Why I Keep Picking Up Books
Why I Read
I’ve always been a fast reader. I devour stories like some people binge TV shows—one more chapter, just one more, and welp, suddenly it’s 1 am and I’ve become emotionally attached to fictional characters. Again.
Good thing there is coffee.
But I don’t read to tick off a list or to share all my reviews on online (I’ll leave that to all my amazing friends who are bookstagram baddies). I read because I love it. There is something beautiful about sinking into a good love story, or a world with magic and mystery, with flawed and imperfect characters that makes the rest of life feel a bit more manageable. Give me a man written by a woman who falls head over heels for our main character while they save their world and everything wraps up in a nice little bow of a happily ever after any day.
I’ve fallen in love with reading many times in my life. I discovered This Lullaby as a teenager which made me believe in love stories and the possibility of escaping into a good book. Pride and Prejudice revealed my love of witty banter and tension in the will they or won’t they slow burn romance. In my twenties, The Hunger Games cracked open a love of fast-paced, dystopian stories with fierce and complex characters that are impossible to put down. And in my 30s, I discovered the magic in combining epic love stories and fantasy world-building in series like ACOTAR. And micro-tropes like found family, only one bed, marriage of convenience, and grumpy-sunshine make me hunger for the next book.
These books are my reset button. When I read, I jump into these worlds and I find a way to breathe deeper, have a moment of peace, giggle and kick my feet, and sob and throw my book across the room.
Finding Time to Read
I don’t always get hours, or even uninterrupted minutes to sit down with a book. But I try to find moments. I typically have several books going at once, usually an e-book, a paperback book, and an audiobook. Sometimes I can find a longer stretch of reading time on vacation or a day off but usually, I read in short bursts before bed, on my lunch break, during my drive to work, or while my kids are sitting on my body (because apparently our giant couch isn’t comfy enough).
While I would love to have a designated reading nook or home library, I just don’t have the space or time for reading in “perfect conditions”. I often have to stop mid-chapter or even in the middle of a sentence (that one has my kids written all over it). I start and stop and reread a passage to catch up.
There is never a right time for reading, in fact with this fact-paced world, we have a plethora of wrong times. But I make time for reading because it matters to me. We should never apologize for making time for joy, in whatever way it comes.
Mood Reader Here
It’s me, hi, I’m a mood reader, it’s me.
My TBR is filled with vibes (<—as the kids say). I have a whole bunch of recommendations from friends, from book award lists, from something that pops up on social media, and from my instabuy authors. One day I might go from spicy romantasy to cozy, small-town romance, to magical realism, to unhinged dark romance, to self-help, to whatever the mood strikes.
While reading, I follow my emotional needs of the moment. I might finish a five-book high fantasy series that absolutely wrecks me then follow it up with a couple of rom-com palate cleansers then hop over to a recommendation from a friend about a cupid who mates a few human-animal hybrids.
There is freedom in choosing what feels right, when it feels right. And sometimes I’m staring at my giant TBR and then hop right over to a well-loved series I’ve read multiple times because it feels like home.
It’s a Love Story
Reading is my version of self-care, connection, and belonging. I get to live a thousand lives and see a thousand places. I remind myself that it’s not a competition or a race. It doesn’t have to be structured or rigid. I don’t have to explain why I rated a book five stars other than, VIBES. I love to be surprised by a plot twist, but I do love a formulaic HEA.
So raise your hand if you’ve ever canceled plans to finish a book, or nestled into the covers saying, just one more chapter, or put yourself on a book-buying ban and failed miserably. You’re my kind of people.
