My literacy class this semester has spawned a lot of food for thought. It has broadened my horizons about all types of reading and reading practices. This week we talked about Janice Radway's "Reading the Romance." Radway did an entire ethnographic study of the readers of romance. The article was interesting, but it wasn't until we discussed it in class that it really became contextualized for me. My classmates offered up their reasoning for reading romance and what they get out of the books. It seems like Radway's findings and their feelings lined up on the literature being a form of escape. Apparently the texts are easy to read and provide them with a break from their day to day.
I admittedly have never read a romance novel. I don't know what this says about me, but it really doesn't appeal to me. It seems too formulaic and contrived. This being said, I've decided to give it a shot. I think what is really driving this is the possibility that in the future I will have to deal with readers that are interested in this genre. I want to be able to connect or at least help them find a new romance novel. So I am going to bite the bullet and get it done. I will report back...
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