The Beauty of Books

Reading. We all do it, and it’s a part of our everyday lives-in fact you’re doing it right now, reading this article. We begin to read at an early stage of life, say 5 or 6 years old and it is said that the average person voluntarily reads approximately 486 books over their lifetime. This article discusses the early experiences of reading as a child and how books from my past have shaped me to be the person I am today.

My earliest memories of reading are of 9-year-old me sitting in my primary school classroom, completely immersed in the newest book about ‘The Cat In The Hat’. This is where the seed of my love for reading was planted, and since then it has grown into a magnificent tree with all sorts of characters and plot twists branching off my favourite books. I remember my primary school having a weekly ‘silent reading time’ which definitely had a huge impact on my level of reading today. At the tender age of 9 I was exposed to a crowd of diverse, unique, and relatable characters who have had a huge influence on my way of thinking.

So how did these fictional characters affect my personality? Well one example is when I first started reading Harry Potter; I was always known as the shy, quiet girl who never spoke much or contributed in class. However, when I discovered the wonderous series of the wizarding world and the amazing adventures that the golden trio had faced, my life changed. As I began to read I immediately identified myself with Hermione Granger, academically strong but socially lacking. Reading about how she became strong and independent all while meeting people who were always there for her undeniably helped me develop my character and become a better person socially. In addition to this I found out that the series had a huge fan base and I met some amazing people who I call my friends. This is just one of many, many ways that books and characters can stay with you forever.

My favourite thing about reading was learning about characters and seeing life through their eyes, I loved being able to change my own views on life and seeing how different circumstances affected people. Perhaps the best thing however, was finding a book that felt like it was written for me. One example of this is ‘Beautiful Broken Things’ by Sara Barnard, I first read it when I was 12 and the main character of the book had been through things very similar to me so I felt like I could relate with the whole book. It helped me learn ways to cope with things and I realised that I’m surrounded by the most caring people.

Books will always play an important role in my life as I can count on them to escape reality and teach me things that people will never be able to. So, to 9-year-old me in her classroom, keep reading, it will do you good. I am extremely proud of the bookworm that I am and as long as I can, my tree will keep growing. Yours should too.