A world without
books … would be like living in black and white.
How many of you
remember black and white televisions? Okay, you’re probably not as old as I am.
So, how many of you have watched a vintage film, such as that Christmas
classic: It’s a Wonderful Life? It’s an amazing film, and the grimy
black and white film perfectly captures the harrowing desperation of the
Depression Era. Can you imagine what it would look like in color?
How about
another classic film: The Wizard of Oz. The majority of the film is
presented in black and white, until we reach that climatic moment when the they
are in the City of Oz and the film bursts into vibrant color and the entire
film seems to explode with vitality.
In my mind, that
is the perfect before and after of a world with and without books.
In fact, reading
the original series of books that comprised The Wizard of Oz, is one of
my favorite childhood memories. It was the first time in my life that I
experienced the sensation of becoming so immersed in a book that when I came up
for air I physically felt as if I’d been transported back from the land of Oz.
It was truly a magical experience.
I had a similar
experience when I read Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia
Marquez and experienced the magical realism for the first time. Through
his incredible storytelling, I experienced a South American worldview in a way
that even a trip to South America could not capture.
Imagine a world
without books? Impossible.
Books not only
convey information, they are a great a great socio-economic equalizer. Decades
before I stood before an original Degas in the Musee D’Orsay in Paris, I read a
book about Degas and looked at pictures of his famous ballerina paintings as a
child, from my modest home in Florida.
Though I never
studied Philosophy in university, I enjoyed a survey course of the world’s
great philosophers, while enjoying the incredible story of a young girl doing
the same, in Sophie’s World.
Books enrich my
religious beliefs, lift me up when I’m feeling blue, and offer a delightful
escape when I need a vacation but can’t afford to leave the house. They enrich
my life by introducing me to people and places that I might never experience.
And best of all, they convey ideas that enrich my view of the world around me.
What are your favorite book-ish memories?
Guest post by Suzanne Anderson
