Hello World!

Books have defined me as a person for as long as I can remember. During the summer my mom wouldn't tell me that I had to read half an hour a day before I could go play outside--she'd tell me that I had to go outside without a book for at least a half hour a day. I guess I can blame my grandma for this. She was an elementary school librarian when I was a young child, so for as long as I can remember tripst to Grandma's house meant delving into her library. Although I've grown a lot (both physically and mentally) since those days, books still define me.

Every book I've read in my life has played a formative role in making me the person I am today. Some though, have played a bigger role than others. Little Women is one. I don't know how many times I've read this book, but I always love it. At different times in my life I've identified with each of the sisters. At times I feel like the tom-boyish Jo who barrels through life and through books; at other times I feel like the shy Beth who lives to make home a more pleasant place for everyone.

Right now though, I feel like Meg. I'm the oldest of five children, and I feel a responsibility to be an example to the others. I'm trying to balance becoming my own person, with still functioning as a member of a family that's 1,038 miles away (and yes that's an accurate number). I love the nice things in life, but I'm living on a student's budget and trying to save money for my future. Most of all, I'm waiting for my John Brooke...

I made a goal that this summer I would try to read at least one new book a week. Fiction, non-fiction, religious, classics, juvenile, adult... I want to read it all. This blog is my contribution, as small as it may be, to the world of literary studies. I'm not setting out to bore the world with a literary analysis of every book I read, but rather to tell about how each book that I read this summer touches me, and maybe, just maybe, you'll fall in love with reading too.