Nomen Est Omen

Let's Get This Over With

Bloody hell. Lord I hate memes but I got tagged and since I like the blog and I found other really good blogs because of his blog, I'll relent this ONCE! So, JJ of The Churning thinks he's cute and tagged me with this hideous thing. As threatened, he will rue the day he ever did this to me but I'll oblige, (grudgingly), and just get it the hell out of the way and on with my life:

(1) Number of books you own:

About three less than the Harvard library.

(2) Last book bought:

Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince. Of course I don't get to read it yet, but I pre-ordered it and paid for it already.

(3) Last book I read:

Does "currently reading" count or do they want that last book completed? If it's current reading, "Sense and Sensibility: Jane Austen". If it's last fully completed: "Anna Karenina: Leo Tolstoy".

(4) Five books that mean a lot to me:

I totally hate questions like this. This is like asking me to narrow down my favorite ice cream flavors. Are you people mad? To set such restrictions on oneself makes one very, very dull. Instead what I'll do is name some books off the top of my head in the order received but making sure you all know full well that this is hardly a limited list in my life. There are far, far, far too many books I've read and almost every single one of them has shaped me a certain way or changed my outlook or taught me something...basically every damn book I've ever read has meant a lot to me. Got that?

1) Chronicles of Narnia. Need I really explain why? (And so what if I'm cheating because this is more than 5 books in this series alone...read above paragraph. Rules schmoolz.)
2) War and Peace. Yes, I really did read it and I found it to be very interesting and quite funny in some places. I've concluded that those who state it is boring and long haven't actually read it.
3) Lord of the Flies. If you've read it, you know why. If you haven't, go read it.
4) Grapes of Wrath. Not only was it really good, but I learned how to make poor man's gravy this way. I happened to be reading it while I was severely poor and learned from this book how to add a little bit of flavor to my otherwise dull food with little money. Plus, when you're poor as shit, it's nice to know you're not alone. Even if they are fictional characters.
5) Where The Red Fern Grows. I was 14. We were leaving, on a jet plane....I was scared, claustrophobic and had too much energy to sit still on a plane for 5 hours. My mother pulled this book out of her purse and it kept me calm the entire plane ride, throughout the vacation and I finished it on the plane ride home.

I know that isn't what they were asking for but books are very important in my life not just because of the story but because I can pretty much tell you exactly how old I was when I first read it, (and since I read way beyond my understanding when I was a kid, how old I was the second time I read it and how the story changed for me with wisdom), what I was doing at that time in my life and how much I liked the story.

I've read voraciously all my life. I get lost in the stories. I become a silent character, shadowing the main one, welcomed by all to remain there as long as I don't interject or try to change anything with my input. I've been on all of their adventures, I've flown with them, climbed mountains with them, fought dragons with them, discovered new planets with them, been treated badly by their parents with them, talked to the devil with them, explored alien landscapes with them, ruled over lands with them, plunged stakes into hearts with them, faced racism with them, been abused, beaten, hated, run out of town, misguided, loved, embraced, cherished, adored and honored with them.

Reading isn't just about words on a page. It's about captivating the imagination and going off to new places to see new things and learn from them all. You don't have to read fiction to be accepted as a "real" reader. All you have to do is read. You wouldn't believe what awaits you out there. Open the cover of that book, it's like opening the door to another world.

Posted by S. Faolan Wolf at June 8, 2005 12:47 PM