Treasured words

Imagine you were stranded in an island. What would you miss the most, not counting people? I thought about this and the first thing that came to my mind was my reading habit. I have to read everyday. I need books. Does not really matter what I read as long as I can read at least a page or two everyday.

As far back as I can remember, books were my primary source of entertainment. I remember sitting on my father's lap while he read Amar Chitra Katha stories for me. I remember my first Enid Blyton, a Secret Seven mystery. Being an only child, books have been my constant companion.

I love visiting bookstores. In Chennai, it was Higginbothams first, now Landmark. Here it is Books-A-Million or Barnes and Noble, and not to forget, amazon online. Quick reads are my favorite kind, short stories especially. Nowadays, reading a novel takes a few weeks. It is frustrating for someone who finished Gone with the Wind in a day and half. I cannot put down a book halfway.

When I was in my 6th std., we had one class where there was no teacher for sometime. So a group of us decided to put that hour to good use. We pooled all our ACKs and started our own library. Teachers were often surprised to find our class the quietest one in the whole floor.

Tending to 2 young 'uns gives me little time for such pleasures now. But, I do manage to find a few hours now and then to read a good book, or at least half of it. I am now glad to have given this legacy to my kids too. (Well, part of it is also my husband's genes). My older one started reading when she was barely 5, and ever since, she has enjoyed being immersed in a book. (I have too, a quiet kid is a rare gift). I must say, though, I do miss our Seussions together.

My younger one, I am hoping will be reading on her own in a year or 2. She has the attention span of a fruit fly, for anything except puzzles and songs. But she does love to hear me reading to her, albeit for short sessions. She gets attached to one book at a time, and then, she puts me in a read cycle until she is exhausted, which of course is not that easy. I am eager to start her on Hooked on phonics, for my sake.

I am currently reading Michael Connelly's Closers and D. Baldacci's Split Second. I finished Hour game last week, and then realized that I never read Split Second. It has been sitting on my nightstand for a year now, and I had been thinking that I finished reading it. All three are fast paced thrillers.

I borrowed O. Henry and Jane Austen from the library, though I may not be able to read them in the next week or so. No need to ask why. Half-blood Prince takes precedence over everything else. I don't dare start a new one, in case I can't finish it before Saturday.

Not too long a wait now! Hurry up, Harry!