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What Makes a Book the Book of Your Life
The characteristics of books that can leave an indelible mark on a reader and a writer
“Few things leave a deeper mark on a reader than the first book that finds its way into his heart.” — The Shadow of the Wind, Carlos Ruiz Zafón
Ever since I started to write regularly, I realised that I became a different reader. I’m not just superficially leafing through the pages of a book, I don’t just enjoy the story or root for the heroes and villains, I don’t just read anymore: I absorb. And I absorb with a writer’s mind.
I still devour the characters and soak up the stories, I breathe in the air they breathe out and I hold my breath as they suffer, I laugh when they are happy and I cry when I can’t take it anymore. But it’s not the same passive reading anymore, it’s labour. I analyse and dissect, stories, people, paragraphs, words. I get lost in the flow of chapters, contemplating structure and style.
This made me a lot more critical and picky. It’s not enough to read just any book. Not every story is worth my time. Not every character deserves my attention. All words are not equal.
