"I can read in red. I can read in blue. I can read in pickle color too."
I Can Read with My Eyes Shut! written by Dr. Seuss
Dr. Seuss books hold a certain charm. They are filled with color and wacky creatures that make us grin. These are some of the very first words a child will read. They are delightfully creative many sentences are silly, "crocodile pants" for example. In a way it teaches us to expect the unexpected. If I start a sentence with "the fox..." would you expect the rest to be, "wears socks."? On top of this little lesson each small book holds a distinct theme. I encourage anyone to go back to their favorite Seuss book, and try to find the theme hidden in those colorful pages. Some themes are obvious like The Lorax others like this one need closer attention. This simple book begins by saying it is possible to read with your eyes shut. That is contradictory. Reading by definition is humans using sight to interpret symbols and translate them in a coherent message. However, Seuss tell us that it is possible to read with our eyes shut, yet, "This is very hard to do". To read with eyes shut you must see past the words. You must read deep and hear what the author is whispering to you. You must be able to not only see the words; you must feel them swallow you, taste their message, smell the pages toiled upon, and hear the printed letter whizzing around your head free from the pages. Only then can you read with your eyes shut. I would like to introduce myself. My name is Amber Sparks, and I love reading. I always have. I was the sort of child who would always ask for "one more story". I enjoyed the adventures they told of. Stories about knights, castle, dragons, and fair maidens in distress. I later loved how books could give you new ideas and teach something new. Now I love books for all those reasons and more. The adventures, the mystery, the learning, and most importantly seeing into the mind of an author. Books like many other things come from people like you and me. The authors share more than just a story with their words; they share a bit of themselves. In english class when given a required reading book I get excited to the astonishment of my peers. The books they give might seem outdated and difficult to read because they are more than a century old, but when I read I feel like I can see into the mind of the one who wrote them. Like a window into a person that lived very differently from we do today. History classes try to convey how things were for people "back then", and from those lessons I have learnt much. Yet, when reading a book from a different time period a person can discover the mindset of someone in that time in history. It is magnificent. There is so much to discover in books. That is why I named this blog Reading with your eyes shut. I have read many books and now I want to record them, analyze, and review them because I want to find out what makes books last. What makes some books sell while others don't? What makes some books survive the test of time while others get trapped in the past? You may have heard of "reading between the lines". Well, I am practicing. I will post about novels, short stories, plays, poems, every month as well as other things I find. Feel free to input your own comments about these books or recommendations of what book I should read next. Welcome to my blog!
