Books
for me have been the best companions since childhood and they continue to be at
my side even now. I have shifted from the paperbacks and hard copies to the
soft copies and PDFs now, so I miss the covers a lot. The feel has gone away
from reading, but still it remains as much fun. My journey began with Magic School
Bus I guess, and then came Enid Blyton and Agatha Christie and Tintin. I then
moved on to Dan Brown, Robert Ludlum, Robin Cook, Jeffrey Archer, Arthur
Hailey, Norah Roberts and all those many authors who write fiction and in the
thriller genre. These are the authors whose I read more than 5 books or so, and
the order is not right as well.
Pointing
out a single favorite is not possible for me as each story has a certain plus
point in it, and with that are various things we can learn from that single book.
But yes, the one story I shall never forget is Harry Potter. 7 parts and 8
movies! Phew! It does seem tiring and some people do frown at the name of Harry
Potter, but I have enjoyed that whole series various times. Many books I have
given away to others, but these 7 books, I am never going to give away to
anyone.
Memories
cling to those fat scriptures which I have gotten into me, and as Daniel
Radcliffe says his dialogues, I can speak them too. So, the main question (and
the prompt) here is, would I have read the book if the cover had not been what
it was then?
No,
of course not!
Just
ignore the 4 words above. Till date, book covers have not been of any
importance to me, except for removing the plastic coating on the paperbacks.
The story has always interested me more, and the back of the book has always
proved to be friendlier to me than the front. The back of Harry Potter and the
Philosopher’s Stone talks about a giant and Hogwarts and Quidditch, which do
seem more interesting and revealing and attracting than a boy looking at a
train with Hogwarts Express and some stars and fumes.
“Never judge a
book by its cover.”
The
above line seems so true as the covers of many books are so very misleading. Frankenstein
and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn being some of the classics with such
covers, it seems that you may have missed some wonderful books due to the
singular fact that you built a conception about the book just by seeing the
cover.
Doesn’t
this all talk the exact opposite of the other saying?
“A picture is
worth a 1000 words.”
No,
it does not say the opposite, but it has the same meaning the 2nd
saying has. It is just that there is a misconception which gets built in the
mind due to the 1000 words the cover says.
That’s
enough with philosophy and sayings now! We were at J.K. Rowling and how she
took this series to such a high which made me go reading it on and on,
repeatedly. I would talk about the presentation and the fact about how she
portrays the wizards and witches to live completely normal lives with family
and all the drama. That keeps us connected with the reality that magic does not
exist, while it takes us on a ride through Diagon Alley and Gringotts and
Hogwarts and Hogsmeade and those many more places we wish we could go to.
By
now, I have got my copy out from the farthest corner of my attic, where my mom
had hidden it to prevent me from reading it a long time ago, and I’m already in
The Cupboard Under The Stairs, Number Four, Privet Drive, Little Whinging.
Do
Not Disturb me, and kindly comment at the bottom of the page.
Very nicely written, Karan! Books have so many memories! I read a book despite its cover :)
ReplyDeleteGlad you liked the post Ma'am..:)
DeleteRowling's books have been so vivid in description that they don't need that cover. Well I'm a classic reader, so most of rhem are the leather bound volumes. Not much to judge on that isn't it? :)
ReplyDeleteYes Ma'am...:)
Delete