Opening a book is a magical thing. Worlds wait for us, unknown landscapes appear in our minds as we read, and the characters who show up inevitably create emotional responses in us. Our reactions and feelings can run the gamut from delight and intrigue to fear and wonder. Whether the book we’ve chosen is adventure or science fiction or fantasy or mystery, it gives us a feeling of possibility we didn’t know existed before. This is the power in reading fiction.
The hours we spend immersed in a book, or the forty-five minutes we spend with a short story, or even the five minutes we give to a poem–all of it is time that instills a feeling of respite in us, a chance to let go of our hectic lives.
Some say the love of reading begins in childhood, and maybe that’s true for most of us. But in truth, we might not find out how reading can touch
our heart until we have lived many years. There is no time boundary required for the wondrous love of reading to happen within us.
And the power in reading fiction is a gift that can reveal to us who we are and what we are here for.
What do you love to read most? What books and stories have stayed in your mind a long time? Do you still remember fairy tales? Do you like to follow a detective as he or she unravels a puzzle? Do space travel and aliens spark your imagination?
Come with me now in the next posts herein, as I take you on a journey into the magic of reading…
I can’t imagine a life without books. A life without fantasy seems dry and cold to me 🙂
I so agree. Books are lifeblood and magical in our world of being.
Escape into a good book gives me respite from my worries and cares, as well as laughter, entertainment and optimism.
As Regina says, we come to care for the characters and wish them well.
I have learned much about myself and others through reading, vicariously lived other lives in other times and worlds, and been soul-nourished by the wisdom and love offered by fiction.