Day 60 - Today I am grateful for....a good book

My friend Vicki gave me a new book for Christmas.

I opened it up yesterday and haven't been able to put the bloody thing down since.

I love books. I love everything about them. The look of them in my bookcase. The smell. The feel. The thrill of the stories. The ability to lie down with a good book and get lost in it.

When my Husband left I ploughed through the entire Twilight Saga in 3 weeks. It was my escapism into a fantasy world. And I'll openly admit to now being a Twi-geek. It helped me when I needed it and I am not ashamed of it.

My Mum has always been a reader. She's a shocker. I've never seen anyone anihilate a book like her. No sooner has she opened it, than it's finished. I, on the other hand, have never been a huge reader. A book has to really grab me in the first couple of pages or I'm done with it.

I'm not overly intellectual or even particularly smart. I didn't ace my OP score or even stick university out until the bitter end. I'm a simple and humble Property Manager. But I can read and I'm so thankful for that. I can't imagine the struggle that illiteracy would bring into someone's life.

My first trip overseas, I hardly read at all on the planes. I just watched the in-house movies, talked with my Ex-Husband or slept. The second time however, I read like 4 thick books. It was great. But then I got home to reality and there just never seemed to be enough time.

I really love reading about real life / non-fiction / true stories. I love books about animals and favourites of mine include Marley & Me, Dexter and A Lion called Christian - all of which are true stories about various animals. If it has an animal in it, then I'm pretty much sold. I also love thrillers and murder mysteries. I hate science-fiction. Try as I might, I will never be able to get into Lord of the Rings etc. I could never really get into Harry Potter either, though I like the concept. I've got loads of self-help books to get my out of my misery, none of which have ever been particularly helpful. I guess with books, you get out of them what you put in.

But more recently, since I've decided to de-complicate my life, I've decided I'm going to read more. I've got loads of books in my bookshelf that are untouched. And really, if I'm honest, what the hell else have I got to do? Nothing.

So today, I'm grateful for my new book and the release it has given me.....