I’ve Been Re-Kindled!

When I was a kid I devoured books (that’s me in the photo below). I had a hard time fitting in with my peers, and books became everything to me – an escape from reality that I so desperately needed. I was also a stubborn and thick-headed kid, and needed discipline often. The worst consequence I remember receiving from my parents was the time I was grounded from books. It was horrible. I don’t remember what I did, but I’m pretty confident I never did it again.

I continued to read throughout my middle and high school years, although required reading lists meant that most of my reading time was taken up by books I was told to read instead of books of my choosing. And some of them I hated – I thought I was going to die trying to finish A Tale of Two Cities. College kept me busy earning a degree, and then it was marriage, teaching, and kids, all of which ate up any free time I had for reading. Although, unsurprisingly, I did become quite an expert in the world of Children’s Literature. 🙂

Jay bought a Kindle for me as a Mother’s Day gift one year, and, corny as it sounds, a spark was lit again.  I started reading again, although very sporadically. My reading list at the time included:

• anything by Mary Higgins Clark
• The Complete Sherlock Holmes
• The Sword of Shannara Trilogy
• The Voyage of the Jerle Shanarra Trilogy
• Imponderables
• UR (A Stephen King novella about a Kindle)

The problem was, everything I was reading (with the exception of Mary Higgins Clark) was put-downable. I still didn’t have the constant urge to read… to see what happens next… or even just to get to the end. After a few pages I’d just pass out. I’ve been reading the Sherlock Holmes collection for the past few years, and at this rate I’ll probably still be working through it 20 years from now.

Image Credit

And then, The Hunger Games. Ahhhhhh, Peeta. ❤ Swoon. ❤ My best friend Sanne (also a Peeta junkie) and I hit the theater to check out the movie, neither of us aware that it was based off of a book trilogy. We were instantly intrigued, bought all 3 books immediately, and finished reading the entire trilogy in less than a week. Thus began our complete obsession for the series, but that’s another post for another day.

And just like that, it was back! My love for reading had been refueled.  Reignited.  Re-kindled. I seriously could not put those books down – it was ridiculous how eager I was to keep going. Julia was just a few months old, so I’d lie on the floor with her and read while she sucked on a toy or my toe or something.  I read at stop lights.  In the bathroom.  In the car while Jay drove us the whole 5 minutes to church.  I’d found the un-put-downable book!  And the release of Catching Fire in the theaters last November prompted me to read the whole series over – something I plan to do again when Mockingjay Part 1 comes out later this year.

Image Credit

I’m currently in the last book of the Divergent Series, Allegiant. While it’s nowhere near as good as The Hunger Games series (in my opinion), it’s definitely got me hooked. And once again I’m having a hard time putting down my Kindle.  I still fall asleep if I read before bed, but at least I can usually make it through a chapter now instead of just a few pages. I’ve even got a lineup of books I’m ready to read once I finish this one!

• The Giver (one of my all-time favs, about to be released as a film later this year)
• The Fault in Our Stars (recommended by my bestie)
• The Maze Runner Series (super excited about these – also coming out on film)!
• Gone Series (If the first one is any good)

Image Credit

I love being a reader again, and I love that my Kindle is finally being used daily – although sometimes in lieu of things like laundry… or dusting… or eating.  But who cares about those things when you’ve got an addicting novel? 🙂