I was once a math whiz.

R: Reading

For as long as I can remember, I have loved to read.  I started reading at a very early age.  In fact, my parents would often have me read aloud in front of their friends to "show off."  I'm sure many parents do this... especially with their first child, which I am.  And then there were also the times when Dad taught me the answers to complicated math problems when I was a toddler and then would take me out to dinner with his friends and convince them I was some sort of math genius.  Funny that I turned out to be so untalented at that particular subject.

I started out reading hundreds and hundreds of Looney Tunes comic books when I was about four.  They were my dad's old childhood comics and I devoured them like crazy.  I thought they were so funny.  They were probably what gave me my first love for reading.  I also loved Calvin and Hobbes, even though I didn't always get the jokes as a little girl.  I actually had to get glasses when I was around six or so because the doctor said I read so much!

By the time I was nine or ten, I would typically read a several hundred page book in an afternoon.  I took books everywhere, reading in restaurants and in the car and in church before the service.  I loved going to the library and checking out more than twenty books at a time.  I remember that at first, they tried to convince me not to get so many for fear I wouldn't be able to finish them all... but after a couple of times, they would just laugh and wave me off.  I'm a naturally fast reader, but these days I tend to force myself to read slowly, repeating a page two or three times so I won't devour the book so quickly, especially if it's something I've been waiting to read for a long time!  I want to savor every word.

While I still love to read, I don't read as much anymore.  I often take my Kindle out with me and manage to squeeze in snippets of classic books here and there, but when I'm at home with time to spare, I usually choose to write instead.  When I do decide to sit down and read, unless the book totally captures my attention (and I'm pretty picky. Not many do.), it'll take me quite a while to finish it because I'll become bored or impatient and do something else instead.

My reading list has been piling up over the last few weeks.  I've ordered several books that I can't wait to begin, but it will take me a while to find the time to read them all.  Here's the pile in my room:

"A Stolen Life" by Jaycee Lee Dugard

"Peter Pan" by J. M. Barrie (I actually have read this multiple times, but it's one of my very favorites, so I ordered this special illustrated version the other night.)

"The Gospel According to Lost" by Chris Seay

"Genesis" by Ted Dekker (never published)

"The Help" by Kathryn Stockett

All of the "Harry Potter" books by J.K. Rowling

And then of course there is the big list of books I'd like to re-read for the fun of it, but those are further down on the list of my priorities.

A book I recently finished is "Forbidden" by Ted Dekker and Tosca Lee.  I received a signed copy of "Forbidden" in early June, much to my delight.  When I first discovered that Ted Dekker and Tosca Lee would co-author a tirlogy, I almost had a heart attack.  My two favorite authors writing three books together.  So exciting.  "Forbidden" will be released on September 13, 2011, so stay tuned.  It is phenomenal.  You can pre-order the book right here and I highly recommend you do.

Later today or tomorrow morning I'll post an actual review of "Forbidden."
What are some of your favorite books?