What Got To Me Today? Deliciously smelly books!

In honor of March is Reading Month, I profess to you my love of books. I love reading them and writing them, seeing them, smelling them....yes, smelling them.  It's the smell of a brimming bookstore where the glue is still fresh.  It's the stuffy, musty smell of used bookstores where there is a story behind every story.  It's the combination of books, carpet and heated up computer monitors in the library. Books are delicious!

I like the feel of the pages...even more, the sound a page makes when you turn it.  Or the "whoomp" of a hard cover when you slam it closed after reading the final page. I like the way they stack on my shelf, bedside floor, or are strewn across my son's room.

Speaking of kids titles, there is always that one story that was a favorite of my childhood, The little House by Virginia Lee Burton.  My dad used to read it to me every dental visit, or a new favorite I share with my child like Kiss Goodnight Sam by Amy Hest.  I still have saved, in my top drawer, each of my boys favorite chunky little board books, complete with teeth marks (and my boys are now 7 and 14!).  And speaking of teens, I love it when my teenage son and I read the same mega books, and then break them down into detailed discussions.

I like the anticipation of a new book by a favorite author, so much so its been pre-ordered and you can't wait for the release date.  One like that for me is The Swan Theives by Elizabeth Kostova.  I so, so, so, loved her historical fiction novel The Historian, that I'm just beside myself that I haven't read Swan yet!

I even love cookbooks, with chocolate stains on the pages, or cookies recipes where the pages are a little stuck together from floured and brown sugared fingers.

And with my love of books, comes an appreciation for the electronic type of books like the Kindle.  I don't have one yet, but if ever my career keeps me traveling (it's going to happen!), it would be nice to be able to have several of my favorite titles with me...without having to lug them, knowing my precious, smelly, paper, hard copies are waiting for me at home.

And what about audio books?  I, for one, have a hard time reading in the car...makes my eyes all dizzy.  A good audio book takes the "long" part out of "long ride", and there are a ton of books the entire family would like, especially mysteries.

So...do you get me?  I love books.  Paper versions are my favorite, but any version will do in a pinch. I know there are others who feel as I do about books.  I also know there are many who don't get it at all, who read only newspapers and web reports.  That's good too, especially for informational purposes, I just mourn for the adventures you are missing.

If you've got any faves out there you'd like to share, please leave a comment below. I'm always looking for recommendations of books people think are worth reading.  But really, in some way , to someone, aren't they all worth reading?