TTT – Ten Reasons Why I Love All Bookish Things

Happy Top Ten Tuesday! We have another fun prompt this week, and creating this list took no time at all. After all, thinking of reasons why I love all things bookish is not that hard!

I have to admit that initially I drew a blank when I saw what the prompt for this week was. After all, the prompt is: “reasons why I love…” what? Books? Genres? Authors? All of these apply, but it doesn’t really encompass everything I like about books… So this list is a mix of all things bookish!

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl, and you can find all the upcoming prompts on her blog!

1. Why I love world building

We all know that world building is such an important aspect of a story. I won’t necessarily put aside a book if the world building isn’t that well thought out, but it definitely affects how much I enjoy reading the book. When I read, I see whatever is happening in my head, so descriptive books are my absolute fav. One of my favorite fictional worlds is the world in Strange the Dreamer. This book is rich with description, and even though it’s been two years since I’ve read it, I can still see certain scenes in my mind as if I read it last week.

2. Why I love bookish merchandise!

Candles, prints, bags, blankets, EVERYTHING. The creativity of some people astounds me. I can stare at fan art of my favorite characters all day! I also tend to envision characters like I’ve seen them in fan art. Anyone else do this? Anyway, I’m glad bookish merchandise exists. I wish I were rich so I could buy all the things.

3. Why I love the bookish community!

I honestly don’t even know what I was doing before I created my bookstagram, and in turn my blog. I love talking about books with all my followers. Even though we may not always enjoy the same books, we all relate to each other through our love of literature. I’ve met so many awesome people online, and I was definitely missing those kind of connections in my life outside the Internet.

4. Why I love fictional characters

Honestly, I don’t even have to elaborate on that. I love fictional characters because they can seem as friends; as people you know. Especially old favorite series can feel like greeting old friends once you read them again. The other side of loving fictional characters, is that you can enjoy the morally gray, the flawed, and the truly evil without consequence. Obviously you can’t support bad behavior in real life, but the nice thing about fictional characters is that it’s all just imagination.

5. Why I love fantasy

Fantasy is great because you can go in literally any direction you want with it. Cursed forests? Sure. Magic? Of course. Mythical creatures? Well, they exist in this book. The list is infinite. And then there are also so many variations on the same thing. Compare the dragons in A Song of Ice and Fire to the dragons in The Priory of the Orange Tree to the dragon in The Name of the Wind. All of these are so different, and yet, all dragons. Every fantasy author spins its own unique twist on concepts we are already familiar with, making reading their books a pleasant surprise every time!

6. Why I love science fiction

I can’t leave out my other favorite genre to read, of course. Science fiction is amazing because it makes me feel smart. A lot of stuff in modern science fiction doesn’t exist yet, but perhaps some day? Either way, science fiction extrapolates on already existing technology. Imagine where we might be in 50 to 100 years! I absolutely love reading books set in space, because space is terrifying, but also magnificent in its vastness. I love reading YA science fiction especially, because it has all the science, without making you feel like you’re reading a physics textbook.

7. Why I love authors

Uhm, can you imagine writing a whole book? My creativity pit is about as deep as the average road side puddle… meaning not very deep. It’s truly amazing how these people can come up with not just stories, but worlds, and characters, and personalities, and little rules that only exist in their work. And they’re also so friendly (the ones I’ve met at least). Amazing.

8. Why I love Bookstagram

I can’t leave out my OG portal to the bookish community. I started my bookstagram when I got new shelves for my birthday about 3 years ago. Taking bookish pictures is honestly so much fun! Although I don’t think I would’ve bought books so fast if I didn’t have a bookstagram…. Oh well, my wallet will recover.

9. Why I love book blogging

It was the logical next step after creating my bookstagram. Book blogging is so much fun, because it’s such a creative outlet. Not only can I write whatever I want, I can also design my website however I want. Thinking of topics to write about is great fun, and I love sharing my opinions with others. Also reading other people’s posts is one of my favorite pastimes, especially when they’re gushing about books I also love!

10. Why I love reading

I obviously can’t leave out the activity that started it all: reading! No matter how different we are, reading is the one thing that connects all of us in the bookish community. It’s pretty amazing to think that such unassuming objects as books, have entire stories and worlds written in them. Being transported to another life, another world, and forgetting about the real world around you, is one of the best feelings ever.

Oof, okay. There we have ten reasons why I love all bookish things! Do you relate to any of these? Let me know!

Find past Top Ten Tuesdays I’ve participated in here!