Have you tried to read in reverse order?

[Marc]

In the Whole New Brain, Daniel Pink mentionned the creative exercise to read a fiction in reverse order starting with the last chapter. The idea is that before you continue reading, you try to imagine the chapter before last that you are about to start, and you repeat the exercise every time you end a chapter. Could the exercise be worth while with a Crime or Thriller novel? Have you ever done it?

[Ava Catherine]

I have read the last chapter of a thriller and tried to figure out how the author was going to arrive at the ending. I don't know what possessed me to do such a thing. Perhaps the book was dragging along, or it could have been so terribly exciting that I couldn't wait a moment longer to discover what happened in the end.

I have never tried the process you describe, working backward chapter by chapter.

[Marc]

Hi Connie,
That "exercise" is suppose to train our brain in story telling, a competence we need more and more in the work place for example. What matters is not to guess very correctly what we are about to discover, but to inhance our capacity to imagine for ourselves and tell stories to others.

[Linda]

I never even want to try reading in reverse, I guess I don't have much of an imagination.

[[deleted user]]

I once read the last page of a novel while looking to see how many pages it had. It ruined the book for me because it gave away something very important. I would never read a book in reverse.

[Marc]

indeed! I agree, I would not try that with a book I am particularly interested in. Yes we are wasting a good book doing so. And It is really not about the intimate pleasure we take getting carried by a great story either. But it is possibly an exercise to practice our own creativity. Like sharpening one of our skills that we may need in our life. I like the idea that we could use an activity we all really like here - reading books- to maybe train ourselves in new ways.
What do you think?

[[deleted user]]

I think I would rather find some other brain activity to do. I am very busy during the day and I grab time whenever and wherever I can to read. I wouldn't want to do this activity and waste those precious minutes. I want to really enjoy my book.

[Marc]

Good point :)

[Vera]

I don't think it would be worthwhile for a Mystery, Crime, Thriller novel. I think people can spend time figuring out where the author is going and how things are going to come together reading forward and may ruin the reading experience of that type of book backwards.

[Gatorman]

No and I can't see it ever happening.

[Katherine]

I don't see the point of reading a book backwards. Defeats the purpose of what the author set out to do (and could be seen as an insult). Most authors have spent alot of time devising a story with a beginning, middle and end with the intention of entertaining us. Why ruin it?

[Dena]

It could possibly be a useful exercise for learning how to put a story together but it doesn't sound like something I would want to do more than once. Only a very well written story would make this a worthwhile learning experience.

[Jennifer]

I actually read a history book consisting of short chapters about each English monarch that was intentionally written in reverse chronological order -- started with QEII and went backwards. I ended up reading it from back to front. The other way irritated and confused me too much.

[Diana]

I try to read a series in order. In fact, if I accidentally read miss one I often will not go back and pick it up unless something happens I don't understand.

[N]

I think Ulysees by James Joyce would work better in reverse (or when totally blind drunk) ha ha.

[Carmen]

I've never done this (read the book from ending to beginning) and I don't plan on doing it anytime soon.

It'd be too much like watching the movie " Momento", which was a good movie, but really had to follow.

Besides, why would I want to know who-dunn-it if I don't even know who they did-it-to?

[Olivia "So many books--so little time.""]

Kathryn wrote: "I once read the last page of a novel while looking to see how many pages it had. It ruined the book for me because it gave away something very important. I would never read a book in reverse."

I used to look at the last page to find out how many pages there were until I did it in one book and found out who was behind all the murder and mayhem. So I don't do that any more.

[K.A.]

N wrote: "I think Ulysees by James Joyce would work better in reverse (or when totally blind drunk) ha ha."

Maybe that's my problem with that book...

[[deleted user]]

After reading this I want to try writing a book in reverse order...

[K.A.]

Actually, that's a fairly standard way to do it - not usually the whole thing, but write the ending or last chapter first so you know where you're heading to, then write the beginning so you have a bracket of time, then fill in what the reader needs to know to get from Point A to Point B.

[Malina]

Never have and I don't think I ever will, it would ruin the book for me

[Garrett]

So, what does this tell you about me? I only do this with magazines. I like to start at the back, and work forward. If I see an article I think I will like, I go to its beginning, work back to its end, then head back upstream again.

What is this about?

Cynthia (The Garrett half of Garrett Smith)