English.

I'm an English student, so surely I should be a massive book-worm, right? Wrong. Since beginning my course at university, reading books has been something which has turned more into a chore than a pleasure. It's difficult to accept because I used to love reading as a kid. Reading expanded my imagination, allowing me to dive into all kinds of fantasy worlds, a true escape from reality. Back then, I read what I like. Yet now, I read what I'm told. It kind of makes me not want to do it, sort of like a rebellion against the cruel lecturers at university.

In all honesty though, there have been some books which I've been forced to read which have made their way onto my list of favourites. For instance, "The Great Gatsby" is quite a tragic love story, twisted with the idea of living within a fake society, a world in which everyone was obsessed with money. The women didn't marry for love, they married for money. Marriages almost always ended badly because being unhappy in the marriage led to cheating. To be honest, this kind of indicates that money isn't everything. These days, people tend to marry for love instead of money (even though the divorce rate is now 1 in 3 couples, which is actually appalling). Although, the concept of marrying for love is probably biased on my behalf, as I'm quite a romantic and I'd never marry for money, yet some selfish people will. Going back to the original point, the book is interesting because it's so unlike our society today.

Another one of my favourite books which I have been forced to read is "The Catcher in The Rye", a tale about a boy experiencing the troubles all teenagers face. He troubles with trying to fit into society, growing up and talking to the opposite sex. He seems to hate the idea of adulthood, and constantly tries to remain a child forever (basically those annoying people who need to act their age). At some points of the book, I could relate to the narrator. He is incredibly sarcastic, something which I seem to be fluent in these days. There were times when I wanted to tell the narrator to grow up and sort himself out, yet there was something likeable about him. It's strange how someone who doesn't exist can have such an impact on you, something which I've always loved about literature.

I love the idea that I can escape to some sort of fantasy world at anytime, even if it does seem a task with some of the awful books which the university makes me read. Books which have an everlasting affect on me means the author must be incredible. It's incredibly interesting how each author writes so differently, as a reader you're able to expand your imagination and knowledge just from picking up a book. I do complain about how much I have to read all the time, which is more than likely my fault as I picked an English course... well done me.