Reading Kinship

It always amazes me how books can connect people.  I know that whenever I meet someone new, a question that is sure to show at least part of our “kindred spirit-ness” is “So, do you like to read?”.  If the answer is in the affirmative, and the person starts waxing eloquent about their beloved authors and books, I know we’ll definitely have something to talk about for awhile.

And when you discover that another person has the same favorite authors, or the same books that they’ve read and reread over and again, there’s such a kinship found too.  Books can shape so much of a person’s life, and having someone understand, without explanation, why you think a certain way, can be so refreshing.  When you’ve read a book once or many times over, and you connect with it, the phrases and ideas become a part of you.  However, they really can only be entirely understood by a person who has read and connected with the same book.  For me, because I can so completely relate, I think often of what Anne says to Marilla in Anne of Avonlea about “fly[ing] right up on the wings of anticipation” and then crashing “down to earth with a thud”.  I too often “fly and then thud”, but only someone who’s read that particular book can completely understand the analogy.

Though those who aren’t bibliomaniacs often don’t understand, there truly is a kinship between those who love books.  Those of us who understand the thrill of finding a book you’ve long been searching for.  Those of us who understand that there are certain books that just have to be reread every so often.  Those of us who understand the sigh of utter contentment that inevitably escapes you when you finish a really good book.  We understand each other, and always will.