How Do Books Dazzle Me?
As some of the most wonderful entities in the world, books offer me so many fantastic reasons to read them.
It would probably surprise most people who know me, but I wasn’t always an avid reader. I remember the first time I read much voluntarily. I was nine at the time — the year my dad died in a car accident. Needless to say, it was difficult to deal with grief and unexpected loss as a child, and he died much too early and suddenly.
My mom had bought me multiple books from a few of the children’s Star Wars series later that year. Even though I don’t remember feeling that enthusiastic about receiving them, they piqued my interest enough that I started reading them. Not only did I like them, soon I found myself spending much of my time with books. I branched out to many other series such as Animal Ark, Warriors, and Bunnicula; tales about animals enthralled me. I also devoured stories about orphaned kids such as A Series of Unfortunate Events and Harry Potter. My reading habits demonstrated the healing power of books through helping me to process what had happened and to enjoy fictional worlds.
After that, my love of reading remained unshakeable. At twelve, I ventured into the classics. That’s when I first read A Tale of Two Cities, Animal Farm, and some of Edgar Allen Poe’s stories which dazzled me. Besides being excellent literature, these works all showed me the power of books as means of engaging with ideas and social problems and inspired my interest in learning about the histories of authors.
I have manifold reasons for continuing to read and for knowing it will always be important to me. I love to feel transported to other worlds, places, and time periods. I feel untethered and like my imagination has no bounds. At the same time, I delight in picturing myself in the positions of the characters.
Even though reading offers so many imaginative possibilities, I don’t just use it for escapism. One reason I continue to read fictional works is that they often present complex ideas that I like to interact with. Many books I’ve read have shaped and challenged my worldview. It’s important to me to modify my ideas over time as books encourage me to do.
I also read simply because it’s calming. Since it’s a habit for me, it seems familiar and comforting.
Additionally, books fuel my love for learning. I find books to be the way that I internalize information the best. Documentaries are fun, but I typically remember them in less detail than books.
Books offer much potential for growth, learning, and entertainment. I sincerely believe that reading will always be one of the most important pastimes to me.
My article is in response to this prompt from Flint and Steel:
