Read!

I love these posters because they bring home with just three words each—just three syllables, even—that words have not only denotations but also connotations. A thesaurus is a wonderful thing, but no substitute for living in the world and hearing people speak, or for reading, reading, reading.

It’s fitting that this first example of the importance of words and reading happens to be about reading. To me, one of these posters says that reading is an absolute necessity, while the other poster says it is a delightful indulgence. For me, both are true. To some other people, one of these posters says that reading is for adults, while the other poster says that reading is for children. But it’s clear that while the words on the posters are virtually synonymous, the sum total of their meaning is not.

What do these posters say to you?