Why It's Important to Step Outside of your Reading Comfort Zone
Truth be told, had I never picked up Stephenie Meyer's Twilight, I might not even be here today. I mean, how does someone make the transition from chick-lit to YA Paranormal? Well, it all started with a black cover featuring two hands holding an apple. From there, the rest is history.
It was a Saturday and I was at Target. I needed a new book, and a friend had been raving about Twilight and it's sequel, New Moon was coming out soon. So, with boyfriend breathing down my neck to hurry up and make a decision...I finally picked it up and carried it to the checkout.
I believe I devoured Twilight in somewhere around 48 hours. After that, I devoured New Moon. And then...I was hooked. Knowing Twilight was my "break-in" (to the YA genre) novel makes me feel cliche or even like a statistic, because really, who hasn't read it and declared it a work of genius! But since my first reading Twilight days, I've expanded my 'Books I'm Willing to Read' genres. From vampires to faeries, contemporary YA to time travel and reincarnation I was on the go, taking a road trip through the shelves of the YA section of my local (R.I.P.) Borders.
I never would've stumbled upon the wonderful world of YA Book Blogging either had I not come across Goodreads, and then the lovely website The Book Smugglers. When I say I spent hours on both of these websites, I am probably still not even close to the honest truth. Some days I wish I could count the time spent online looking up reviews, new books to read, and now blogging myself.
So I got pretty comfortable reading about vampires, and then werewolves, and faeries but then something else happened. Two something's really; the first being Matched by Ally Condie and then Wither by Lauren DeStefano. These two books were my entrance into the dystopian genre. Once I finished these books, I'd moved on to what is now the genre I'd call my favorite. When it came to Wither, I was just in love with the cover. I'd seen the positive reviews piling up on Goodreads, but the synopsis was like nothing I'd ever read before. I found the premise pretty interesting and it had grabbed my attention, but I wasn't ready to purchase the book yet. So, I got on the website for my local library and requested it! When the book came in and I was at the library picking it up, I stumbled upon Matched. My only time in the dystopian genre was limited to what I'd read in high school, such as Fahrenheit 451; and movies I'd watched with boyfriend, like Logan's Run. Had I never glimpsed and then fallen in love with Wither's cover (Thank you, Miss DeStefano for not disappointing me. Beautiful cover, beautiful story!) then I can't think of where I'd be right now reading-wise, that is. And where I once started reading mainly chick-lit, I really don't devour contemporary YA as I thought I would. I do read it, mind you, but not often. Stephanie Perkins has won my contemporary-YA Romance heart though with Anna and the French Kiss and Lola and the Boy Next Door.
So since we've established that I'm happy and comfy in my own little YA-Paranormal part of the world, there are a few genres that I'm still uncomfy in. Those would be: Zombies and Steampunk. And really, you would think loving dystopian as I do, that I would love Steampunk too! The idea fascinates me, so maybe I just haven't read the right book yet (Let the recommendations commence....NOW!) because really, you never know when you'll find your next favorite book!
What are your thoughts?
Happy Reading!
Laura
So True!! You never know what your next favourite book is going to be unless you try it. I always loved reading but it wasn't till I read Harry Potter when I was ten (which was 15 years ago), that I started falling in love with reading. I then went on to discover more amazing books. But it was Twilight that brought me into the YA genre and I started reading more and more. Now my favourite genre is YA contemporary and I can't get enough of it. Awesome post!
ReplyDeleteAnge @ Moonlight Reader