BOOKS

 

          Friends and family share their reviews about a wide variety of television programs. Were I to make a list of all these broadcasts, and I have on occasion made lists, I’d be hunkered down in front of the television 24/7. It’s not that I don’t watch TV because I do, it’s just that I have a different and far more favorite way to utilize my time…BOOKS.

          According to my mother, I taught myself to read before I began school. When we moved to Seattle, I was eight years old and was introduced to my local library via a school field trip. I’d found my home away from home. It was the kind of home that allowed me to travel the world, nay, the universe, and even places that might not have actually resided in the world or universe. Long before I was grown up and was able to travel independently, I had already traveled more than I believed any other person could have.

          Year by year as I grew up, I chose different paths for my life, depending on the books I was reading. I became the first woman race-car driver, first woman jockey, first woman in space, first successful woman in a wide array of careers. Unfortunately, my growing-up dreams didn’t come to fruition once I reached adult-hood although I had also read a lot of romance novels.

          Another pleasure that results from reading is the ability to share my books with other readers. It’s always such a gift to find another reader who knows my author(s) and my book(s), but it’s even more enjoyable when I can share the names of authors and book titles with someone who hasn’t yet discovered these favorites of mine. Just as fun is being given the gift of a new author or book I haven’t yet found.

          These days, I’m sincerely grateful for my I-Pad because I can visit the King County Library without even leaving my house. And, it’s so easy. I look up a book, make my request and the library notifies me when the book is available or allows me to borrow it right then. Downloaded to my I-Pad it’s ready for me to read in a print-size that doesn’t leave me with fried eyes.

Seriously, I never thought I’d want to replace a hand-held book with an electronic one, but reading books on my I-Pad has become my absolute favorite way spend time visiting other times and places.