聽 聽 聽 聽 聽 聽 聽 聽 Growing up my mom used to read to me every night. When I got older and began being able to read by myself, I would read to her. Then older yet, I would read on my own before bed, begging to finish a chapter before lights out鈥� because let鈥檚 face it you need to finish that chapter, you can鈥檛 let it sit there.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Ever since, I was hooked. Reading was something fun to do that lets you see into a different world. I read a quote once that said, 鈥淎 reader lives a thousand lives before he dies. The man who never reads lives only one.鈥�
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 And it鈥檚 true, each page can transport you into the world that the author was creating when they wrote the book. One of my favourite books is 鈥淪hantaram,鈥� by Gregory David Roberts. Reading it I felt as though I was walking beside him on his journey through India. It was extremely well written and I absolutely fell in love with the book which was nearly 1,000 pages long. I was travelling by train in Australia when I picked up the book and in a matter of a few days I had finished it.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 I discovered, however, probably 10 years ago that not everyone reads in that fashion. When I read, whether it鈥檚 fiction or non-fiction, I allow my imagination to take the author鈥檚 words and turn those words into a world of its own. I found out from someone who doesn鈥檛 like reading that for them reading is simply words on a page. For them, they weren鈥檛 able to shift those words into a world to walk through. To me that seemed devastating because I had visited so many places between the pages of the books I read.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Although I absolutely love travelling and seeing things for myself, there are certain things a book can provide which real life cannot. I鈥檓 fascinated by history, so if I want to learn about the world during a certain time period there鈥檚 nothing better than walking through someone else鈥檚 shoes. A good author who has done their research can provide this. I was fascinated by the Soviet Union and thanks to Tom Rob Smith鈥檚 trilogy I was able to follow a former MGB agent through the country, experiencing what that world would have been like to live in.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Reading novels from earlier time periods can also provide insight into their world. I remember reading Erskine Childers鈥� 鈥淭he Riddle of the Sands.鈥� A spy novel written prior to World War I, the book carried with it a lot of sentiments of the time; mainly that war with Germany was on the horizon and that Britain should be prepared. It was in fact written in 1903 which was during the Anglo-German naval arms race (1898-1912), thus depicted society at the time it was written.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 I find all of this to be quite fascinating and it鈥檚 part of the reason I enjoy reading. There can be so much in a book and I find it an interesting exercise of the imagination to learn through this means.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Sadly because of the work I do, I don鈥檛 read as much as I鈥檇 like to. I am always looking at words and writing, so reading isn鈥檛 my go to when I鈥檓 not working although I feel like this year I鈥檝e been better than in years past to grab a book rather than turn on the television.
聽 聽 聽 聽 聽 聽 聽 聽 聽 聽 聽 聽 聽 聽 聽 聽聽
