Reading and Writing on Break and on Campus
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Reading and Writing on Break and on Campus

By Emily

Reading for pleasure is something I did voraciously from age 5 to age 18. Actually, some time in high school I stopped reading books that weren’t assigned, but I think I only really noticed that I had stopped reading after a few years in college. I read the news online non-stop (and if “twitter” counts as “the news online” that previous statementis not hyperbole). I read assigned books and articles for my humanities classes. I just don’t read books that I find on a shelf and think look interesting. I have about five articles bookmarked- lists of “15 best books coming out this Spring”- all the way back to 2014, that I still haven’t read anything off of. Even in my downtime at school I’ve been ferociously binge-watching Netflix shows, not reading. This isn’t because I don’t like it anymore- when I do manage to pick up a book, I devour it just as quickly as I used to. I don’t know why my default time-suck activities are now Netflix and browsing the internet, but that’s where we are. Over winter break I decided to change that a little.

I started by following a few “bookstagram” pages on Instagram. Have you ever run into those people on Instagram explore who have entire pages devoted to aesthetically pleasing images of books, lattes, candles, fuzzy socks, and brisk autumn leaves/snow? I’m talking about those people. Those readers/writers/photographers who make reading books look like the most aspirational activity on the planet. As a horrifically terrible consumer (someone who has purchased athletic apparel because of ads she’s seen online of people who look nothing like her doing yoga she cannot dream of doing), I knew this genre of media would inspire me to get reading. And it did! But I also bought a pair of thigh-high cozy socks and a scented candle, because I’m a terrible person.

I also started using my Kindle again. I brought the Kindle with me to Edinburgh when I was studying abroad last year, but I hadn’t really picked it up since. I took a recommendation from one of my new “bookstagram” buddies (she doesn’t know I exist, I just follow her online), and downloaded a new murder mystery novel from the New York Public Library’s ebook collection. I happened to get a library card over the Summer when I was interning in NYC, and it turns out the NYPL has an extensive ebook collection, so I can now read pretty much anything on my Kindle for free! I downloaded that first novel and ate it up in five hours. I seriously sat down on my bed and didn’t get up again until I had finished it. I was very pleasantly surprised to learn that this book was the first in a seven-book series, and I’ve been making my way through the rest of the novels ever since. It turns out it’s pretty easy to sit down and read when you have the promise of an incredible story, a free book, and an empty Saturday (classes haven’t really ramped up yet so I’m not yet spending all day every day doing homework, so I spent yesterday doing nothing but reading and eating. It was wonderful.)

I really hope I can manage my time well enough to keep up with my re-discovered hobby one the term really gets going. I bet with enough planning, I can figure it out. This is the next book on my shelf, and I’ll keep you posted with how far I get!

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