I was born among books. I remember seeing colorful, boring (boring for a five-year-old means books sans any illustrations or pictures) books around the house during the formative years of my childhood. Thick and thin paperbacks and hardbound books kept me constant company. That is why it should come over as no surprise that I grew up loving reading.
As a teenager, I once had to accompany my cousin to an exam hall. There, I had to spend about three to four hours siting in a small room meant for all the parents and guardians. I had carried a paperback whose name I do not recall anymore. It must have been a racy thriller of sorts, considering the bleeding red lips all over its cover. About thirty minutes into the book, I looked up sensing some commotion around me.
The ladies, who were sitting at about an arm’s length, broke into peals of laughter. Looking at my puzzled face, one of them bothered to explain that they had been trying in vain to initiate a conversation with me for the last few minutes. I smiled, acknowledging their accusation as true and got back to reading. Little did I know then that reading was not only improving my grammar and vocabulary, but also my concentration and imagination.
Crime thrillers, science fiction and romance have been my favorite genres. I have always been an admirer of fantasy. You could even call me an escapist for my unabashed love for fiction. Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice and Jude Deveraux’s A Knight in Shining Armor have been my favorite classics since forever. While the reputation of the sophisticated language of Pride and Prejudice is every bit true (keep a dictionary handy), its every line, dripping with witty sarcasm and slow romance, makes it absolutely worth the effort. Time-travel romances are probably not very widely read, but A Knight in Shining Armor checks off every requirement on my ideal fantasy novel – humor, time travel, romance between people separated by centuries, and a dashing medieval knight in a shining armor. Yeah, there is something about knights that women cannot seem to resist!
After I got a job and moved to a different city, the daily grind took away much of my reading time. In fact, I feel insanely envious of people who manage to read thirty-odd books a year. However, even as I grapple with time-management issues, I just cannot get enough of books. Should I read up on time management? Or maybe it is time to travel back to the medieval castles, dragons, and romance once again.
A NOTE TO OUR READERS
In addition to an avid reader, Sompara also happens to be an enthusiastic writer. Check out her Freelancer profile and blog here.
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