[ExI] Worldwide reading habits

[Damien Broderick]

At 03:15 PM 11/2/2007 -0700, giovanni santost wrote:

>And about the common people [in Italy], well one day I was on a bus 
>with a book of Nietzsche and the driver started to talk to me (while 
>I was holding for my life to the rail in the front of the bus, lol) 
>and said that he read that book.

Well, that might certainly be true of plenty of taxi drivers as well.

My wife drove a bus (before she became a law professor, a farmer, a 
businesswoman, etc), I was a tram conductor (back before Melbourne's 
trams were fitted ruinously with ticket machines that most people 
ignore) as was a woman I know with an advanced degree in chemistry 
who went on to edit educational books; I know science fiction fans 
who work for the railways in Australia--one as a shunter, one (a 
woman) as an inspector--who are as well-read and quirky as anyone 
you're likely to meet. The common people are often surprisingly 
uncommon. But I'm sure you know that. :)

Damien Broderick