A Good Book is Hard to Find... or is it?

I've often heard it said that a good book is hard to find. Personally, this has always just sounded like an excuse to not read, or not look, for fear of being underwhelmed. In my humble opinion, this is the backwards way of looking at it; it's never hard to find a good book, for no book is inherently good or bad, but rather it is far more difficult to find the right reader.

Just like books come in different genres, people have different tastes. While some enjoy reading of fantasy realms -tales of knights and princesses, of floating palaces and underwater kingdoms, mermaids and pirates and perhaps even an ogre or two- others might prefer a more realistic retelling or adventure -of spies and sabotage, detectives and deadlines.

From Murder and Mystery to Horror or History, each person approaches reading with their own, unique, perspectives; just as every author approaches writing with their own unique set of parameters.
I have often found, in my -admittedly few- years as an avid reader (though I cannot be faulted for my four year old self's inability to read, and I have long since surpassed that unfortunate setback) that finding just the right book for any specific taste relies both on the reader and the author, as the author relies on the reader to read just as much as the reader relies on the author to write. (that may not make sense now, or at all, but it does to me and I'm the one writing so shh).

I myself have more of an eclectic taste, when it come to choosing what I read next, and am guilty of judging a book by it's cover more times than I would personally care to admit. Though it is not the preferred method of finding a book, it has not steered me wrong as of yet (and neither has my tendency to always always read the blurb before making any kind of solid decision). As it so happens, my personal library has benefited from this, and it has been suggested that I make use of the few talents I have to share with the world (or, well, perhaps not that far) my opinions as I go.

As it so happens, with both school Christmas freshly passed, I have added to my collection and now find myself with ample time to enjoy the finer things in life, such as a good cup of tea, beautifully scented candles, a relaxing bubble bath, and a good book.

So, in lieu of anything better to do with my time, this blog is dedicated to books and the endless stories we fall in love with, as well as the appreciation of both the art of writing and of reading, because you can't have one without the other.

Happy Reading,
- Em x