Why books (and this blog) matter.

Ever since I picked up Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone in the 4th grade I have been a bookworm and have made it my personal mission to devour as many works of literature as possible. Over the last 13 years I would venture to guess that I have ingested more than 500 books, from the classics of F. Scott Fitzgerald and Ernest Hemingway, to the more modern David Mitchell and George R.R. Martin. Some of these works have been tasty novels filled with interesting plots and witty repartee, while others have left more than just a bad taste in my mouth.

But the job of a bookworm is not only to know the good from the bad, but also to be ever ready to make recommendations to newer members of the Oligochaeta class. At times, I have given out books as medicine, some Hunger Games to heal a broken heart or a little American Psycho to understand that you could have bigger problems. And other times, I finish the last page of a novel and think to myself, "This. So-and-so NEEDS THIS." But whatever the reason, I have always been prepared to lend a friend a novel, whether they are eager to take it from my hands, or accept it with a raised eyebrow and a shrug.

In many instances, however, my recommendations fall by the wayside, are placed on a shelf or in a bag, and are never opened or appreciated. There are so many fantastic books in the world, but it seems like if they aren’t being turned into movies, no one is interested, no one cares. That is why I am starting this blog, to expose the Internet to a fact that seems to be lost on my generation: Amazing books are out there, books that can take you on adventures and teach you things that you may never have known otherwise. Reading is not terminally uncool, but an essential part of a healthy life, one that should not be overlooked as paper becomes an obsolete material and virtual becomes reality. Because despite the format changes happening in the publishing world today, books themselves aren't going anywhere and still have so much to teach us if we are willing to read them.

The books that I will be discussing on this blog may be unknown or undersold, but they contain truth, wisdom and the essence of life itself. They might make you laugh or cry or just expose you to a world that you didn’t know existed before you turned to that first page. I cannot promise that you will love all of my recommendations, but what I can promise is that these books are worth your time, worth turning off the TV and closing your laptop for. These books were published to be read but more than that, they should be read because they matter. And I'm going to tell you why they matter.

So, here is to the odd, to the outstanding and to the obscure, books that everyone should read, but no one knows about. Happy reading my friends! I hope that these books help you find what matters to you.