I used to love to read in junior high. I was addicted to books by Lurlene McDaniel. All variations of stories of teenage love torn apart when the life of one of the young lovers was cut tragically short by a terminal illness. Romantic, huh?
For some reason, I got away from reading. Maybe it was because I hated all the books we had to read in high school. I feel like I missed out on all the classics everyone reads in high school. While everyone was reading The Great Gatsby, The Scarlet Letter, and Grapes of Wrath, I was reading things like Ethan Frome, The Crucible, and Lord of the Flies. Gag.
I picked up the occasional Nicholas Sparks book in college, usually after the movie came out. Although I hated buying the book with the cover art taken from the movie.
Newsflash: None of the Nicholas Sparks movies are just like the book.
I loved The Notebook so naturally I was inspired to read The Wedding. However, it didn't quite make sense since Noah dies at the end of The Notebook, or does he? Regardless, it took me about two years to finish The Wedding. (However, when I finally finished it, I had the strength to finally call of my engagement. Whether these events are related or not is not the point, I just remember relating the two.)
Starting Nursing School, I found myself always attempting but never successfully reading my textbooks. My reading comprehension had always been in the lowest of low ranges, so reading was a waste of my time.
Then Stephenie Meyer came into my life.
I remember seeing Facebook bumper stickers alluding to the perfect man that was Edward Cullen. I thought I had missed a movie or something. In September of 2008, Faye handed me the book Twilight and told me I had to read it by December before the movie came out. I looked at the 498 page book and thought YEAH RIGHT, but I agreed to give it a try. The first chapter was kinda slow, but then it picked up and I was hooked. Three weeks later I had read over 2,000 pages of the beautiful love story of Edward and Bella and was determined there was an Edward out there for me. Or at least I want to think there is. Yes, I commend those of you who read all four books in a matter of days or hours, but I read slowly and I was in Nursing School at the time. I had to take breaks between books to study for tests. Since I made a couple of lower than my norm grades on tests during my Twilight Saga reading days, I refused to do any more leisure reading until after graduation.
Next on my list was Something Borrowed by Emily Giffin. LOVED IT. However, it is the only of the series I have read. I need to pick them back up before the MOVIE comes out!
My most recent reading pleasure was South of Broad by Pat Conroy. One of my favorite books I have ever read! It made me laugh; it made me cry; it made me happy; it made me angry. I felt like I knew the characters personally. And it made me fall in love with the city of Charleston, SC. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone!!
I'm trying to add more "classics" to my list of read books, so I am currently trying to read A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway. I chose this one because it is actually supposed to be a love story. I'm on chapter three, and it just hasn't grabbed me yet. I'm going to give it a fair shot though. I am actually interested to see if it lives up to my Edward Cullen fantasy or the beautiful story of true love Nicholas Sparks writes about over and over by changing the names and circumstances of the characters who all happen to live in the Carolinas. After I push through this Hemingway, though, it's back to Emily Giffin and Pat Conroy for a while.
No comments:
Post a Comment