A good book can be entertaining, stimulate the imagination or be a great escape

NEW CHAPTER

Put race and politics and religion aside, if you ask me, this world can be divided into two types of people – the readers and the non-readers. One is not better than the other. Different people enjoy different things. But as a self-proclaimed bookworm, I distinctly fall into one of these two categories. The readers.

I love the smell of a bookstore.

I love perusing its shelves, discovering the latest in bestsellers and paperbacks, finding out what is considered a “best read of the summer” and browsing the new releases for fall. I have a Barnes & Noble membership card, an Audible subscription and a Kindle e-reader. I can absorb a good book in any and all formats available.

My life seems better with my nose in a book. And it’s always been that way. In first grade, I won a trophy (the largest trophy I’ve ever won, in fact) for reading the most books of all the children in my grade – 270-plus books in a matter of months.

But as I’ve gotten older, and my life has filled with more daily tasks and greater responsibilities – like two young children – I’ve found less time to read and less quiet to allow me to absorb the words on the page. So, I set a goal. In January, I made a resolution of sorts to get back to reading. I decided that I would carve out the time to read one book per month.

It wasn’t too lofty a goal. One book for approximately every 30 days should be easily achievable. In the 10 months since I set my goal, the results have been so fulfilling. Instead of scrolling Facebook, or pinning to my boards on Pinterest or doling out likes on Instagram, I’ve spent my time enjoying mysteries and memoirs, fiction and non-fiction, stories of love and struggle, and journeys of faith and spiritual awakening.

Twenty-three books in 10 months. More than doubling my original goal of one book a month. Here’s my reading list (so far) for 2016: “Pretty Girls” by Karin Slaughter “The Thing About Jellyfish” by Ali Benjamin “Room” by Emma Donoghue “The Andy Cohen Diaries” by Andy Cohen “When Breath Becomes Air” by Paul Kalanithi “Why Not Me?” by Mindy Kaling “Go Set a Watchman” by Harper Lee “Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil” by John Berendt “The Divine Spark” by Paula D’Arcy “The Art of Racing in the Rain” by Garth Stein “No Longer Safe” by AJ Waines “The Lake House” by Kate Morton “All Fall Down” by Jennifer Werner “Where’d You Go, Bernadette?” by Maria Semple “Confess” by Colleen Hoover “It Was Me All Along” by Andie Mitchell “People Who Eat Darkness” by Richard Lloyd Perry “Beyond Belief ” by Jenna Miscavige Hill “The Nest” by Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeny “Light of the Fireflies” by Paul Pen “The Girls” by Emma Cline “Life and Other Near Death Experiences” by Camille Pagán “In A Dark, Dark Wood” by Ruth Ware As parents, Ty and I have always done a good job of reading to our children each night. But part of my goal for this year has been to show my children that adults can like reading, too. My hope is that if they see me reading, rather than constantly scrolling through my phone, maybe they’ll develop their own love of books that will weave throughout their lives.

Tilly takes after me and has always loved reading. Her second birthday was even a bookworm-themed party where all her friends brought her a new book to stock her home library. Grady, however, is a work in progress and is only lured into the story if the book features one of his top three favorite things: noisy trucks, dinosaurs and/or wild animals.

Just this week, Tilly and I attended her school’s Schoolastic Book Fair. I have the best memories of my own school book fairs, so I always want to take the time to explore new books with my daughter and show her that reading is fun.

And, not to mention, we can give 100 percent of the credit to “Dragons Love Tacos” for Tilly’s willingness to try a taco (without spicy salsa, of course). Here are Tilly’s picks for 2016 (so far):

“Dragons Love Tacos” by Adam Rubin and Daniel Salmieri “Peanut Butter and Cupcake” by Terry Border “The Day the Crayons Quit” by Drew Daywalt “Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus!” by Mo Williems “How to Babysit a Grandma” by Jean Reagan “Julia, Child” by Kyo Maclear “Madeline” by Ludwig Bemelmans “I Wish You More” by Amy Krouse Rosenthal “Sam and Dave Dig a Hole” by Mac Barnett “Duck for President” by Doreen Cronin I guess my point is this: There’s power in reading for the young and the old(ish). Reconnect with your creativity and imagination. Put down your phone, slow down and escape within the pages of a story. Share a laugh with your children. Maybe you’ll be lucky like me, and their books will expand their taste buds as well as their mind.

Stephanie Jordan is a local journalist, marketer and blogger.

Her blog can be found at www.stephanienetherton.blogspot.com, and she can be contacted at stephanienetjordan@gmail.com.