What kind of reader are you?

I don’t exactly know what kind of reader I am. I say this because most people can say “I’ve been an avid reader since I learned how to read.” Or “I fell in love with reading when…” Me? I wasn’t an avid reader when I was younger. It wasn’t due to any particular reason I don’t think. I don’t know if the language barrier had anything to do with it either. I don’t remember a lot from my short school years in Mexico so I can’t say I was a reader then. I also don’t remember many reading moments once here in the states either, so I can’t say I was a reader then either. 

One book in particular sticks out to me when thinking about books in my elementary years… The Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson. I can’t quite recall details, but it stuck with me. Something about the book embedded itself into my brain. I guess by default anyone who has the capacity to read is a reader so by default I’ve been a reader since the time I was able to read. But a literary reader? (is that even a thing?) I wish I could recall. I do however have certain moments that I think changed me from a default reader to a literary reader. In middle school I read for points. I wanted to be able to get the prizes the reading program had dammit! I don’t remember a single book I read. In High School I was forced to read in my advanced English classes. So I read grudgingly. I remember actually reading a handful of the assigned books. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston. And of those few only some stayed with me. And out of high school? There were two books I read before I truly could say I enjoyed reading. 

Then one fall a movie trailer came out. It was a movie about a girl who fell in love with a supernatural being. A girl who fell in love with a guy with super strength, with absolutely NO melanin in the skin and the most sexy bouffant I have ever seen on a dude in my life. And I wanted so badly to go see this movie. So I went with two of my closest friends. As my friends talked about the differences in the movie from the book I desired to read this book. The story was interesting to my little 20 year old brain. So I borrowed book one. By now I’m going to assume you’ve all guessed what books I’m talking about. I started reading Twilight by Stephenie Meyer on a Sunday. By Wednesday I was done. I needed more books at this point too. So after devouring the Twilight series I went on to the next. I began my journey to a magical land where a young orphaned boy lived to defeat the murderer of his parents. Harry Potter gave me a new desire. The need to escape the realities of everyday life. If this orphaned boy could grow up to defeat a Hitler like evil, I could get up in the mornings and go to work.  Then a good friend of mine said to me one day, “You liked Harry you should read Percy Jackson.” So I said bring it on. And I fell in love with another boy again. Percy Jackson and the Olympians by Rick Riordan made me thirst for more. And this went on for a bit. I would listen to my friend at every turn. I began a new series I am Number Four by Pittacus Lore. This would be my first time reading a book in a series that was not complete. I learned the anguish of having to wait over a year for a book. 

As time went by I randomly read. I would pick up a book at Wal-Mart or Target that looked interesting. I would go to the bookstore and peruse around, and pick something random up. I had a teeny tiny bookshelf with lots of space. I thoroughly enjoyed a good book. But I read very few books. In 2012, I saw another movie trailer. This time the story wasn’t about a girl who fell in love. It was about a girl who needed to save her sister from the horror of fighting to the death. I devoured The Hunger Games trilogy and while I was devouring the books my little brother was becoming the owner of a Kindle Fire. And boy did would that end up opening up my book-loving world. 

Before I discovered the Indie world, I also read three more books. These books were the very first indie books I read. The story was a fan-fiction of Twilight.. 50 Shades of Grey by EL James is controversial in its own right. But those books turned a desire into a hunger. I had to read. I visited Target one day and found a book called Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire. In the midst of discovering Beautiful Disaster I also discovered Goodreads and Goodreads told me what books I should read. And that began a lovely journey. A journey in which I discovered some amazing books, some not so amazing books. I’ve met some wonderful people. I’ve met the authors who have written these amazing books. I’ve discovered a world unlike anything I’ve known. I have found my people. I now consider myself an avid reader. I now proudly say I’m a bibliophile. I own two large bookshelves that are out of space. I could start my own little private reading nook in my room. I still can’t say the exact moment I became an “avid” reader, but I’m so very happy I discovered this great new world.

 I discovered several books that woke my soul. One of those books was Hopeless by Colleen Hoover. I searched HIGH AND LOW for this book. I called bookstores and was met with a sort of condescending “uhh who is that” tone. I then decided to look on Amazon. Oh I found Hopeless alright. For the amazing price of $700 (how was I supposed to know it is one of the indie copies out there?!) I thought to myself this book better come with sound, smell, and fucking touch. Man did I get so much more. Colleen Hoover led me to so many more amazing authors and books. Left Drowning by Jessica Park was one of those. I stumbled across this by chance and so my rollercoaster ride gave way at full speed. Since the events aforementioned have transpired I have become the proud owner of what some basic person would call “too many books”. I have gone to eight different signings, met over 20 authors, made so many friends to share my crazy obsession with and made some amazing memories. 

In the midst of all of this there have been a good handful of books that have influenced me in ways that I could never fully explain. The Bronze Horseman The Bronze Horseman series by Paullina Simons is an example. The Man I Love, Give Me Your Answer True, and Here to Stay by Suanne Laqueur (sobrepasarlo my dear) are another. Mud Vein by Tarryn Fisher is one more. Anything and everything Lori Otto has written has made me a better person and a more enthusiastic reader. It’s a beautiful thing when a person’s words can capture your heart in a life changing way. I thank my lucky stars I found this extremely pleasing passion.