Craving a Good Book

Oh, I ache to sprawl out on a lawn chair to read a great novel. I yearn to curl up in a corner chair and dive into a classic. I dream of lazy days, laying on a blanket on the lawn with a bowl of apples and a juicy novel. I wish, I wish, I wish, I could read a novel right now!

But I can't. I am busy writing my thesis and cannot be distracted with great works of literature and art. I LOVE books, and tend to dive in and get obsessed. I often read books from start to finish in one sitting, if I tend to fall in love. Or, if I can't do that, I'll spend every free moment with book in hand, devouring as much as I can in the time I have to spare.

I miss books! Well, novels. For the past two years I have read books in enormous quantities. I have even read a novel or two. But all of my reading has been focused on my graduate studies and the ultimate thesis. I love everything I read, of course, but it also seemed a bit like work. Reading for school is a duty, a requirement (even if self-subscribed), and something that must be done instead of something that is desired.

I want to read a novel just for the thrill of it, for the pleasure, for the experience. I want to sink into imaginary worlds and fantastic fictional situations. I want to dive into character's lives and leap from page to page as the story bounds ahead. I want to read!

The best chances I might get to dive into a novel or two are through books on CD when I make my weekly drive to Cincinnati, or as I read books aloud to one of the students I tutor. Those opportunities, though not preferred, will have to do for now; until I finish my thesis, at least. The distraction is just too great, and I know if I picked up a novel right now I would read instead of write. And that can't happen!

So I'll wait. I'll listen to books on CD and live vicariously through my student. I'll sample short magazine articles and read snippets here and there from anthologies. And I'll yearn for the day when I can open a full-length novel, thick and heavy with words and stories, and dive in to reading again for the joy of it.