Read It and Weep

... or laugh, or snort, or gasp, or ... whatever.

I decided yesterday that when I do write my memoirs (and you know I will, and you know there's a possibility that if I know you, you'll probably be in them, and you should PROBABLY be slightly alarmed about that) they will be titled what one of my favorite people (you know who you are) called me yesterday:

Bombshell Bibliophile

And yes, okay, I aspire to bombshell-ness, but the bibliophile part? I've got that down. Because, you see, I have a small book problem.

And by "small" I mean: "enormous."

Five symptoms of my book addiction:

1) Intellectually, I understand that there are people who don't like to read. However, emotionally? I don't understand it. It's like they're from a culture that is so different from mine that I can't comprehend it, and I give them the side-eye. I don't MEAN to. But I can't help it. HOW DO YOU NOT LIKE TO READ? It's the best thing EVER.

2) If I love a book and I recommend it to someone, and they don't love it as well? It makes me really sad. As an example, I love Jane Austen. LOVE JANE AUSTEN. I loaned Pride and Prejudice out to someone thinking, "Oh boy, someone else gets to love Jane Austen too now! And we can talk about Jane Austen and it will be awesome!"

She didn't love it. Which is not to say she felt kind of "meh" about it and more to say ... she HATED it.

It made me so sad. I understand this is dumb, and that not everyone has the same tastes, but I get so excited when I love a book that when I share it with someone and they don't like it? I feel like I'm being judged and found wanting because I form an emotional connection with books that I love.

Which brings us to:

3) I frequently like characters in books more than I like people I meet in life. This sounds weird when I say it, but hear me out. Characters in novels are constant. Actual people are shifty. I can trust that when I open To Kill A Mockingbird, Miss Maudie is still going to be awesome and Atticus is still going to be the most sage, amazing, human dad ever. I love that.

4) Getting lost in a book is the best thing ever. When something is well written? I can disappear inside it. That sense of living inside the text is one of my favorite things in the world.

5) I have an e-reader and I love it, but not as much as I love actual, physical books. And oh, do I love books. I love the paper. I love the way they smell (don't judge). I love the weight of them, and the act of turning a page. I love having a shelf (or two, or seven) full of books. One of my favorite words is "library" -- a whole building? FULL OF BOOKS? It's like heaven. (and libraries ALWAYS smell good. Always.)

There's nothing better than a good book. Nothing at all.

What's your favorite book?