This summer I wanted to put my summer break to good use and find a new way to relax… without using Netflix. I know, crazy right? During the school year I find myself extremely busy with assignments, activities, and friends that I have no time to indulge in a great book. Therefore this summer I chose to read as much as possible and set a goal of reading 10 books. In 2016 I had only read 4 books for fun, so this was going to be a major adjustment and slight challenge. I ended up passing my goal. I read 15 books in just one summer. I made a plan to read every day and somehow worked my way through books of various styles and genres. Often times when I would finish a book I would post a snapchat on my story and because of this a lot of people started to notice how often I was reading.
My friends would text measking:
“Can you recommend a book to me!?”
To which I always replied:
“What kind of books do you like?”
Followed by a list of 10 books I think they might like.
I was receiving these texts about three times each day…
Due to this, I decided to start an Instagram where I could post the books I love and the books I am currently reading for my friends to look at and get recommendations. Within one month of starting the account I have over 120 followers. While I am walking on Comm Ave people constantly stop me to talk about books or my Instagram account. If I never started the account, a lot of people would not have known about my love for books and wouldn’t have been able to reach out to me about it.
To my surprise I still receive many texts from my fellow students telling me about books they just read OR about their experience reading one of the books I recommended on my account. My point to this is if you’re interested in something: share it! Chances are you will inspire others to share their interest and you will also find common ground with many new people.
If you’re looking for a book right now these are the top 10 books I am constantly recommending:
- The Interestings by Meg Wolitzer
- Dark Places by Gillian Flynn
- From Scratch by Allen Salkin
- The Rules Do Not Apply by Ariel Levy
- Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë
- Small Great Things by Jodi Picoult
- Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
- Eight Hundred Grapes by Laura Dave
- A little Love Story by Roland Merullo
- Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
Follow my Instagram account @lauras.library to see my posts throughout the year!
