This post was written by Cherice Montgomery, a Humanities Center faculty fellow.
As a child, I loved stories; and if the thirty books now precariously perched on my nightstand are any indication, that has not changed much. Books are some of my best friends. They tell me everything from their most trivial thoughts to their deepest, darkest secrets. Some of them are bossy know-it-alls that spend most of their time trying to get me to change, while others consistently mirror my best qualities back to me. I also have a few that love to pick fights with me (and my prejudices), but my favorites always seem to know how to inspire me. Simply put, my associations with books have forged my values, shaped my voice, and expanded my vision in positive and powerful ways. Like my human friends, they have also been a consistent source of joy in my life.
I have always been especially partial to books in which the characters encounter long-forgotten diaries that lead to unanticipated adventures. A few years ago, I came across just such a book. The Matchbox Diary by Paul Fleischman tells the story of a young girl who visits her Italian great-grandfather for the first time. While in his home, she discovers a collection of matchboxes. Her great-grandfather explains to her that they are his diary—his way of collecting things he wanted to remember at a time in his life when he did not yet know how to read or write. As they open the matchboxes together, each of the artifacts they contain evoke stories from his life as an immigrant.
The premise of the story captivated my imagination, motivating me to look on Family Search to see if I could find some hidden treasures of my own. To my delight, I encountered some fascinating family stories, such as relatives who ate sego lily bulbs for want of food, unruly cows that jumped off ferries, grasshopper-eating turkeys, and intriguing encounters with indigenous tribes. One of my favorite stories recounts how one of my great-great grandmothers grabbed a warm pancake from the stove, and in desperation, wrapped it around her sick baby’s head before fleeing an approaching mob. I also discovered that some of my great-great grandfathers had written lengthy, first-hand accounts of the horrors of World War I and the devastating effects of the Great Depression. I was particularly surprised when I stumbled across detailed accounts of real miracles and spiritual manifestations in some of my ancestor’s histories. These stories have become some of my greatest treasures. They have given me a deeply personal stake in the past, as well as a more expanded vision of my possible futures. I can see who I am more clearly because I better understand my own historical context more fully.
These explorations have led to questions about how my favorite artists, authors, and scientists curated their lives. What captured their attention? How did they spend their time? What mattered to them? How did they talk to themselves when no one else was present? I learned that they were all keen observers of nature and humanity (e.g., George Orwell). Many were also collectors of objects and ideas and used their journals to record them (e.g., Charles Darwin; Leonardo Da Vinci). As with my own family history, I also experienced many fun surprises. For instance, were you aware that Thomas Edison was incredibly witty—even when writing about his own dandruff?! Have you ever tried to infer what Beethoven must have said based on the comments and questions his guests wrote in his conversation journals once he began losing his hearing? (Alvarez, 2017). Did you realize that Anne Frank wrote two different versions of her diary, or that Nathaniel Hawthorne kept a joint journal with his wife, Sofia?
Just like these diaries, humanities scholars are also memory collectors. Our work is our “letter to the world” (Dickinson, 1862), and when we write, we leave pieces of ourselves on its pages (see Frida Kahlo’s journal as an example). Our personalities seep through the topics we comment on (e.g. Ernest Hemingway; Oscar Wilde p.1 & p. 2), the handwriting we use to capture our thoughts (e.g., Joseph Smith, Jr.), and the words we choose to express them. In the process, we somehow become more solid to ourselves and to our readers. As Picasso once said, “My work is my diary. For those who know how to read, I have painted my autobiography” (Adato, 1980). What we choose to share leaves a literal residue on the souls of everyone who reads us—that is, unless we lose our literacy.
And according to recent reports, that is precisely what is happening. For instance, data from the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) collected in 2022 show that more than two thirds (66%) of 4th graders in the U.S. cannot read proficiently. In 2023, a whopping 69% of 8th graders scored below proficient in reading (NAEP, 2023). (The new report will be released on Jan. 29, 2025.) The current literacy skills of adults do not fare much better, with 57% of U.S. adults ages 16-65 scoring below proficient on the Program for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC) (National Center for Education Statistics, 2023). This means that 28% of U.S. adults can only read simple, well-organized texts a few hundred words long with no distracting information. Another 29% can paraphrase or make inferences about simple, multi-page texts, but cannot handle complex texts or tasks (OECD, 2024). Only about 11% of the population can construct meaning from lengthy, dense texts and make inferences based on conditional information (National Center for Education Statistics, n.d.). I suppose this is not surprising given that a 2023 poll of 1,500 adults found that 46% had not read even one book in the previous year (Van Dam, 2024). Other sources suggest that over half of U.S. adults (54%) have less than a 6th grade literacy level (National Literacy Institute, 2025).
