For The Love Of Books
Shannon once said that her books were a form of escape; I believe that this is so true, little did she know. Just those few words open up a world of suspense, excitement, knowledge, hilarity, love, interest, travel, getting to know other places and people in history. The joys found in the pages of books are beyond anything we as humans can imagine.
We can set under a shaded tree, lie on a blanket in the sun on the beach, in a warm snug bed in the dead of winter, sprawled out in a lounge chair on the porch or set in a chair or desk at school. All of these things are a place of comfort when lost in the pages of a good book. The world becomes the scenes we see in the pages we read. We walk along with the people or animals that live in our books. We experience everything they do and say, envisioning all the magic that surrounds them as if we, ourselves were there. Sometimes things we read are so clear that at times, we feel the things that happen, even the smells drift into our senses. Can you not smell the apple pie, warm from the oven, feel the rain as it falls out of the sky, and hear the crunch of snow beneath your boots, waves hitting the shore as gulls circle over your head. All these things are some of the scenes that tweak at our senses as we read.
Some of the books that have kept me mesmerized for hours are, David Copperfield, Pride and Prejudice, The House of Seven Gables, Last of the Mohicans, The Vicar of Wakefield, Hawthorne’s, Twice Told Tales, The Shell Seeker, Ishmael, East of Eden, Balfour, White Fang, Andersons Fairy Tails, Mother Goose Fairy Tails, Dances With Wolves, The Loop, Angela’s Ashes, Mrs. Mike, The Bounty. I have no favorites as I love them all. There are too many to name them all. I grew up reading Edgar Rice Burroughs, Tarzan. I wish I had them now. All books to me are a treasure in their own right, for somewhere in that book is something that will spark a lamp in our heart, we will learn from what we read and by learning we share with others what we have learned.
As for writers, there again I have no favorites, I do like Poe, Browning, Thoreau, Lewis, Burnes, Steinbeck, Anderson. Each writer has his or her own way of writing. And each of us gravitates towards books that mean something in our lives. Each book written is a treasure to someone. Our love for books is something we must, as part of the older generation pass on to our children and grand children, whether it be taking trips to the library or making a point of buying books for them as they mature into young adults. A book is a gift that keeps on giving. Something that will, if taken care of be as good as it was the day it was written. Cherish the books on your shelf, and pass them on.
@ K.L. Farnum