Books!!

140 odd posts and I still have not written about my most favorite thing in the whole world! Books! How can that be? Thus, here it is! The love affair began when I must have just started learning reading. I was introduced to the world of comics -- not the high class Archie or even Tinkle Digest , mind you! The comics I started reading (maybe at the age of 7 or 8) were Raj Comics .. where there were murders, ghosts and all that works. I distinctly remember two comics. "Khooni Khanjar" , which was the part two of some other comic book I don't really remember, but it involved a boy getting murdered and his ghost residing in this khanjar which would fly across rooms, avenge his murder and actually talk. The other one was Pret Uncle (like bhoot-pret) which had a young girl being helped by a ghost obviously. Right! This was what I read when I was hardly growing up! Thank God, somehow, even miraculously, my seven year old mind did not get influenced by these blood thirsty stories.

It was only later that I moved on to Pinky, Raman, Chacha Choudhary and another fat aunty comic book whose name I am forgetting. It was probably in sixth standard that I was introduced to Enid Blyton. Undoubtedly the major reason why I started loving books. I also have to thank Supriya Ma'am for introducing me to Blyton. She was our English teacher and by far my most favorite teacher ever. I remember she fleetingly told us about the story of "The Faraway tree". Sixth standard was also the time we were allowed to issue books from the school library. I had already been intrigued by the Faraway Story and obviously the first book I rented was exactly that. I had a second source of books. BHEL senior club's library-- the place where I borrowed my first Mills and Boon. Yes!! 6th Standard! That's right! I had discovered my love for reading. I was reading in the bus, in free periods, at home, standing in the kitchen ... basically every where. Anyway, This started a string of events. Dad took membership at the British Library and then the world was my oyester. Soon, anyplace with books became my favorite place in the world. In Bhopal, it was the reading room at Senior club (Yup!! a reading room ---the luxury I tell you!! ) When I was living in Old Airport road, Oxford book store at Leela's was the best place in town because they had a Cha Bar and now, here in JP Nagar, there is a Crossword with an adjoining CCD! (Yayy!! God loves me!!)

Now one day, cleaning some of her old stuff, mom found a copy of Jane Eyre. I obviously HAD to read it and thus, Jane Eyre ended up being my favorite book ever. Soon, I realized books had become my sanctuary. I was reading when I was happy or when I was sad. I was reading when I was angry or when I didn't want to see anyone's face. It continues till now. Sadly now I don't have a membership in any library. Hence, I end up buying books and guiltlessly so. I have definitely moved on to reading better books. I even have a few classics in my kitty. But I still devour on chick lits and some other here and there books -- and I enjoy them all equally!.

I end by quoting my most favorite line about books -- "They are my world, both real and Imaginary"