Getting Emotional

Why do we read?

Maybe it's to be educated, to escape, for recreation, for enjoyment, because your mother makes you, or because your teacher makes you. These are only a few reasons why an individual may pick-up a book.

I am part of a book club. There have been good books and bad books among those we've read. The last two have been exceptional books. These books, though different in story, still had something in common. They both touched me in a huge emotional way.

Galway Bay by Mary Pat Kelly made me sob. It reached down, pulled out my guts, and made me fall in love with the characters. When tragedy happened, I was there, feeling it, seeing it, and smelling it. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows kept me chuckling until the end when my laughter deafened my husband who was sitting beside me.

So here is my question. Did the strong emotional reactions I had while reading these books have anything to do with the fact they are now two favorites? I believe so. We as human beings were created to feel, and when we feel, a strong connection is made between us and a book. Whether the feelings are good or bad, the connection is there.

So think about the books you love. Do you have an emotional connection with them? Just a thought.