Book Reminisce

I am a book buff, right from when I was a kid. I still remember the good old times when I could stay for hours in bookstores to the chagrin of my mom and brother -- my dad and I would get lost in space and time in them. But they were usually just browsing sessions. Books weren't very high on the priority list of our family budget and it would be a rare treat if I do end up with a book or two, usually from The Famous Five or the Trixie Beldon series.

Then for some reason, I stopped reading when I was in my mid teens. I am not sure why but most probably, it was at a time when I felt I was neither here nor there. I felt I was too grown up for the books I had loved but not ready for the more serious ones. I don't think there were any books for young adults back then, unlike these days.

By the time I was in my 20s however, I was already a fan of Sidney Sheldon books, and soon after was into novels by John Grisham, Jeffry Archer, Patricia Cornwell, Nora Roberts and Sandra Brown. I would scour the stores for them, as well as borrow them from friends and even rent them from second hand bookshops.

Into my 30s, I began to delve mainly in Christian theology and soon I became a firm fan of anything C.S. Lewis. His books are tough reads but packed with gems and great insights. Some of the memorable reads I have experienced in this period of my life were C.S. Lewis's Mere Christianity, The Problem of Pain, God in the Dock and The Screwtape Letters, the Five Festal Garments by Barry Webb, Exploring Protestant Traditions by David Buschart, Shades of Sheol by Philip Johnston, and Case for Christ by Lee Strobel. I also found the fantasy genre a very interesting one. The ones I like included The Black Magician Trilogy by Trudi Canavan.

Right now, my choice of reads is quite diversified. I am game for anything interesting, fiction or not. Among the most interesting books I have read recently include a book on alternative medicine, Trick or Treatment by Simon Singh; on time, Time Warped by Claudia Hammond; on music How Music Works by John Powell; on dead bodies, Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers by Mary Roach; on personalities, Introvert Power by Laurie Helgoe; on blood, The Immortality of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skoot; and of all the novels I have read recently, only these two stood out: People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks and Cathedral of the Sea by Ildefonso Falcones.

I also noticed that I have been reading many more books now that I have gone digital. I am quite surprised I actually ready 29 books in the last 10 months.  However, I did not meet my 50-book challenge for 2011/2012. But I am still quite satisfied nonetheless.

I have also found some very useful websites. Although I have gave up on www.Anobii.com, I became active in www.GoodReads.com and I simply love this website called www.WhatShouldIReadNext.com. Although it does not feel or look as spiffy as the other book recommendation sites, I find it much more effective.

Reading a book is like unpacking a valuable gift slowly but surely. When I read a really good book, it is like I have unearthed a treasure from the depth of the sea. When I read a truly good novel, I feel like I am living another person's life and listening to a different voice unlike mine. I like books that make me think and wonder. I like it when I discover even simple things. I like it when a book gives me the urge to google or wiki for more information. I like it when it makes me imagine. I like it when I can just read, and read, and read.

pearlie