American literacy is evaporating right before our eyes, and I lament its loss. When our nation relinquishes reading in favor of other pursuits, it also sacrifices opportunities to experience joy, develop virtue, and to deepen its influence on the world. If the American public can no longer read the words proficiently, how will they ever be able to “read the world” beyond their own limited perspectives? (Freire, 1985, p. 18). Where will they find the words to write something that is worth reading? So many of the most valuable words ever written exist because people like Moses, John, Nephi, and Joseph Smith recorded their thoughts and feelings about the things that were happening to them. However, one does not have to be an eminent leader to have something worthwhile to say. In fact, much of what we know about important historical events comes from the journals of ordinary or even obscure individuals who just happened to take the time to write things down (e.g., Emmaline B. Wells, Zebulon Jacobs, or Joseph Jarvis Crossley) (Hartley, 1984; The Church Historian’s Press; Toone, 2023). Journal writers are the memory keepers of society. Their efforts preserve our language, our culture, our history, and our knowledge. The practice of writing things down also changes the writer—clarifying their values, sharpening their thinking, and deepening their insight. Reading and writing refine us individually and collectively.
Reading has transformed me by giving me the chance to meander through some of the greatest minds that have ever lived. It has taken me to places I could never have afforded, invited me into experiences I never would have chosen, and exposed me to perspectives I would never have considered. Thus, each book I read helps me grow into a better version of myself. Obviously, I cannot singlehandedly reverse the declining literacy rates in the United States, but I can use my personal influence to strengthen its development in those whose lives intersect with mine. So next time you find yourself in need of a gift for someone, consider giving them a book. As for me, well, you’ll find me in second-hand bookstores, making friends.
References
Alvarez, K. (2017, Dec. 13). Journals of history. Bullet Journal. https://bulletjournal.com/blogs/bulletjournalist/journals-of-history
Anne Frank House. (n.d.). The two versions of Anne’s diary. Anne Frank House. https://www.annefrank.org/en/anne-frank/go-in-depth/two-versions-annes-diary/
Dickinson, Emily. (1862). “This is my letter to the world.” The Adrian Brinkerhoff Poetry Foundation. https://www.brinkerhoffpoetry.org/poems/this-is-my-letter-to-the-world Used under the Public Domain.
Fleischman, P. (2016). The matchbox diary. Candlewick Press. https://www.amazon.com/Matchbox-Diary-Paul-Fleischman/dp/0763676381
Freire, P. (1985). Reading the world and reading the word: An interview with Paulo Freire. Language Arts, 62(1), 15–21. https://www.jstor.org/stable/41405241
Hartley, William G. (1984, Jul.). Diary of a teenage driver. The New Era. https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/new-era/1984/07/diary-of-a-teenage-driver?lang=eng
Hawthorne, S. & N. (2011). Diary of a marriage: Sophia and Nathaniel Hawthorne. The diary: Three centuries of private lives: The Morgan Library & Museum. https://www.themorgan.org/exhibitions/online/TheDiary/Sophia-and-Nathaniel-Hawthorne
NAEP. (2024). NAEP report card: Reading. National Achievement-Level Results. The Nation’s Report Card. https://www.nationsreportcard.gov/reading/nation/achievement/?grade=8
National Center for Education Statistics. (2023). Highlights of the 2023 U.S. PIAAC results. National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). https://nces.ed.gov/surveys/piaac/2023/national_results.asp
National Literacy Institute. (2025). Literacy statistics 2024-2025 (Where we are now). https://www.thenationalliteracyinstitute.com/post/literacy-statistics-2024-2025-where-we-are-now
OECD. (2024, Dec. 10). Survey of adults’ skills 2023: United States. OECD. https://www.oecd.org/en/publications/survey-of-adults-skills-2023-country-notes_ab4f6b8c-en/united-states_427d6aac-en.html
Picasso, P. (1980). In Perry Miller Adato (Director), Picasso—a painter’s diary. https://perrymilleradato.com/films/picasso/
Smith. R.E. (2025). Joseph Smith’s first journal: Lost Sermons – Prophet’s record keeping began with simple volume. Church History: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. https://history.churchofjesuschrist.org/content/museum/joseph-smiths-journal?lang=eng
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. (2024). Journal 1832-1834. The Joseph Smith Papers. https://www.josephsmithpapers.org/paper-summary/journal-1832-1834/5
The Church Historian’s Press. (2024). The diaries of Emmeline B. Wells. The Church Historian’s Press. https://www.churchhistorianspress.org/emmeline-b-wells?lang=eng
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. (n.d.). Exodus 24:4. Old Testament. https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/scriptures/ot/ex/24?lang=eng&id=4#p4
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. (n.d.). Revelation 1:19. The New Testament. https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/scriptures/nt/rev/1?lang=eng&id=19#p19
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. (n.d.). 1 Nephi 1:1. The Book of Mormon. https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/scriptures/bofm/1-ne/1?lang=eng&id=1#p1
Toone, T. (2023, Feb. 13). President Spencer W. Kimball journals are now available online. Here’s how to access them. Church News: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. https://www.thechurchnews.com/history/2023/2/15/23598062/president-spencer-w-kimball-journals-online/
Van Dam, A. (2024, Jan. 5). How many books did you read in 2023? See how you stack up. The Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2024/01/05/how-many-books-did-you-read-2023-see-how-you-stack-up/
Wilde, O. (2020, Jan.). My diary / Oscar Wilde, 1895. Cocosse. https://www.cocosse.com/2020/01/my-diary-oscar-wilde-1895/