The written word is one of humanities greatest gifts to itself, and I love getting the chance to immerse myself in new worlds with new books.
“A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies. The man who never reads lives only one.” ~ George R.R. Martin
As someone who enjoys the escape into other worlds, both writing them and reading them, I have to agree with him. I’ve lived with faeries and stalked shadows with assassins. I’ve traversed the stars with Gold warriors and flown the skies with angels. I’ve lived all their triumphs and sacrifices and hurts and pains. I’ve mourned leaving them; closing that cover. Putting the book on the shelf.
The year before last, I hardly read anything. And when I look back now, it showed. My creativity was lacking. My vibrancy and passion for the written word faded. Then last year, I set myself a goal. I opened a Goodreads account, and I spent some time remembering the great books I’ve read over the years. Then I gave myself a goal to read 25 for that year.
And sure, I arguably padded that number by reading a few graphic novels, but y’know what? I don’t care. They were great, and I was thrilled to get to the end of the year with so many new stories in my head and my heart.
So this year I upped my number. Instead of twenty-five, it’s thirty.
I want to beat that number. Shatter it, really. I want to live a thousand more lives, visit a thousand new worlds.
Tell me what you’re reading. Tell me what you love to read. Tell me that one book you have to recommend because it stayed with you for days after you finished it.
Let me add them all to My List.