“In the candle's flickering light, the library's thousands of books emerged from the shadows, and for a moment Nicholas could not help admiring them again. During free time he had almost never looked up from the pages he was reading, but now he saw the books anew, from without rather than from within, and was reminded of how beautiful they were simply as objects. The geometrical wonder of them all, each book on its own and all the books together, row upon row, the infinite patterns and possibilities they presented. They were truly lovely.”
― Trenton Lee Stewart, The Extraordinary Education of Nicholas Benedict
I am head-over-heels in love with books. Hardback books, paperback books, new shiny-cover books, and especially old, yellow paged books. It isn't even fair when someone asks me what my favorite book is. Don't ever ask someone that.
Instead, you must ask a reader:
What book did you just finish reading, and did you like it?
What book have you memorized passages from, because you like it so much?
Ask them things like that. Because when you ask about favorites, life becomes boiled down into one central, unimaginative thing that has no boundaries, because it's one thing. But when you expand to your scores of fictional characters, books, and stories, life gets so much bigger, so much broader, and definitely more interesting.
If you haven't read The Extraordinary Education of Nicholas Benedict, check it out. It is one of the many books snug on my bookshelf. I carry it with me when I need a lighthearted, well-written story, that lifts my heart and the corners of my mouth. And I gaze at it lovingly as I run my fingers along the spine, soaking in the story once again.
So, dear readers, I beg you to read. I beg you to immerse yourselves in good, wholesome words. Maybe someday, I will post a reading list of my "favorites." But of course, not one of them can be chosen as your all-time favorite. :)
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