For the love of reading


I can remember being a little girl and reading CAT on my grandfather’s cap and just reading anything I could get my hands on. When I was in middle school I figured out I could go to the public library and have access, to all the books I could read and so, I would ride the city bus to the library. As a teenager, I began a love affair with romance novels and we are still together today. I would read these magazines full of short stories with happily ever after endings. I also wrote my first short story. I would devour those magazines in a matter of days, and my parents grew tired of me asking for money to buy them. Finally, my stepmother, who was also an avid reader, deemed me old enough to read some of her books. That actually opened up my scope of preferred reading. She had mystery, autobiographies, science fiction and a lot of drama. I’ve read all genres and feel like throughout different phases of my life my interested genre has changed. Generally, mystery and romance stay, they’re my go to reading choices. In this particular phase of my life I’m heavy into self-help and anything biblically based.

I’ve been teased for always reading, I carry books with me everywhere because anytime I get a spare moment I read. I’m often invited to sporting events or other places to provide support and more often than not I end up reading. I have learned to cheer and look up when it's appropriate. I love that reading has always been a constant in my life and I am proud that I have instilled that love of reading in my daughter. I have had to make some sacrifices in my recreational reading when I’m in school and don’t begin anything new until I’m done with a semester. Let me just say, giving up TV was way easier that giving up books. Oftentimes, people will recommend a book or I’ll see someone reading something that looks interesting. Most times I just wander into the bookstore and see what’s on clearance and go for it.

For the longest time I would only read one book at a time, I wanted to devote my time to the completion of one thing at a time but, that has since changed. I guess the types of books make a difference in that as well. Recently, I began reading self-help, devotional type of books and I have about 5 of them I am in no hurry to complete. They are the types of books I have to ponder and meditate on and because they are spiritual, I read the accompanying scriptures which, opens another door. Reading is an opportunity for me to spend some quiet time away from the world and whatever is going on in my life and witness a blossoming love or figure out clues to determine who the murderer could be. For me, reading is who I am and when I talk to people that have no relationship with reading I cringe but hey, we can’t all be readers or this Half Price Bookstore I’m writing this blog from wouldn't be as cozy, especially if it were crowded.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Nerves

Everyday I learn more and more about becoming a teacher. Some of the information is overwhelming, mostly because so much information is being crammed into a short amount of time. But, it is a pleasant short amount of time. I often wonder if many of these strategies will be lost once I get into a rhythm or certain teaching pattern or style. I guess I overthink and really just want to be an effective teacher and be able to instill knowledge I've learned about how to teach. I can honestly say, these reading classes have been the most beneficial to me. Maybe because reading is my passion, maybe because they teach how to actually teach. Either way I have learned a lot these last two weeks. I'm a little nervous about becoming a teacher and am learning about the countless opportunities to be great, and at the same time the countless opportunities to be not so great. I hear that when you're doing something you love it pushes you to excel at the task. I've been in custo...
Read more

Classroom Libraries

For as long as I can remember books have played a large part in my life. I have never gone into a bookstore or library that I haven't fallen in love with, so when I enter a classroom that is rich in literature I am ecstatic. I was in a 5th grade reading class and I was amazed at the selection of books. There were genres, I didn't even know existed, and various levels. One of the things I particularly liked, that was mentioned in class was the fact that students should be given choices. With freedom to be able to choose anything they want to read and independent reading time students can nurture their reading, their fluency, and their comprehension. It's easy too feel overwhelmed when you enter a library or bookstore because there is so much to choose from but, in a classroom, which is a more closed environment, a student can feel comfortable in the fact that they can choose, and choose and choose until they find something that suits them. In a school library they may be li...
Read more