What is a Book?

To me, a book is an island. It’s totally secluded and it can be relaxing or it can be a great adventure. It can make you fall in love with things you never thought you would, and it can break your heart. That’s the thing with books, they take you to places you’ve never been and make you feel things you’ve never felt before. My honest opinion is that it doesn’t matter how you read a book, it just matters that you do. I love reading on my Nook. I still get transported to that island, I still fall in love, I still feel the rush of adventure. That doesn’t go away no matter what medium you get the story from. Meno is right, the same message is still there. Story telling has changed and it’s still survived. Things change and evolve but that doesn’t mean one way is leaving something behind. Sure the e-reader is different than a book but you still get the most vital thing, you still get that island.

That being said, I also agree with Sales. I don’t know what I’d do without my copies of 66 Love Letters or Open with their torn up pages, the underlined and highlighted text, and the scribbled notes in the margins. I love those books. They are two of my favorites, but they wouldn’t be the same to me without all of their notes and rips. Sure I could get another copy of Open, but it wouldn’t have the same effect on me if it was missing my coffee stain on the last four pages. It just wouldn’t be my copy without my favorite quote underlined in blue pen and covered in pink highlighter. I would still get transported to that island no matter what copy of that book I read, but with my hard copy, I go to the island that I feel is mine in every way. 

Why I Read

There are a million different reasons I read but in the end it really all comes down to just one. I read to escape. I am the goalie for the lacrosse team and am a four year varsity starter. That sounds great, and believe me it is, but it's also so much pressure. Being goalie, I not only have to play for myself but I have to play for everyone around me too. I am the one person on the field that if I have a bad game, it will result in a loss every time. If I'm off my game for one day, sometimes for just one play, everyone pays for it. Don't get me wrong, I love what I do. I love it so much, but it is a lot to handle and so I read for the moments when it all gets overwhelming. On those few days I have a bad practice, I go home and I read. When I read, I don't worry about practice, or that game, or holding my team up. I get to think about someone else. I get to worry about the problems Jodi Picoult or Chris Crutcher create and then they solve them for me. I get to look through someone else's eyes and see what is important to them. I get a totally different look at life that I might not ever get otherwise. When I read I can feel the tension leaving my muscles. I can feel the stress leave my body and when that happens, my head clears. It's amazing how many times I've picked up a book with a seemingly impossible problem in front of me and put down the book with a solution. I read because it's important to me. I read because it shows me that there are other things in this life that are more important than me and there are other problems much bigger than my own. I read to be a more compassionate and less selfish person, I read to relieve stress and to let go of the day, but most importantly, I read because I love to read.