“Attention library patrons. The library will be closing in thirty minutes. If you need to obtain a library card, please do so now. The computer system will be shut down in fifteen minutes, so please save your work now. Thank you.”
Wordsworth put the handset, or receiver, back on the cradle, and then rose from her desk.
In another fifteen minutes, she would repeat the announcement. At that time, she would inform the library guests that they should check out their materials immediately. The motive or purpose behind the two announcements was to have the last patron leave the library well before closing time, so the staff could lock the doors! Then the librarians and other library staff could finish up their work for the day, and strive, or at least attempt, to leave the building themselves in a reasonable amount of time.
Wordsworth walked through the library, curious to see how many people were still seated in the lounge area, and in the study carrels , the little desks running along the far wall, which had windows looking out on a pond. In a far corner, she saw one of her friends, Stefan Parker, reading a book. As she approached him, she saw him grimace, shake his head, and shut the book with a loud report.
That's the way Stefan always shut his books...slamming them closed so that a loud "snap" distubed everyone near him. A few people thought he did this just to annoy them, but Wordsworth was of a different opinion. She thought that Stefan became so immersed in the stories he was reading, that he felt it necessary to jar himself out of that fictional world by slamming the books closed, so as to shut those characters in, and the loud noise served to reassure himself that he was back in the real world.
“Something wrong, Joe,” she asked. “Why did you make such an unhappy face?”
Joe held the book up so she could get a good look at its cover. “The author of this tome is wildly successful. He’s got a winning formula and he’s made millions of dollars from all his books. But that doesn’t change the fact that he’s not a very good writer!”
Wordsworth recognized the name and agreed. He wrote technothrillers, all of them written to a formula. His books were very popular at the library.
“But you grimaced, Joe,” Wordsworth said. “You made a face of disgust. What particular piece of prose did you dislike?”
“Well, here, let me read it to you.” Joe opened the book again, found the page, and read aloud.
“’An excellent suggestion,’ Meade demurred. ‘I’ll put a call in to the Secretary of State right away.’”
Joe closed the book with a snap. “Okay, Wordsworth,” he said. “What’s wrong with that sentence?”
“Easy, said Wordsworth. Since Meade is saying, “An excellent suggestion,” you can infer or deduce from that that he thinks it is a good idea. But the descriptive word the author uses is demurred. And demurred doesn’t mean you agree with someone! It means you disagree with them!”
“Exactly,” said Joe. “This author uses the wrong word all the time. For example, listen to this: Rising to his feet, he thought of Lisa as he gazed at the damaged car, then felt a pang of anger gradually swell from within.”
Wordsworth wrinkled her nose. “You’re right. People feel a pang of regret, or of remorse, or even of hunger, but they don’t feel a pang of anger.”
“Exactly. He should have said something like, 'He felt a jolt of anger, or a surge of anger. And then there’s this one. “The pool maintenance director willfully parted with his water quality analyzer in exchange for a case of beer.”
Wordsworth nodded again. “He’s misusing the word willfully. The word he should have used is willingly – the director handed over the water quality analyzer without argument or hesitation. The word willfully means something else altogether, like stubbornness. “He willfully threw the analyzer on the ground to break it,” something like that."
“Of course you know what he means to say," said Joe, "based on the context of the sentence, but it’s still pretty annoying. You'd think a proofreader or editor would catch these mistakes.”
“You’re a good writer, Joe. Why don’t you try to write a book?”
Joe laughed. “That’s the difference between this guy and me. He’s a lousy writer, but he finishes his books. I’m a great writer, but I’ve never finished any book I’ve started. No wonder I’ve never been published.”
“Time to stop making a joke of it,” Wordsworth said bracingly. “It’s time you made a serious effort to write something. If you lose interest in your book halfway through, start out by writing short stories, instead!”
Joe nodded. “I think I’m going to give it a try. Well, I’d better head home. See you later, Wordsworth.”
“See you.”
Vocabulary
Muted - of low intensity and reduced volume; softened
Handset - a telephone having a mouthpiece and earpiece mounted at opposite ends of a handle
Cradle - any of various supports for objects set horizontally, as the support for the handset of a telephone
Inform - to give or impart knowledge of a fact or circumstance to
Motive - the goal or object of a person's actions
Strive - to make strenuous efforts toward any goal
Carrel - a table or desk with three sides extending above the writing surface to serve as partitions
Grimace - a facial expression, often ugly or contorted, that indicates disapproval, pain, and so on
report - a loud noise (not to be confused with someone making a statement or giving information, as in a "report card."
immersed - plunged or sunk in, fully covered
jar - to conflict, clash, or disagree (not to be confused with, you know, a jar! to keep things in!)
tome - a book, especially a very heavy, large, or learned book; or one that pretends to be
Prose - the ordinary form of spoken or written language, as opposed to poetry or verse
Demurred - to make objection, especially on the grounds of scruples; take exception; object
Infer - to derive by reasoning; conclude or judge from premises or evidence
Pang - a sudden feeling of mental or emotional distress or longing
Willfully - unreasonably stubborn or headstrong
Willingly - cheerfully consenting or ready
Bracingly - 1) strengthening; invigorating; 2) of, pertaining to, or serving as a brace
Other terms
water quality analyzer - a device that tests water to see what chemical components are containted within it.
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