Books

Do you have a favorite book?  Or, at least, a favorite genre?

Anyone who has known me for very long will know that my favorite book of all time is ‘Gone With The Wind’.  It holds a special nostalgic place in my heart because it was the first real ‘adult’ book I ever read.  I was twelve years old and, while I may have missed some of the subtilities, I knew enough to get the general drift of things.  And my literary world opened up!  No more children’s or young adult books for me! 

Books, especially well-written ones, can become like friends.  They are portals to another place and, occasionally, another time.  They take us to places our own minds might never have conjured up, if not for those words written on a page.  

They are magic.  I see why ignorant fools are frightened of them.  I see why uninformed people participate in book burnings, bannings, and censorship.  Books are frightening to those who do not or will not understand.  Books free us.  Books are the enemy of the oppressor and a friend to the oppressed.  They bring new ideas.  Make us think.  Wonder.  Question.  They inspire us to go beyond the boundaries where we believe we can go.  They set us free.  They allow us to fly.  To dream.  To become… whatever we want to be.

In my home, books are sacred.  They are old friends, treated reverently, and visited often.  They make my life better.  And, as I read, I am grateful for the imagination of the authors who took the time to lovingly put down their thoughts so we might all enjoy their musings.

Tell me your favorite book and the reason it is so.