Sunday 18 May 2014

Book talk.

For as long as I can remember, books have played a huge part in my life. I think I read my first chapter book at around age five, and I've never looked back since then.
However, I usually don't like nonfiction. I'm a very plot and language-driven reader.

When I finished reading the Harry Potter series, I didn't really know what to do with my life anymore.
Basically, I slid down the wall and lay on the floor for a few minutes pondering what to do next.

Sort of like this.
Image credit: http://25andfly.files.wordpress.com/2013/02/wallslide-cartoon.gif
Before we continue, let me just emphasize how much Harry Potter meant to me.
  • I basically grew up with the trio. The first time I read the books, I was only in second grade. But at that point in time, I realized that from that moment onwards I would be a crazy potterhead. 
  • In grades 4, 5 and 6, I dressed as Cho Chang for book character dress up day. I substituted a chopstick for a wand (because I'm just that awesome). 
  • One time, I made a Hermione doll out of a water bottle. The results were terrifying, but I was still so proud of myself. 
  • People who haven't read/hate Harry Potter confuse and frustrate me. 
  • Likewise, people who prefer LoTR over Harry Potter confuse and frustrate me. 
  • I have taken a countless amount of sorting hat quizzes, even though I know I'm probably a Ravenclaw. Although once, I was put into Gryffindor. 
  • When Cedric died, I cried.
  • When Sirius died, I cried. 
  • When Dumbledore died, I was shocked. 
  • When Dobby died, I cried. 
  • When Fred died, I cried buckets. 
  • When Lupin and Tonks died, I sat there speechless. 
  • Usually, Buzzfeed lists like this one and this one make me cry even more. 
  • Et cetera, et cetera. 
Eventually I moved on (gasp!) and I read other series. I read the Hunger Games series and also Divergent. They were okay, but I still prefer Harry Potter (gasp again!). 

Recently, I read The Fault in Our Stars. Before reading it I was so confused as to why everybody worshipped him. But now I completely understand. 

John Green is love. John Green is life. 

TFIOS was amazing. I cried (by now, you probably know that I'm one of the most emotional people ever). Soon I'm going to try and hunt down Looking for Alaska and Paper Towns. My heart broke when I saw the prices in the book store, so either I'm going to wait for my birthday or for Christmas (they're not that expensive, but I can never bear to spend money on anything). 

Last night I started thinking about why I value books so much. And I guess it has something to do with my last-last post: themes. Reading is not only a fun way to kill time, but it's also a great opportunity to learn about the human mind. There's so much that can be learned through reading, and each writer has their own voice and view on things. The great thing about books is that usually you have a opinion on them - you agree or disagree with what the author says, which makes books good material for discussions.

tl;dr (because let's be honest, this post is longer than anything I've posted before): Reading has always played a huge part in my life, and through reading I've learnt about myself, the human mind, and society. 

1 comment:

  1. "Reading is not only a fun way to kill time, but it's also a great opportunity to learn about the human mind."

    You make me love my job. We need to find a larger audience for your blog. You have things to say that people need to hear! We'll work in it.

    ReplyDelete