My Breakthrough Story
How I discovered the joys of reading… (and it was not through my eyeballs)
I come from a family of passionate readers where every day of reading feels like a happy new year.
Me, not my story. I have been a slow reader all of my life. What would take most people a couple of weeks or just days of pleasure to get through, would take me many tortured months. Sometimes years.
It wasn’t because I didn’t try, or want to, or love a good book when I took the time to get through it. It was that I simply could not read without stopping to process every. Single. Word.
That all changed when I discovered audiobooks two years ago. I was like a blind person finally being given the gift of sight. The shift was radical.
It was then that I realized something about myself: I don’t read in words, I read in pictures.
Throw me a tedious page of instructions on how to play Bridge, for example, and I’m lost. Show me a YouTube of people playing the game, making their bids, and moving cards around and I’m with you.
I’m sure the experts have some fancy name for people like me. But that would just be another big word that I can’t relate to. All I know is that this is the biggest breakthrough I’ve had in a long time. It has changed the game for me for forever.
There’s nothing better than a well-narrated audiobook to animate the written word and make it come alive.
I am now well into my ninth Ken Follett book — devouring historical fiction like there’s no tomorrow. For those unfamiliar with his work, he writes thousand-page epics that are over 40 hours long. And I can’t get enough of them, thanks to his excellent narrator, John Lee.
Do you have a breakthrough story?
What challenge have you overcome (or are overcoming)? How did you move through it and how has it changed your life for the better? Tell us in the comments below. We’d love to know!
And PS, if you have any great audiobooks to suggest, I’m all ears 😉
Ahhh …📚
On a lighter note…
A humorous take on reading — This 30-second clip from Nate Bargatze’s recent monologue on SNL made me laugh so hard, and not just because he’s very funny, but it describes me to a T.
A humorous take on history — If you liked the SNL clip above, you’ll love this one too: a 20-second clip with Nate giving us his take on history. Like with Bargatze, reading history as I do now through my ears is an edge of your seat, white knuckle experience. I could be reading about the politics surrounding Queen Elizabeth I’s controversial ascension to the throne in 1558 and I’m like omigod is she going to make it and become queen of England? Talk about going on a journey. Ken Follett does that to me.
A humorous take on me taking in a reality — Here I am at Powell’s bookstore in Portland, Oregon, holding a physical copy of one of Ken Follett’s books (that I had just finished listening to) — discovering to my shock just how long his books are. And heavy too. That thing must have weighed about 10 pounds! 😜
I love audiobooks!!! I discovered them 20 years ago and have not left home without one since 😊. The library, Libby, and Hoopla all have audiobooks available for free. I also read print books and ebooks. Usually, I read 60-75 books a year—in all their many forms.
I started listening to Audible books during the pandemic. I love them. I’m an avid reader too but love listening to audiobooks when I walk or spend time in the kitchen. One that I really loved was “What to Remember when Waking” by David Whyte read by the author. It’s exquisite