Reading books

A good book is a true gift. The beauty of books is that before you begin reading one, you really have no idea just what you're going to get -- kind of the box of chocolates analogy. Sometimes you expect a book to be good and it disappoints, but then there are those times when you're blown away by and excellently conceived and written book.

Rarely do I get rid of books. I'm not a hoarder; I consider books to be great sources not only of entertainment but also of reference. Time and again I have referred to books I've previously read to find a fact that I recalled or to review certain passages.

Despite this, there are few books I reread. I have a list of books that I consider the best I've ever read and someday, perhaps in my dotage, I'll go back and reread them before I die. But there are so many books out there and so little time to read them all.

My interest in reading all the good literature that Gutenburg made available came from a small college called, I believe, St. John's, that has campuses in both Maryland and somewhere in the southwest. When I was in high school, it sent me the propaganda most high school seniors receive persuading them to attend their schools. Only these mailings were different in that they recommended books that all college students should read in their freshman, sophomore, junior and senior years. When I looked at the suggestions, I was floored by the few selections I had actually read. Then it hit me that there were so many other books that I wanted to read that I thought I'd better get a move on and start reading all that I could. I've been a voracious reader ever since.

One year, largely due to the time I spent each day to and from work on the train, I read seventy-nine books. These weren't comic books I was reading, but heavier, more involved works, sometimes involving great works in literature. My girl shakes her head at me when I read while filling up the car at the gas station. There is nowhere I won't read.

Reading has been a great gift. I wish everyone had the same passion for reading that I do.

(c) 2012 The Truxton Spangler Chronicles