The Best i can offer

ok get this; Many a time i've had arguments and rows with my brother over why i read so much. Undoubtedly, reading books costs money, unless you borrow them from the local library. I, however, like to own my own books and know that i can read and re- read them at my own leisure. Apart from the cost, the time i spend reading also seems to bother him at times. Cutting the long story short, most of the time the questions are: Why do i read? and What do i get out of it? At times i've been unable to answer him. Recently, though, i found the answer.

It came to me as i was watching the film version of a book that i'd read. "Freedom Writers". The story about the english teacher who goes to a school and transforms her class from ghetto gangsters into freedom fighters. The teacher, Ms. Gruwell,(known as Ms. G), introduces the story of Anne Frank to the class. She introduces the idea of understanding into the lives of her students, through stories such as Anne's, and of the trials that Anne went through during WWII. When they read of what she went through, and how she coped, they begin to see that they aren't alone in the world. There are plenty of people "out there" who are caught in a rift of life and can't get out. Some of them lived before their time. Some of them are in their elderly years and still live with the pain. Nonetheless, the students learn that understanding has no age limit. Nor does it care from what part of the globe you're from, or live in.

What really caught my attention the most about this story was that, Anne Frank was before the time of these students. yet, her story was able to relate to them so well, that by the end of it, Anne, (God Rest Her Soul), changed the attitude of the entire class. Not only on the collective basis, but on the individual basis, more importantly. Anne's pain, suffering and trials, and emotions knew no boundaries. Her story reached out and pulled the class into her world. Immediately the class was changed.

This idea of people who lived long before my time, writing their story, or a story which includes fragments of their personal experiances, to which i can relate is also explored in another piece that i've read. This, however, is a play; "The History Boys". Mr. Hector describes this very same ability in the best way possible. Reading literature, or what each person considers to be literature, is, in a way, based on the ability of the author, who may have died centuries ago, to reach out, across the ages, and pull you into their world.

When i read, this happens to me. I'm taken from my world and thrust into the world and imagination of the author. Just like the Freedom Writers, sometimes things happen in these books that i don't like. They only act as the reality that we all face: not everything goes the way we want it to. I can't begin to imagine what Anne Frank went through, being cooped up in a hide- out for so long, only to be betrayed and caught in the end anyway. However, after reading her story, i don't think i'd want to. As Hector put it in "The History Boys", a hand reached out, Anne's hand, and pulled me into her world.

So there's my answer. I read because i admire the ability some author's have. The ability to tell their story, yet it's told in such a way, or includes certain themes, that transcend the parameters of time and space, and retain relevance in today's society. Charles Dickens' "Great Expectations" is a perfect example. A selection of Shakespeare's plays. Anne Frank's story. Even J.K. Rowling's "Harry Potter". The techniques of the author's captures me and draws me in every time i pick up a book by any of these author's, and more. Not only do i get the thrill of the read, but immerse myself so completely, that time and space have no boundaries and meaning. Anything's possible.

I guess that's what i look forward to when i read a book. The knowing that i will, again, immerse myself in the pages of the book, and the words will come to life. Writing my own novel, my first novel actually, i often catch myself out thinking about ways i can make the story better, rather than just writing it. Wanting to have the same effect on my readers, i begin to check and double check, even triple check the work that i do.

I don't think it's wrong to want to be good from the very first go. Although, it definitely takes time and practice. I guess this is one of those things that makes writing an art form. It varies in style and technique, depending on time and place. Moreover, it ranges from total rubbish to pure literature. Although, even the lowest form of writing has more worth than my criticism designating as such. To say that when i read i am merely thrust into a foreign land is a gross understatement. I am not just thrust into the strange land that is the imagination of the author, i am rocked to my core! Evey time, there is something new to pick up on. Some minor detail that i missed the first time. I read so much because of the ecperiance, the adventure, the learning and the knowledge that i gain. As i said, even the lowest form of writing has more worth than my criticism labelling it such.