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Books and Influence

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If I were to have a long list of every single book I’ve ever read, I’d like to think that each one has changed me in some way. Personally, I see reading as an experience. I want to be shaped by the books I’ve read and when I’ve finished I want to feel as if I’ve changed in some way.

Perhaps the books that have shaped me the most are the Stonewylde series by Kit Berry, which I return to again and again. I first read them when I was eleven years old and, unlike many of you, I never had Harry Potter to read growing up (I read them much later on!), so these books were my own version. Stonewylde is my safe haven, the place I go when I want to escape.

The first YA books I ever read were the Princess Diaries series by Meg Cabot and, alongside Carmen Reid’s St. Judes books, they taught me what it was like to grow up as a teenage girl. I learnt so much from them, and I love revisiting them once in a while to rediscover just why I fell in love.

Other notable mentions are the Ashbury-Brookfield books by Jaclyn Moriarty, which taught me a lot about Australian culture and also gave me hours worth of laughs. I love these books!

I think books are a bit like horcruxes. Opposite horcruxes, though. With each one I read, a tiny part of the book’s soul joins with my soul, and I honestly believe that each part changes me. I’m a better person for reading, for experiencing life through the eyes of so many others. This is why I love reading. I wouldn’t be who I am today without books.