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| Photo courtesy of Free Artistic Photos |
In my last post, I mentioned the beautiful stack of new books on my desk. I'm quickly making my way through that pile and experiencing all kinds of reader's bliss in the process. Here's a look at what that means to me:
- Bliss is finding a book that takes your mind off of your own writing for a while.
- Bliss is finding a a book that is so beautifully written, that the minute you read the last word, you turn back to the front and begin reading it again.
- Bliss is discovering a new (to you) author, getting hooked on her books, and not having to wait for her to write more.
- Bliss is having a friend who reads the same books that you do so that you can discuss them when you finish.
- Bliss is reading a book that not only inspires you to be your best, but makes you believe your best is truly possible.
- Bliss is reading a book that makes you feel like someone understands you.
- Bliss is reading a book that makes you feel like you've made new friends.
- Bliss is reading a book that helps you understand more about human nature and how much we all have in common, no matter how great our differences.
- Bliss is reading a book that makes you feel loved for who you are.
- Bliss is reading a book that you think about for days after you finish reading it.
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| Photo courtesy of Free Artistic Photos |
What does your reader's bliss look like and what was the last book that transported you there?
I'm reminded of James Joyce's "Yes I said Yes I will Yes."
ReplyDeleteTo your reader’s bliss- YES.
What a nice post!
ReplyDeleteMy bliss comes from reading language so magically crafted that it's like looking at the masters' paintings in the Louvre.
Ohhhh... I love this!!!!! Gosh, I agree so much. One of my fav's is having friends to discuss books with... it's so much more fun to scream at a part with another person who loves those characters as much as you do! :D
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing this :)
This is lovely, Ruth. My bliss is a book that transports me to a place I love so much I don't want to leave it.
ReplyDeleteGreat post! My reader's bliss is all of the above, and also one of those books that keeps you turning pages, that you can't put down, and yet you love so much you don't want it to end!
ReplyDeleteSounds like you have a lot of reasons to be blissed out right now! Yay! I want to churn through my TBR pile(s) too!
ReplyDeleteRuth, every point you've mentioned is spot-on. Bliss is when a character makes me feel her loneliness, sorrow, loathings, defiance, yearnings, hopes and self-acceptance ~ it's as if I'm living a life I don't have.
ReplyDeleteAnd Bliss is when we meet new people who share our fave authors and books. (This is more difficult than it sounds. I was so glad to make a new friend on GoodReads last year, and we could talk about Joyce Carol Oates and Ray Bradbury. One out of a hundred or more people I know is still a good stat. :))
Excellent post!
While I have a hefty stack, sometimes I don't want to move on to the next book, because I want to linger in the moment of the one I finished, but didn't want to put down.
ReplyDeleteBliss is reading a friend's work and realising that yes, they really are as good as I thought they were :-)
ReplyDeleteI just finished two amazing books, Silence by Becca Fitzpatrick and Destiny's Fire by Trisha Wolfe. But had me in a state of bliss.
ReplyDeleteOh man, Sarah stole my bliss. I just finished Courtney Rene's Shadow Warrior and was in bliss the entire read because I know her (via the internet) and I heard her voice throughout that book and it was blissful to realize she really is an excellent writer!
ReplyDeleteMy next 'bliss' is going to be a book that my best friend growing up's daughter-in-law Amber Argyle" wrote, "Witch Song". The very beginning of that book has already gotten me hooked.
But the most blissful moment I've ever had reading a book was when I read my own The Pea in Peanut Butter!!
Great post Ruth. Liked your blissfyl thoughts. Bliss will be getting a copy of Kristin Hannah's new novel "Home Front," tomorrow, and reading a grown up book. It's released Jan. 31. :)
ReplyDeleteWow, this is so true. My most recent bliss book was Sara Zarr's How to Save a Life. Each night as I finished reading and put it on my bedstand for tomorrow, I found myself so grateful that such beautiful books exist and I'm able to read them. It sounds totally sappy, but I think we forget until we read a book like that how powerful reading can be!
ReplyDeleteGreat post!!
ReplyDeleteI love a book that makes me feel like someone understands me :)
That's a good "bliss list"! :) I like books that make me feel cozy on the inside of me OR the books that make me want to make a change. Those type books also make me want to work on my own WIPs!
ReplyDeleteThe photos above are terrific. As for bliss, I suppose I'd have to say book bliss occurs when something deeply held is either affirmed or dramatically challenged. It occurs when all I can do is read two or three or four pages and my head is so full of thoughts I can't read any more in that moment. I just have to let myself reflect on the significance of what I have just read. I'm finally finishing up the Comment Challenge list today. I started at the top and am six blog from the bottom. It's been a very good---sometimes even blissful experience.
ReplyDeleteOh, those points are all right on! I love a book that makes me hold onto it for a few days before I can return it to the library, because there are certain precious passages I have to keep rereading.
ReplyDeleteAh, yes, bliss. Your points sound pretty much like mine would. I knew I liked you! :) The last book that could fit into this category was Promise Me This by Cathy Gohlke. It's a keeper!
ReplyDeleteYes to all of your points. I love finding a book by an author I've never heard of, falling in love with what she's written, and, on checking to see if she's written other books, find that she's published dozens. It's a great feeling -- like the first day of your summer vacation, or a cupboard stocked with everything you like to eat.
ReplyDeleteI visited your links and now I have more books on my wish list. :)
ReplyDeleteI love the feeling of not being able to put a book down. I also love discovering authors I haven't read before and reading one book after another from the same author.
Enjoy the rest of your weekend.
My friends and I are blissed out over MAJOR PETTIGREW'S LAST STAND. It's one of those books where you just want to let it roll around in your head and heart for awhile before you pick up another book.
ReplyDeleteI like your book blisses ... lately what really has been bliss is reading Genesis, particularly the story of Abraham.
ReplyDeleteNice to meet you...new follower and Write Campaign group member! Radical Readers Unite! :)
ReplyDeleteGreat list of reading blisses! I often think of my reading bliss as a child reader and that was to find new friends in the pages and to know someone understood me. I try to keep this in mind as I write for children.
ReplyDeleteIt's nice to meet you and join you in the campaign!