Reading Aloud
Reading to each other was one of our favorite pastimes. It was more than the story. It provided the opportunity to discuss the story, or a paragraph, or a sentence. Choosing what we’d read aloud was part of the fun. Martin Amis and Elmore Leonard were perennial favorites. Aside from favorite authors, there were books we wanted to share. A couple were memorable, not just because they were great books, but because Donna gave them such a great reading. One was Harper Lee’s ‘To Kill a Mockingbird.’ She knew how to voice it without any of it sounding overdramatic. I often wish I had recorded her reading. But then the act of recording would have detracted from our shared experience. Another of Donna’s great reads was Julia Child’s autobiography ‘My Life in France.’ Julia Child is one of my heroes, so giving voice to her words had special meaning. Donna knew just how to do it. Perfect. Elmore Leonard’s novels were always mine to read aloud. Donna insisted on this, and I didn’t disagree....