bookaholic

Memories of my childhood have become quite hazy now and I hardly remember who introduced me to books- my aunt who was an English professor (she changed her profession recently), or my parents who are bibliophiles. Either way, at an early age, I became a bookaholic; no, I wouldn’t call my child self a bibliophile because I did not love books greatly or collect them. I read books to get lost inside the adventures of the Famous Five, the Secret Seven and the Five Find-Outers, to allow my imaginative daydreams form a sort of visual through Enid Blyton’s words. I explored castles and caves, rode across great moors, brandished sticks with thieves, robbers and kidnappers, frolicked around in the beach, dug my way through mountains of macaroons, butter scones, tarts and pies (although I had no idea what they actually were)- while swaying in a tyre swing seat in a small town in Assam. I traveled to places that I never knew existed and learnt words that were sophisticated to my ears; I found great relish in telling my friends about them, who had not yet been initiated into this utterly delightful world. From an extremely talkative and restless child, I transformed into a quiet one, who was content to just read books. Unfortunately, books were not readily available in the town I lived in. I looked forward to the book fair held annually and would visit it every day. Luckily, my father never hesitated before spending money on books and hence, by the end of the book fair, I had enough books to last me for a year. Just barely, though because I tended to read quickly and would end up reading the same books over and over again.

The bibliophile within me grew to an extent that it overwhelmed me. From ‘Famous Five, ‘Malory Towers’ and ‘Nancy Drew’, I traveled into the world of classics with ‘Pride and Prejudice’, ‘Around the World in Eighty Days’. The further I got sucked into the literary world, the more convinced I became that my future was revolved around literature and writing. Thankfully, my parents did not argue against me and allowed me to just follow my heart. Hence, here I am- a First Year English Literature student.

Although I have delved into various genres, romance and historical fiction continue to be favourites with me. Recently I started reading classical European literature (thanks to the DU syllabus) and currently, I’m hooked on to it. Luckily for me, there are so many books to read that I become excited every time I my mind wanders to my reading list. Delightful! Add a cup of coffee to it, what with the winter arriving.