Declaration of Reader Independence.

Since Oprah did it, I figured I should do it too! In the July issue of O Magazine, Oprah gives a list of 26 favorite books of the summer. The list includes everything from thrillers, young adults, historical novels, to contemporary stories. Since July is the month we celebrate our independence, Oprah encouraged book lovers to create this: A Declaration of Reader Independence. I've said it before and I'll say it again, reading is an extremely personal experience. This is why I like Oprah's idea so much. We often think we should enjoy the books that other people enjoy, but reading is not a team sport, we are allowed to make up our own rules in deciding what we want to read and not read. Since I like making lists so much, this seems to be more of a Reader's Bill of Rights (some of these ideas are directly borrowed from O!)

1. Not finish a book. Doesn't matter how far I am into it, if it gets into the way of my goal, I can put it down! (Probably going to be really hard for me to do! but still....)

2. Not read the book before seeing the movie. Of course this means I probably wont read the book, but every once in awhile it is nice to not hate a movie because the book was so much better!

3. Read multiple books at the same time. Sometimes you don't want to admit to everyone passing you on the ferry that you like reading young adult fiction or romance novels. I judge other people by what they read, so I can't be mad when they judge me.

4. Reread a childhood favorite. I'm going to keep on doing this! I read a lot of great books when I was little.

5. Judge a book by its cover, title, author, or genre. Feel free to admit this one, because everyone does it. Even when they pretend they don't.

6. Not read (or want to read) every classic. Ulysses might be on the top of many book-bucket-lists, but I'm probably never going to even attempt to conquer it.

7. Not like a book that was recommended to me... and be honest to the recommender.

8. Get annoyed when I recommend a book to someone and they don't like it. If it was a personal favorite, question our friendship....

9. Not finish a series of books because they have steadily become monotonous and boring. This also means it is OK not to read every book by an author. Even if you loved one, it doesn't mean they will all be as good.

"10. Believe that books can be magic carpets to enchanted lands, even while realizing that they're inanimate objects made of ink and paper."-O