215.
The number of books I have read (which is probably more but I can’t remember every book I read during my school years).
385.
The number I have on my to-read list as of March 22 2016. With both those numbers, how many books is too many books? Can someone have too many books on their shelf that they are currently reading, waiting to read, or read? Is that even a question?
I have asked myself this question every time someone asks me what I am reading. I answer with the current book I have in my hand or on my Nook and usually follow up with how many I have on my to-read list to give people a picture of how diverse my reading interests are. I have everything from crime novels to young adult fantasy to historical fiction on my to-read list.
Reading for me started when I was young, way before I found the magic that came out of the light box as my niece used to call it. Reading would take me away from my world and inject me into a place where anything could happen and usually did. Worlds where magic existed, people (usually girls) were brave enough to make a stand for what or who they believed in and most importantly love existed everywhere you turned either with friends or the man or woman you fell in love with. Everything and anything is possible in a book. Your imagination takes flight, sometimes lucky enough to see your imagination be projected onto the big screen (sometimes not as good but that is beside the point).
I remember buying my first book with my own money. I treasured that thing (even though I can’t remember what book it was). I would keep it with me everywhere I went (which is probably where my obsession with large tote bags came from; they needed to be big enough to house my books. It was a security blanket for me; I always had to have a book with me and sometimes I needed to have 2, 3 or even 4. When I was on the verge of finishing a book, I had to make sure that I had another ready to go the minute I finished. Ending one adventure just to start another, kept me in another world for a little while longer.
As an adult that has stayed with me except instead of physical books, I have a Nook that has at least 2-3 e-books from the library on it in case I finish a one in the middle of a day and don’t have access to my computer at home that I can download another. Right now I have The Lost Recipe for Happiness by Barbara O’Neal, and Me Before You by JoJo Moyes on my Nook; in the middle of The Lost Recipe for Happiness ready to finish that world and tackle the next in an instant.
Reading has been a comfort. Books were and still are a big part of the person I have grown up to be. My imagination wouldn’t be what it is now without it. I am not sure why I started writing this blog post, maybe it was just to start writing again or maybe it was about remembering something that makes me happy and I hope to keep doing until I can’t read anymore. I don’t want to stop being creative; I don’t want to stop being imaginative; I don’t want to stop dreaming. That is what reading and writing does for me and I encourage everyone no matter what age you are to pick up a book or a pen or open your computer to a blank document. Start reading whatever you can; start writing whatever comes to mind; start dreaming about anything and everything and remember that anything is possible no matter how out of reach it might seem right now. And even if it does seem out of reach the best novels I have read have an underlying moral to their story: if you want to change the world or change your world, you can’t do it alone. You need your friends and people you love to help you get there. And asking for help is not a sign of weakness. It is a sign of strength that you can rely on someone else and give up control to trust someone so deeply.
How many books is too many books? The simple answer, there aren’t too many books. Too many books doesn’t exist because there are endless stories to tell and should be told. So start reading about every single world out there and if you don’t find one that you like, start writing that world. You never know where your imagination will take you.
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