To read, or not to read... Is that even a question?

The Three Billy Goats Gruff. That is the first book I ever remember reading to myself. I must have been in first grade. It was one of those books with some of the words replaced with pictures. I remember feeling so proud of myself, and I told my mom who seemed surprised I had read a book by myself.

Fast-forward to middle school and the awkward, embarrassing, teenage version of myself. I was taller than everyone, I wore glasses, I had friends but wasn't popular. I think my sixth grade English teacher could sense my desperation to fit in somewhere. One day she invited me to her classroom bookshelf and handed me the book "Dealing with Dragons," by Patricia C. Wrede. "Try this," she said, "I think you'll like it."

I was hooked from the first page. The princess, Cimorene, longs to escape her boring life waiting for a prince and escapes the castle on an adventure to become a Dragon's princess. The funny story and broken gender norms captivated me. Thus began my life-long obsession with reading.

“A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies . . . The man who never reads lives only one.” George R.R. Martin

Through reading, I have met some of my best friends, fought in perilous battles, solved mysteries, traveled to exotic locations, laughed and cried, and been terrified and in love. I have experienced thousands of lifetimes in the pages of these books and look forward to many, many more.

“I guess there are never enough books.” John Steinbeck

My daughter once tried to convince me that I own too many books. I counted my personal library and have around 500 titles. About 16 years ago my husband gifted me with a Kindle for Christmas. My Amazon E-book purchase history includes over 4000 titles. I know I haven't personally read every one, since my whole family uses my account, but the majority are books I have read, some more than one time. I will never be able to read every book ever written, but that won't stop me from trying.

2.7 Students Choice- Post 1