They are sources of information that shaped people’s lives in the past and canshape modern lives as well. They do not just enrich one’s vocabulary but also enrich readers’ knowledge of different subjects. Books are as essential today as they have been in the past. In a world with technological advancements where information is easily accessed through the internet, it seems that books are becoming of lesser value than they ought to. It should then be realized that there are still a lot of advantages that printed materials bring to readers compared to what is contained in the internet. With the vast information one can get through the internet, the sources are often questionable that readers cannot always be sure if they have the right information from authorities or if they only have a biased information from a supporter or a critic of a certain subject matter. Concerning health, reading the printed material has no side-effects as compared to reading a software with the use of a computer that is known to cause certain cancers through the radiation emitted by the machine. These are just among the many importance of reading books in a computer age.

The books that have caught my interest are mostly novels. I used to read them for entertainment purposes but as I discovered the rich information contained in literary works, I became more observant about the places and people described in the stories I read. I often feel transported to another world where I seem to become a spectator of the events in the story that makes me see through a different angle of vision which is the author’s viewpoint. I came to understand other people and cultures as I read through the pages of the more informed authors. As a child, I have read story books with colorful illustrations. This started my interest in reading and as I grew older, I turned to more serious books like novels that help me become more critical of my environment. Sometimes, I borrowed books from my friends who often recommend good books to me and at other times, I trade some of my collections with their own. I bought some books that I really loved because whenever I have the time, I read them again. Some were also given to me as gifts.

One of my favorite authors is Dan Brown and I like his novel “Angels and Demons” a lot. It is a story of a symbologist who solves a divisive plan of the murders of Catholic Church leaders using the Illuminati, a famous secret society, as a façade in the execution of the plan. The novel seems to have been well-researched because of the information about the church and Illuminati used in the story. It is also very descriptive, the author seems to portray the scenes realistically, taking readers into an experience similar to watching a movie. The use of the Roman Catholic church is in itself an interesting twist in the story because it is known that the church teaches values that are commonly deemed good. However, its involvement in the story portrays the truths in real life that bad deeds occur even in such holy places. It also reflects scientific analyses which happen to be my line of interest. The events in the story are unbelievable but with the cruelties happening around the world, one cannot help but think about the possibilities of such fiction stories.