Musings On Books

Dixya Poudel

Every now and then I read a book that evokes oodles of emotions. Often there is a feeling of joy but at other times, I want to chuck the book to the wall. After investing a great amount of time into a book especially a novel, it can be infuriating to find an ending that is quite lacklustre. Hence, the outrage! However, a quick glance at Goodreads or Bookstagram lets me know that I am not alone. Fellow readers too pour out their frustrations adding to the deluge of reviews on the internet. 

It is astonishing how an inanimate object such as a book can move readers to tears of joy or sadness, elation, anger or even put them to sleep! Love it or hate it but a book can spur myriad different feelings which is why it continues to endure. Since the invention of the printing machine, books haven’t gone out of fashion. Even before printed books, scholars wrote by hand with a quill and a paper to record events for posterity. It is through such recorded writing that we know about the ancient history. 

People have different tastes on their choice of books. Some like to read novels especially in holidays, speeding from one novel to another in search of escapism and thrill. Others love more serious books such as non-fiction from autobiography and memoirs to history. Together, fictions and non-fictions which are known as prose continue to amass a great number of readers. On the other hand, there are those who read poetry with an utmost devotion. Whatever the taste in reading, it has a special place in the heart of people as books continue to win readers across all ages. 

As such, readers are entitled to their opinions and thoughts when it comes to books. One swift look at social media and the internet, and one can see how varied readers’ opinions can be on the same book. For one it might be a fun read but for another it can be quite dull. And there are books leveled contentious due to their subject material and theme. Many novels have been banned throughout time. Then there are classics that endure the test of time, despite the stretch of decades and centuries. People still read works of Henry James, George Eliot, Jane Austen, etc. with much enthusiasm, pouring over words and sentences while trying to place the theme and meaning behind such great classics. 

Whether reading by the pool looking for escapism or studying for required course in college, books are an important part of the world. We love to talk about books in book clubs, in classroom discussions and in Facebook messages or Instagram DMs. Almost all parts of the modern world see writers writing books and readers reading them dedicatedly. It is a special bond - the one between a writer and a reader. One cannot exist without the other. Similarly, one fuels and sustains the other.

As Louis L’Amour says, “For one who reads, there is no limit to the number of lives that may be lived, for fiction, biography, and history offer an inexhaustible number of lives in many parts of the world, in all periods of time.” And despite being a mere inanimate object, a book keeps bringing forth advancements.