My love relationship with reading actually began way back in 2009. I was a ninth-standard kid. I can still remember that fateful English class in which we had a story-reading session from O. Henry’s collection. It was titled The Girl and the Graft.

I don’t know whether it was my teacher who narrated the story so well or my mind that actually enacted each and every scene, but I felt deeply connected with the narrative. I gave it another read after coming back home and started looking for some more jewels penned down by Henry. My search finished with A Retrieved Reformation.

The next day, I caught everyone’s attention in my class as I used (catch)phrases from both the stories I had read. That was the day I realized that reading not only helps in improving our communication skills, but also familiarizes us with the workings of the world. From the linguistic point of view, it was my reading habit that brought about my transformation into a viewer of original – and not dubbed – Hollywood movies.

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From that day onward, I started reading on a regular basis. Some of the books I have read include The Alchemist, The Shiva Trilogy, Five Point Someone, The 3 Mistakes of My Life, Godan, Life Is What You Make It, among others. People do drugs, but I find the musky smell of books (with a cup of coffee, of course) no less addictive.

Dheeraj and a road to success charted by books

I also feel that books helped me crack my very first job interview. I was appearing for the position of a Seller Support Executive in Amazon, and, after a brief introduction, the first question they threw at me was if I liked reading. I resisted my urge to say hell yeah, and went for a simple yes, which triggered a brief discussion about the same. We went on from talking about my favorite book to discussing the importance of reading. I fared quite well and eventually bagged the job.

My choice of books is somewhat arbitrary; I read whatever I find interesting, regardless of the genre or language. I read everything from newspapers to magazines to religious books (and even user-manual sort of things!). After all, reading plays a pivotal role in shaping your personality and influencing your thought process.

How Dheeraj Panwar fell in love with books

I would like to repeat a quote by George R. R. Martin (a proud Game of Thrones‘ fan here!):

‘A mind needs books like a sword needs a whetstone, if it is to keep its edge. That is why I read so much.’

I couldn’t have agreed more with it. After all, reading has changed my life for the better – and I know that I’m just one of the billions of people who feel the same way.

Thank you so much, Dheeraj! It is heart-warming to see how books have enriched your personal and professional life.

If you have also had a first-hand experience of the bewitchingly breathtaking world of books and cannot stress enough the role they have played in making you the person you are today, we’d love to hear your story. Click here to know more!