less. Here is a link to the 6 characteristics of a good reader according to NCACASI.
