More Than Just A Book

      Reading is a part of every young child's life. When I was a child, reading was my absolute favorite way to spend a day. My mom and I would go to the library every now and then and I would find some books to bring home to start reading. This was extremely exciting to me because reading was a big part of my childhood and remained there while growing up. Some of my favorites were the Magic Tree House series. Every time I picked up a new one, it'd take me on a whole new adventure. I loved every second of reading and it never got dull, reading a new book never just never got old to me. The Dr. Seuss series were books that just captured my attention and kept me wanting every single book in the series by their bright colors and captivating illustrations. I remember asking my grandma to buy me them, and being a typical grandma, she did. One of my strongest memories of reading were the reading plans that you would do to get Great America tickets. I would read all day and all night just to get those priced tickets for a day at Six Flags. I did those for a few summers and was able to have fun at Six Flags, which made it all worth it. 
        Now that I'm older, reading has left my life for the most part, I don't read books for fun anymore because I can't seem to have to attention span to sit down and read. That doesn't mean I don't enjoy a good book when I happen to find one. I have read some books over the years that I have definitely gotten a place in my all time favorites. West Side Story is one of my favorite books and always will be, this book is one that I just seemed to get totally wrapped up with and was able to enjoy from beginning to end. The Outsiders is another one that I loved even though it made me cry, it's one of my favorites. 
      Reading was a big part of my life while growing up and influenced much of what I think today. That's what of the most important facts of reading, it can shape who you are. The story lines, characters, themes all presented in a story don't just go in one ear and out the other, they stay. This then can influence how you feel about a situation, or even how you might act. It's silly for one to believe that a book is just a story, it's much more than that. It's filled with real-life scenarios that can shape how we live.