Addicted to Reading

I love to read. Really, really, love to read. When I was young, my mom used to ponder the fact that, as a public school teacher, she was constantly forbidding me, her own daughter, to read! Sounds odd, but she would only do this when I had, for example, gone upstairs to clean my room and become distracted by a book ... or spent an hour reading the newspaper instead of doing the dishes ... or was sidetracked from pouring my brother a bowl of cereal because I was reading the back of the cereal box. You get the picture.

I have a true sister-soul-mate in this addiction. My husband's brother's wife, whom I love, is an avid book-addict, too. We share books and ideas constantly and both suffer from reading-induced insomnia. She told a story recently of starting a book before bed and getting so engrossed in it that she didn't realize how much time had gone by until her husband woke and said it was almost time to wake up ... the next day! Yes, this is the extent of our affliction.

It seems that I have birthed another addict in the family as well. My eldest son, now in the 4th grade, shows all the signs of addiction. His teachers have resorted to banning him from books in the classroom! Again, sounds odd. But when he doesn't complete an assignment, forgets to take his spelling test, or misses the fact that his classmates have all left for lunch because he is reading a book, drastic measures are necessary.

At home, even, I have had to 'ground' him from books. He can easily live without his Nintendo DS, playing Wii, or riding his bike with the neighborhood kids, but take away reading privileges and he snaps to attention. It's crazy.

I tend to do a lot of reading during deployments. Sleeping alone provides lots of time to read for me. It's not that I read to go to sleep; in fact, I have to stop myself from reading in order to go to sleep. But I do enjoy it so much and don't feel guilty reading at night when Hubby's away.

I just added a new widget to my blog ... if you're a reader, too, here are the books I love and am reading now. I tend to get stuck on one author or theme for awhile then change to something else, only to get 'stuck' again. I love Philippa Gregory ... her books on Tudor England are some of my favorites.

I have also read several of the 'teen' series and loved them, too! I read my first Harry Potter book while teaching 7th graders (when the books first came out) just to understand the fascination with them. I then had to read them all, of course, and did enjoy them. I held out longer on the 'Twilight' series and refused to participate in such a silly theme. I mean, vampires? Really? But eventually I acquiesed ... and loved them all too! A friend even suggested the "Sookie Stackhouse" series a while back and I've read them all, too, and enjoyed them in a 'guilty pleasure' kind of way.

Anyway ... hope you enjoy the "good reads" widget and decide to share some of your favorites, too! When I finish the latest Philippa Gregory book, The White Queen, I'll be looking for a new book or series to start!