Bookish

The summertime reminds me of books. I love to read. Everything from the feel and smell of the paper to the little black letters dotted across the page mesmerizes me. I read a lot more in the summertime than I do in the winter. I like to sit on my patio, have a cigarette, and read. My favorite summer memory is going up to the Poudre Canyon and reading on a rock by the river while Bobaloo fished.

The first book I remember reading with my mom was Big Bird Follows the Signs which was a captivating little story about Big Bird getting Prairie Dawn’s cello to her concert on time and the importance of reading signs. I remember how my mom’s voice sounded when we came to a sign in the book. She would annunciate and heighten the word, STOP! GO! THIS WAY! or whatever the signs happened to say. Sometimes she would make hand motions to add a little pizzazz to the story.

My dad was never a big reader, but I remember him sitting down to read me Ramona and Her Father. We sat on the couch and took turns reading the pages in the oh-so-grown-up chapter book. Do you remember Ramona Quimby? I loved her and the overconfidence she radiated. I secretly wished I could be that bold.

I lived next to three girls around the same age as me growing up and their dad Steve would take us to the library every once in a while. For my birthday they even gave me a library bag. I would always check out more books than I could possible read by the due date. I was afraid I would run out of books and always wanted to save the best ones for last.

In high school I would skip school to drive to the library and read what I felt like reading. T.S. Eliot, Edith Wharton, and Daniel Quinn filled my brain. I wanted to be a poet. I wanted to eat, sleep, and breathe books. Then at some point, I got a life.

These days I read when I can, when the spirit moves me to. I have a list of classic literature I am working on reading before I die. I cannot wait for long summer days to read while Bobaloo fishes or to lie in the sun and finish up a novel over a weekend.

With the approaching warm weather, I could use some good suggestions. What are you reading?