Interview with a bookaholic

Thanks to the strangeness that is blogger, the interview from Cathy Cassidy got published earlier than I'd planned it to (gremlims took over the keyboard and pressed 'send' instead of postdating it). So I bring you an interview from...the Bookaholic Within Me (aka myself).

Yunaleska = Y
Bookaholic Within Me = BWM

Y: "So, BWM, tell me about yourself."

BWM, peering around a pile of books. "Isn't my name self-explanatory?"

Y, nodding. "Yes, but who are you?"

BWM: "I read books."

Y, smiles "Ok, we aren't getting very far. So, when did your book obsession begin?"

BWM perks up at the mention of books. "Once upon a time..."

Y, wondering if BWM has heard her correctly. "That wasn't quite the question." Quietens at the glare from BWM.

BWM: "...there was a young girl who loved to read. Every free moment found her with a book in hand. However, as she grew up, the little girl started other hobbies. Books were everywhere, but occasionally she could be found with a needle and thread, or knitting needles in her hand. Sometimes she managed to read past her bedtime without her parents knowing. Other times she'd wake up early to read a book."

Y, cutting in at a pause "So it began when you were a child?" Fails to dodge a book moving at high speed. Rubs head. "I thought you love books?"

BWM: "I have two copies of that one. I hadn't finished!"

Y: "Sorry, sorry." Lowers voice to add "Total headcase, this one."

BWM: "Then, the girl discovered video games. They consumed her life. Books gathered dust on her shelfs, being picked over every few weeks or so for it took her more than a day to read a book now. And so the years went on. Education took up most of her time. Books were read every week, usually before bed. And then the girl, now a young woman, started her path as a writer. She wrote. A lot."

Y, reading the book spines for signs of duplicates. "What happened next?"

BWM, "The writer steered clear of books for fear of getting ideas from them. However, finally it entered her rather dense skull (when it comes to logical matters) that reading could help improve her style. So she picked up a book, and fell in love."

Y, clapping hands "That's wonderful! So di-"

The room shakes for a moment.

BWM: "Dear reader, I'm afraid Yunaleska can't continue the interview." Glares at computer screen. "No, I didn't hit her with another book. An overladen shelf collapsed, and she's currently buried in books. She's still breathing. I'll continue the story:

The girl picked a book she'd loved from her past, and found herself plunged into a mystical world fraught with danger and excitement. Far from quelling her muse, the book encouraged to roam free in the land of imagination. The girl visited the library, a place she'd neglected for several years. She spent a good hour and a bit browsing through the YA section, the fantasy and sci-fi, came away with arms full of books, and went to read. She hasn't stopped reading since.

My 'obsession' as the Buried One calls it, only began now. As a child, I loved books, but my heart didn't leap up and down when I was in a bookshop. My feet never wanted to dance the moment I stepped through the library door. I never minded the 15 book limit on the library card. Now, that has all changed.

The library is my favourite place to visit during the week. Whatever happened in the day, I cheer up in the library. I come home, pick up a book and smile. Books cover my shelves, chest of drawers. They can be found under every item of furniture (yes, even the tv stand). I still persue my hobbies. I might not read every second of the day, but when I do, the moments feel like a lifetime.

I race up to my room, wondering if new books from lovely publishers have arrived. I caress the pretty book cover in my fingers, admiring the unbroken spine, the straight pages. They never last long for I bend my books, fold over pages when I lose bookmarks - you get the message. My books aren't handled with gloves.

Books are knowledge. Knowledge is power. Don't let anyone tell you others -especially with fiction! In fiction there's knowledge of relationships, of mistakes. Knowledge of far off places, of trials people face and overcome. Knowledge comes in all forms, the best of them, is a book.

Yuna will be back tomorrow with a book review of Spell Fall, by Katherine Roberts. I, BWM, can get back to what I do best. Devouring books."