A Man is Known by the Books He Reads

I have always been an avid reader. As an elementary school student, I was one of the weird kids that looked forward to silent reading time. By the end of first grade I had read two hundred children’s books and the librarian had already memorized my 10 digit ID code. Now, I am happy to say that I have progressed from enjoying Roald Dahl fantasies and Carolyn Keene mysteries to a wide variety of authors spanning many different genres. Some of my favorite books include Hot Zone (Richard Preston), a frightening bio-thriller describing the ghastly effects of Ebola, and The Plot Against America (Philip Roth), a novel that explores what would have happened if Lindbergh was elected president; however, I am not just a reader of serious, non-fiction books. I am a strong believer that an enjoyable read does not necessarily equal a well-written read. These books I am referring to are those teen bestsellers, like the Gossip Girls series (Cecily von Ziegesar). This "brain candy" chronicles the dramatic lives of high schoolers and requires minimal thought to comprehend, which sometimes is a relief in my busy life.

Unfortunately, yes, as I have grown up I read less, and as the school year starts, it becomes more and more difficult to incorporate some leisurely reading into my schedule. Overall, I firmly believe that I will always enjoy reading and that if, magically, there was an extra hour in the day, I would spend that hour reading.

Again, if there was an extra hour in the day, I would spend it reading, not writing. This is simply because I have always felt that achieving originality and excellence in writing is very difficult and that I should simply be on the receiving end of others’ words. This is not to say that I do not enjoy writing because when faced with an interesting prompt or idea, I always have something to say. I constantly surprise myself with what I can think of and my ability to translate those ideas into words on a page. I seek to challenge my writing skills because my structure and overall style is not as varied as I’d like it to be. I want to write more to improve my skills because, without a doubt, the ability to communicate effectively is an essential quality to success and also a life skill (394).