Once a Reader...

As a self-proclaimed "book nerd", I've been a reader for as long as I can remember.

I remember attempting to read Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (we are no longer a JKR supporter in this house) in kindergarten and finally completing it in second grade. After that, I didn't really stop reading - I was always the kid with a book at recess, begging for more time to read before bed, and checking out as many books as possible from the public library.

I went to school to be an English teacher and just wrapped up my fifth and final year as a high school English teacher. I needed to love reading to convince my students to be readers; but, I hit a reading wall after I graduated college - I wanted to read but I couldn't find the motivation to get past a book maybe two for years.

Hitting a reading wall was tough during my COVID quarantine times - like others, I wasn't seeing my students or interacting with them in a normal way so I was incredibly disconnected from the happiest parts of my life. My friends were spread across several cities and states so I was stuck at home in a deep rut I couldn't break out of.

As was the case with so many others, TikTok got me back into reading in summer '21, and I bet you can guess which book it was?

Obviously it was A Court of Thorns and Roses.

We love a troubled heroine, a douchey love interest, and a sarcastic ginger sidekick. I absolutely devoured the series - I'm talking every book, all 2800+ pages in 6 days. After that, I didn't stop.

It's June 24, 2022. Day 174 of the year. I'm currently on my 209th book of the year. The love and obsession is back with a vengeance and I'm eternally grateful. I'm looking forward to this journey.