A book is a computer.  A device that contains so much knowledge it just wants people to explore.  The computer and a book can teach you a lot. You can learn new things even if the book is just a Fantasy. There is still lessons that you can learn from it. A book is just another device, another way to learn new things.  I agree with Joe Meno when he says “ a book is actually a place, a place where we, as readers, still have the chance to engage in active imagining, translating word into image, connecting these images to memories, dreams and larger ideas. Television, film, even the stage play, have already been imagined for us, but the book, in whatever form we choose to interact with it, forces us to complete it… books provide us the place to imagine”  With books the author leaves how the book plays out and what the characters look like to your imagination. When you watch movies before you read the book you see the characters and the environment the way the director portrayed it. Reading books also expand your imagination.

                Reading a book on a kindle, ipad, or nook is not the same as holding the actual book in your hand. Although I don’t mind using kindles,ipads and nooks, I prefer the actual book. When I read books I like to flip back through to things I have already read, and if the book has pictures flip back to that too. I like the feeling of being able to flip through things easily.

Q: Do you agree with Victor LaValle when he says “It’s not the book, but the idea of the book” ?

B: I agree but disagree with Victor LaValle, I like the idea of having a book shelf full of books, I like the idea of being able to write in the margins, I like the idea of being able to hold a book in my hands and letting everyone know what I’m reading. But I also feel it is the book not just the idea of it, when Nancy Jo Sales says “There's something about the physicality of a book, the way it looks and feels and even smells” I agree with her. Some books have really cool covers that you can feel and aren’t just a flat piece of paper. There is something magical about just the book.

Why do I read?

Why do I read? I read because sometimes sitting in the bed and watching the same TV shows over and over again is annoying. Reading gives me joy, when I read I can picture the whole book in my head. I feel like I’m in that world and my imagination has the power to imagine the characters and the scenes how I want to and you don’t get that when you watch TV, everything is decided for you. When I read really good books like the Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins I forget I’m reading because it’s so descriptive. I feel like I’m watching a movie and the TV screen is my mind. I read because holding a book in my hand and cheering on the characters gives me a rush and makes me all giddy inside. Reading is fun and exciting.  I read because it gives me something to talk about with my friends and family and causes discussions. It gives me knowledge. I learn new things when I read and when I learn new things I get excited and want to apply them to everything in my life. It’s also is a pastime I read if I’m bored, tired or if I just want to. That’s why I read.