Make this essay better : Books are something that have been in my life for a while now, and have been something that I have had a love-hate relationship with. There are times when reading can be fun and immersive when your reading genres you do like and that grab your attention but then there are times when reading isn't fun because it's a genre you don't like, it's too slow, ect. Overall I think I have gotten to a point where I know what I like to read, when I want to read, and just know my limit on what I can keep my attention on and what I can't, which is important when it comes to reading and writing in my opinion.
It started with me getting introduced to books in school and from my parents reading me stories before bed. Eventually my love for books fully started once I got to third grade and up because that was when I got introduced to captain underpants and comic books. When I got introduced to the bone series, captain underpants, and marvel comics was when i started reading a lot. I would constantly ask my mom to take me to the library which I thought was cool at the time because it had this cool tunnel with lights and stuff in it leading to the many bookshelves and computers. I would go up and down the aisle of the books and look for some comic books that grabbed my attention which at that time were mostly superhero ones. But because of this love for comic books, it made reading chapter books and more serious books less fun and interesting for me. 

Radovancev 2

Over time I started to read more comics and less chapter books which was good in my opinion but to my parents and teachers was bad for my education. So my mom started checking out less 

comic books for me and would sometimes check out chapter books for me to practice liking them again. Once I got to middle school I was reading so many different books of all different genres from history to science but they were all for my English class which always had us reading a book when we weren’t doing class work or for class work. At this time my love for books was crushed and I really only read them for my classes and for no other reason, at home I wouldn’t read like I used to and would do other things like playing video games, make or listen to music, or watch tv. It was probably one of my lowest points when it came to reading and what helped me get out of it was my friends and my high school English teacher my junior year. When high school started there were the normal expected class books we had to read but then there were times where the teacher would want us to choose a book and read it to be able to write about it. My friends in my class junior year were always talking about how they saw writing and reading in the same way in the fact that both are only fun if they're done the ways you prefer and find more comfortable whether it’s what your reading/writing about, the genre you prefer, less pictures or more pictures, etc. After I heard that from them it was the shift that would lead to my love of books to balance out. Later in the year after choosing random free reading books throughout the semester I finally chose a book I wanted to read which was called Scythe, which would be used later towards the end of the semester for a writing assignment. When I found out I was a little worried I wouldn’t do well on the assignment and would lower my grade, but as days 
Radovancev 3

past and I kept reading the book I realized that there are chapter books that also fit in the type of books I like reading. My perspective on books changed and changed even more when I talked to my junior year teacher about it. I remember staying after class and going to his desk to ask him questions about my writing assignment and about reading. I asked him questions like how he 

wanted our writings font, spacing, and things like that set up and the asked the other question of how can I start liking reading as much as I did before. He gave me a surprised look since it was coming from me and he asked where this was coming from and I gave him the whole story from how I started reading time and started to hate it. He took a second and then looked at me with a smile and explained that when it comes to writing and reading it’s better to understand yourself and what grabs your attention. Once you find that you look for books or thoughts that fit those requirements because once you do that then it makes reading it or writing about it more enjoyable for you. After he had told me that my point of view of books had completely shifted back to its old ways. I started finding more books that grab my attention and also started to get into manga since at the time I started watching anime. I ended up doing great on the writing assignment and I started to read more after that class. My mom also had some influence on me to because she’s a big reader. The genre she reads though isn’t my kind of taste but she still reads a ton. She would always let me choose books I wanted and liked and never tried to force me to read things I didn’t. Eventually she would also start giving me recommendations and advice on what I should and why it’s good for me. It still didn’t become my favorite thing to do but it became something that I would do during my free time or if I saw on tik tok that a new manga I 
Radovancev 4

think looks good or a new chapter comes out, then I go instantly to read it. I still have times when I have to read things I do not want to or don’t like but I don’t let those moments kill my love for reading.
Overall reading is something I enjoy doing when I have the time to, but it wasn’t always like that and I’m happy that the people in my life that helped me see through the low points and look through a new perspective. Reading can be fun and calming and other times it can be intense and sad but in the end reading is something I will continue loving to the end.