Is it OK to read Infinite Jest in public? Why the internet hates ‘performative reading’

‘One of life’s simplest pleasures is falling into a story and tuning the world out. But to get there, you have to stop worrying about what someone’s going to think of you.’ Composite: The Guardian/Vincent Van Gogh

I consider no activity more luxurious than posting up at a bar solo with a good book. The creasing of a paperback in one hand, the weight of a wine glass in the other, the feeling of being alone in a crowd of people all make for a lovely evening. Or at least, I thought so, until recently, when two twentysomethings approached me during this ritual. “Are you reading alone?” one asked. “I could neverrrr,” the other said, and then uttered the universal mean girl slight: “I wish I had your confidence.”

Reading in public – not cool. Or at least “performative reading”, as it’s been dubbed on social media, is worthy of ridicule.