Reading books can take you to any place any time.
A stack of a few of my favorite books.
January 17, 2014
Reading is a wonderful and powerful thing. It can take you to a completely different world, another continent, or a different place in time. Picking up a good book can transport you from your bedroom to an alternate universe.
I did not always love reading. I used to hate reading books, and when it came to book reports I would read the first two chapters, the middle two, and the final three. I could just never get into the stories. Finally, in seventh grade I found a book I liked: Twilight by Stephanie Meyer. I know it sounds cliché, that I just jumped on the band wagon, but I really enjoyed the book. From then on, I could almost always be found with a book.
In eighth grade, I was blessed with an English teacher who loved reading. When she found out that I loved reading, she started supplying me with books all the time. I read the first eight books of The Morganville Vampires series in half a month.
Soon my reading came to the point that my parents would take away my books, so I would socialize with the family and not spend my time with my nose in a book. I have read so many books that it has gotten to the point where I will buy a book and read it in less than a week. I will then go return the book and exchange it for a new one.
Although this might sound unhealthy, I believe reading has helped me learn a lot and to become a better person.
Dumbledore, from Harry Potter, taught me to always look for the bright side because, “Happiness can be found, even in the darkest of times, if one only remembers to turn on the light.” A blind cancer patient, Isaac, from The Fault in our Star taught me that “Love is keeping the promise anyways,” even if the promise you made is hard.
Reading is amazing and needs to be appreciated more. Books offer so many valuable lessons. A book allows you to meet new people and experience new things without having to leave the comfort of your home. As you begin to connect with characters and imagine how they must feel, you learn empathy.
In a book you can keep your best friend there forever, and you are able to go back to them, without them changing. You can reread the same book five times and find a new idea or lesson every time.
If I could give someone any gift it would be the love for reading. Books can give that person so much more comfort and help than I could ever give them. Reading is a gift that keeps on giving. There will always be a new book to read.
