Books, books, books, books, books!

This isn't part two.

I just finished (like two seconds ago) The Library Card by Jerry Spinelli. Now if you have been reading my blog you know that I love Jerry Spinelli. But this book, oh this book, brought back memories.

I didn't really learn how to read until I was about nine. Before that, I hated reading (I know, you're all shocked). I could kind of read, but not really, so I was always really embarrassed when I was asked to read in church or when I was with friends and reading came up or what not. Now, this was partially because I didn't bother to try to much, but some of the blame goes to being home schooled by a mother with five other kids. Things get busy. (My mom is awesome.) So before the age of nine, books were evil, torture devices made to embarrass and make me feel stupid (and I HATE feeling stupid, it's actually still kind of a problem, blasted pride).

In Virginia, my house was across the street from the library, a two minute walk. I'm not sure when I got my first library card, but I know I never really used it. But I do remember getting a book one day when I went with my sister, I believe it was Kelsey. The book was a Sweet Valley Twin book (it's the tween version of Sweet Valley High). I brought it home, and I guess I loved the characters or something because I went back and got the next one, and the next one, and the next. I ate them up. Went through them like homemade bread. They were kept on these turning shelves with all the other children's series. Of course I decided to pick a different book (by this time I had discovered that reading was fun, and I was better at it than before). It had a picture of a boy turning into a bird (a red-tailed hawk, as I would learn later). Yes, it was an Animorph book, number three to be exact. I thought it looked interesting because I loved animals, wanted to be them, have them, draw them (I used to draw the skeletal structure of different animals from the encyclopedia for fun, I was weird). I soon became addicted to that series as well. At this point I was spending a lot of time at the library. I would spend hours (literally) just walking up and down the shelves in the children's section. Pulling books out at random, I'd hold onto the one's that caught my interest. Soon I would have a stack six or more books thick, ready to check out. I would take them home, read them, take them back the next day, and start all over again.

This is how I found my love for mysteries. My first mystery book ever was the Secret of the Haunted Mirror, a Three Investigators' mystery. I loved it. Loved it. These books weren't kept with the other series, but were hidden in little groups on different shelves of the library. I hunted them down. I would spend all day looking for new ones even though I knew I had read all the ones the library had. I would re-read them over and over (that's were that bad habit started). Now, I still liked the other series (I still have a decent collection of my favorite Animorph books), but the mystery books were my love. From the Three Investigators, I went to Encyclopedia Brown, The Ghost Squad, the McGurk Detective Agency, and anything else that took me to a world of crime and suspense were the good guys always figured it out and the bad guys went to jail. It's still my favorite genre (not fantasy or sci-fi as some might guess).

Of course, while I was discovering the wonderful world of mystery, I was also finding other genres, stories, adventures, facts, and authors. Oh the different authors that I came to love and seek out. Bruce Coville, James Howe, Jerry Spinelli, William Sleator, Diane Duane, Lois Lowery, Scieszka and Smith, Betsy Byars, Isaac Asimov, Marianne Curley, Agatha Christie, the list could go on and on. Characters that become some of my best friends were also a pull and a reason I sought out series. I didn't want to say good-bye to characters that I loved. Even now I can pick up a book and be like "Marco, you're so funny, but that probably wasn't the most appropriate time to make a joke." Or "Pete, you put on a scardy-cat facade, but everyone knows you're as brave as they come." Or simply "Oh, Georgia." I learned very early that characters make or break a book for me. If I don't like the characters or at least one of them, I won't like the book (Frankenstein is a good example of this, even though it is well written).

I ended up spending all my time at the library (which meant from the time it opened until it closed because I was home schooled). The librarians new me to the point were they were noticing haircuts and such. My mom would ban me from going if I hadn't done math homework. If that didn't work, it was a ban from reading as well (che, what kind of mother bans her child from reading? Haha). I have a lot of happy memories of the library, most from my childhood actually. I never made friends easily (still don't, as a matter of fact), but I was kind of loner even back then and didn't mind. I had my books, places to visit, things to imagine, characters to meet. Life was good. I was happy. And then I went to high school. (That sounds so foreboding.)

Before high school, I could read as much as I wanted, whenever I wanted. I had no other obligations. But high school took seven hours out of my day and then more on top because of homework. I also had early morning seminary (although not that early and I loved it). By the time I was done with it all there wasn't much time for reading and definitely not enough for my daily dose of browsing library shelves. It was hard. The fact that high school made me feel totally alone didn't help either. It amazes me that I could be alone a day, and yet be perfectly fine, but surround me with people, and I felt more lonely than I ever had before. Books were my only real solace during high school. I had friends, and I had fun, but if I was having a really bad day, reading was the only thing that made me feel good. That is still the case. Reading makes me happy. Maybe it's because I don't like dealing with the bad things in my life. I don't honestly know. All I know is that even today, books are an escape and the library is a sanctuary. Everything seems better after reading a book or walking through the library, smelling the books and running my hand along the shelves. Maybe I was always destined to because a librarian and only recognized it in the last few years. Haha.

Now, I'm sure you are wondering, "Rachael, that's nice and all, but what is the point of this ridiculously long post?" I'll tell you (because yes, there is a point). At the beginning I mentioned the Library Card by Jerry Spinelli, this book shows how a library card changes the lives of four kids. Whether they were headed down the wrong path in life, or needed comfort, or just a friend, the library card brought them what they needed. That is what it did for me. What it still does for me. I wish... I wish I was better with words. I love words. I love the way good authors can make them do and say and express what can't be in a way that people can understand in their hearts even if they can't in their minds. The way they can manipulate them in a way that touches your soul and makes you want more. I can't do that, but if I could then maybe I would get the point across. It's probably because I never really express anything. There is a lot of me that I have never shown anyone, but I've given it all to my books. Maybe I just want to say if you have a library card use it (get something you read and loved as a kid),and if you don't have one get one and use it (they are free). Or something like that. Make time for reading. It's important. Falling apart here.... Haha.

I apologize for the length of the post. If you read through this whole thing you are the best and get a mental high five from me and a hug 'cause, why not? Haha.

DDoG:
Books.