and i quote...(flaubert)

as i was reading madame bovary, i came across a passage where two characters (monsieur leon and madame bovary herself) were discussing their love of books. i really love what leon says about the adventures of reading and so i thought i'd quote it hear as an appendix to my last post.

"you empty your mind...and the hours fly past. without stirring from your chair, you wander through countries you can see in your mind's eye, and your consciousness threads itself into the fiction, playing about with the details or following the ups and downs of the plot. you identify with the characters; you feel as if it's your own heart that's beating beneath their costumes."

monsieur flaubert himself. handsome bloke, eh?