How I Became a Bookworm

Originally published July 13, 2011, updated August 14, 2020

The Growing Up Years and Books

Earlier in my life, there was no way I’d call myself a bookworm, although I’d always wanted to be one. During my younger years, I did not enjoy reading but I loved books. I remember sitting on the floor at my grandmother’s house being mesmerized and a little scared by the pictures in the 3D version of Goldilocks and the Three Bears. I remember loving Tales from AESOP which my kids read today. Later in my upper elementary years, it was The Babysitters Club and Sweet Valley Twins. I didn’t read a lot of chapter books growing up, maybe just a handful. My attention span was short, reading didn’t come easy and I simply liked to do other things.

Our home was always full of books. That fed my adoration even though I didn’t read all of them, I looked at the pictures, I got excited when new books arrived and I loved being read to. I remember spending hours gluing little note card pockets onto the inside back covers of picture books to create our very own library. It was either 5th or 6th grade when I worked at the elementary school library. It gave me such a thrill to stamp the return date in those books and interact with the patrons.

A few noteworthy things I remember reading in high school were Romeo and Juliet, To Kill a Mockingbird and Beowolf.

Higher Education and Books

I read what I needed to in order to get by but honestly, I didn’t finish many books. For me, it seemed optional when a teacher assigned reading. Sometimes it was, sometimes it was not. Either way, I made fine grades, understood the content and graduated.

During my last year of college, I student taught under a 3rd-grade teacher who was crazy in love with reading. She was so fired up about it you couldn’t help but catch the excitement. She would draw the kids in with fascinating read-alouds. She was always raving about some new book she was reading and took her job of teaching children to read fluently very seriously. She was such an inspiration to me.

From that point on, I started to be more interested in books. I might have read one or two a year for entertainment but that was more than before. Once I started graduate school I realized I better step up my reading game or I was going to fall far behind. I did and it paid off but I still wasn’t reading much for pleasure mostly because of all the required reading for class.

Married Life and Books

My husband, knowing how I longed to be labeled as a book worm, created a system that encouraged me to read. I appreciate how my husband helps me be a better person and encourages me to go after my personal goals.

The system went a little something like this: If I read a whole book within a certain time frame money was rewarded. cold. hard. cash. Of course, the length of the book determined how much moola. Also, he usually set a time limit. If the book was not finished within the time span no money was awarded. I think I got $5 for my first book.

That may not seem like much but five bucks can purchase a lot if you think about it. For instance, a special trip to your favorite coffee shop! Also, we live on a budget, which means there is never any money that is not assigned to something. Of course, I have “blow money” to spend on whatever but a little extra cash never hurt a girl. It was a difficult process for me but once I had that first five-dollar bill in hand, I knew I could do it again. Being the bargainer that I am I usually could squeeze out another week into my time frame or an extra dollar added to my reward. Over time Brent started offering less and less as a reward. Now I can say I read out of pure joy. Although, secretly I wish I could still get some money out of it.

My Secret to Becoming a Book Lover

Finally, I realized the reason why I was not reading much. It was because I wasn’t reading books I really liked. I didn’t discover my true love for books until my thirties.

I really like fiction. Historical fiction is one of my favorites. Originally my husband was not a fiction fan. He thought it a waste of time. He only read non-fiction; learning something to improve his life, be inspired, etc. I on the other hand get so much delight out of reading stories, hearing about character’s lives, their struggles and triumphs. There is just something about the way an author describes things, takes you to different times and places, opens people’s lives and thoughts to you that I find very intriguing.

I have since started to love non-fiction books and Brent has started to read novels. It’s so funny how we have changed and influenced each others reading preferences over time.

The Freedom to Not Finish a Book

I once had a co-worker that loved reading. She would always have a new book in hand. When I ask her what type of books she read she would say, “I read anything!” I was so freed by hearing her say this. I guess because I felt like there was a certain type of book I was expected to read even if I didn’t love it.

That freedom inspired me to try out all types of books. If I come across one I don’t like I simply put it down and say, “This is not for me.” I’m not in school so there’s no one telling me I have to finish, so I don’t.

So much freedom!

Book Recommendations

Here are some books that I enjoyed and made $5 for finishing back in my early 30’s.

It helps so much that I married a reader. Fairly often we have family reading night after dinner. Everyone grabs a book and we all sit next to each other and read. You might be the only one in your family that wants to spend free time reading, if so, embrace it and talk about the books you read. Who knows someone might get inspired!

By the way, I use the public library and the Libby app for digital check-outs. I prefer to hold and read an actual book but in recent years e-books and audiobooks have become dear to me. You can’t beat the ease of always having a digital book on your phone and the convenience of audiobooks for multi-tasking.

What books have you read recently? Please share, I am always looking for my next book.

You might be interested in some other books I actually read.

If you purchase from a link on this blog a small percentage of the sale may come back to me. You are never charged more for the product. It’s a way to keep this site going and I’m very selective about the things I list. It’s mostly things we already own and love or things I think you would enjoy. Thank you for reading!