Teacher Feature: Mr. D'Mello

What do you most like to read?  (this could be a literary genre, or a type of material, like blogs, magazines, etc.)

My literary tastes constantly metamorphose. My reading swings between pure fictional novels (Jeffrey Archer, Ken Follet, John Grisham, Tom Clancy), to non-fiction (Isaac Asimov, Anita Diamant, Jack Kerouac), solid literature (re-reading the classics), widening out to newspaper and magazine articles (political, sports, entertainment, religion and spirituality, current topics), while also studying and analyzing poetry (classical down to contemporary). I additionally read books and journals on World Religions, the Hebrew and Christian Scriptures to update my teaching. In recent years I have been attracted to YA stories (J.K. Rowling, Stephanie Meyer). But most of all, I get a huge thrill out of reading historical novels.

Do you have a favorite book/author/publication?

One of my favorite authors has been James Michener. Though some may call him “wordy” (his novels usually run through hundreds of pages each!), his writing style has captivated me. I am always blown away by the amount of historical research he puts into every one of his books. His stories center on characters and locations; they erupt in some obscure, unheard of place and end up in familiar territory. Beginning with a germ of an idea, his pages blossom into meticulously chosen words and delightful historical and fictional descriptions that keeps the reader asking for more.

What's the last great thing you read?

I just completed How the Irish Saved Civilization by Thomas Cahill – a story about how Europe evolved from classical Rome to the medieval era. Cahill is a clever writer who weaves his partisan story around the early Irish heroes: Queen Medb, the warrior Cuchulainn, Brigid of Kildare, and the Celtic slave (St.) Patricius among others.

Where do you most like to read?

I generally read in bed before falling asleep. I also read a lot on weekends, holidays and when traveling. Thanks to our digital age, I also plan on reading books online.

When you were in high school, did you like to read?  If so, what?  

From a very early age, my parents insisted that I read the daily newspaper. In high school I was a “reader” (kind of a book-nerd in today’s lingo); I would then share stories with my friends. I read all the books of Louis L’Amour (Western novels and movies thrill me), Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (Sherlock Holmes – I still enjoy the movies and TV shows). I gobbled most of Agatha Christie’s (Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple) novels, the “Hardy Boys” and “Famous Five” series, and scores of other detective hardcovers – whose titles I do not remember. I devoured all the books of P.G. Wodehouse – re-reading his hilarious chronicles of Jeeves, Bertie and Blandings Castle still keep me in stitches! I grew up with British poetry and literature. I was later introduced to the prose of Fitzgerald, Hemmingway, Steinbeck, and others… who whetted my reading appetite and led to me to graduate in literature.

What is your most hated book and why?

I do not know if I “hate” a book … or maybe I am just being naïve. Either way, if I start reading a book and it does not appeal to me, I simply put it aside and move on to the next. I must admit that science fiction generally does not engage me, nor does the goriness of the ghastly, ghostly, ghoulish genus!!!

But that does not deter me from sampling assorted genres. Frank Zappa was so right… “So many books, so little time!”

- Olympio D’Mello