Kids who develop a love for books at a young age is an incredible thing. It’s like Mitch Hedberg said, “Every book is a children’s book, if the kid can read.”
Why do you think Generation X has so much childhood trauma? We were allowed to read Stephen King, Agatha Christie, and any other book that we could get our hands on because no one was around to tell us not to.
A dinosaur that knows a lot of synonyms is a thesaurus.
Right now, I’m reading a book about anti-gravity. It’s impossible to put down.
I wanted to visit the world’s biggest library, but it was overbooked.
Sorry, but you know I had to get in a few jokes.
I Like Big Books and I Cannot Lie
“If you don’t like to read, you haven’t found the right book.” – J.K. Rowling
She’s got a point. If you don’t like Harry Potter, then pick up a different book. And another one after that. Whether you want to read about witches, vampires, serial killers, or even superheroes, there’s a book out there for you. Just ask your friendly local librarian for a recommendation.
Kids these days don’t understand the Dewey Decimal System. They don’t know what it’s like to feel the weight of the Complete Works of William Shakespeare on their lap, either.
I like big books. I especially like them in hardback because there’s something about a heavy book that gives me a sense of pride in what I’m reading.
My kids have everything on a Kindle or an iPad. Whether they bring one book or 10 books on vacation, it weighs the same. It also makes it harder to find out what they’re reading. The good news is that my kids are reading quite a bit of content. Most of it is a few grades above their reading level, so I get to have that proud parent moment.
Want to hear a joke about a piece of paper? Never mind . . . it’s tearable.
There’s something else that we need to talk about when it comes to big books. Bookmarks. You’re not going to read a 400-page book in a single sitting, so you’ll need to mark your spot. A bookmark allows you to do that in a respectful way. You can’t just fold down the corner because that’s destructive. And you certainly can’t place the book face down and crack the spine.
I’ve had to teach my kids this lesson, too. I don’t care what book they pick up as long as they can read it. What I care about is their use of a bookmark. I didn’t get this far in life to suddenly raise psychopaths who destroy book pages.
When I Think About Books, I Touch My Shelf
Did you ever have a secret hiding place for the things you didn’t want your parents to know about? I was Barn in the USA, right here in Sherman Country. My parents had an old barn on the back of our property, and that’s where I would store all of my books. Comic books, graphic novels, and all sorts of books that were definitely not age appropriate.
But I digress.
Metaphors be with you.
I have read so many books throughout my life. I keep most of them. I’ve had to add shelves over the years to store them all. And when I think about various books, I touch my shelf. It’s nothing dirty, I assure you. Sometimes, I just like to fondle my fiction. It helps to calm me. Sometimes, I’ll pick up one of the books, turn the pages, and read the back to refresh my memory.
I can’t do that if all of my books are packed up in boxes within a garage. That’s a monstrous way to store books anyway. They can’t breathe.
Even my kids have their books on display. Sure, my teenager isn’t too thrilled about having her Pete the Cat books on her bookshelf, but those have been moved to another room in the house. That way, if she has friends over, she doesn’t have to educate her friends on Pete and his groovy buttons.
Why is a Math Book Always Unhappy?
Just had to finish with a joke…
Why is a math book always unhappy? It has so many problems.
Since we are Barn in the USA, we can be sure that you don’t have as many problems as a math book. Whether you’re a voracious reader and are running out of shelf space or you need a quiet nook to read in away from everyone, we can help.
At Sherman, we do more than build garages. We can create a barndo that is perfect for you (and your books). It can be as big as you want, too. Some of our larger buildings have multiple rooms. Whether you fill all of them with books or you add some furniture and living space is up to you.
You probably know by now that all the good shhhh happens at libraries. If you don’t want to be shhh’d because you lol’d at a scene in a book, it’s time you get your own reading corner. Then, you can read whatever you want, stock as many books on the shelves as you want, and even listen to audiobooks without headphones.
It’s your space, so you can do with it what you like.
If you’re looking to be a bit anti-social for the weekend, you can point to your books in the barndo as the perfect excuse. Just tell a person, “Sorry I can’t hang out. My weekend is fully booked.” You won’t be lying!
Within Sherman Country, you’ll find people who read all sorts of books. As Walt Disney said, “There is more treasure in books than in all the pirate’s loot on Treasure Island.” So, when you read, it’s a perfect getaway without ever having to leave the comfort of your barndo.
What you ultimately build with us is up to you. We’ll talk to you about garages, barndos, she sheds, and other metal buildings. What really matters is that you talk wordy to me.
