I wish I were a book nerd.

Dear 27,

I set out to read 20 books in 2010. The year started out well, thanks to regular meetings of Books & Bourbon. Then life got in the way.

So when I finished The Perks of Being a Wallflower in one day (Thanks to United Airlines and an unprecedented amount of awakeness on my flights-- I'm one of those rare and lucky people who find it terrifically simple to sleep on planes.)... I felt that 20 books was completely doable.

But then-- as if one book wasn't enough-- I finished The Road when I returned home.

(Yes. I'm feeling pretty good about myself right now.)

If you haven't picked up The Perks of Being a Wallflower it's a series of letters written by a young high school kiddo, called Charlie, to an unknown recipient. I have a sweet and special place in my heart for letters (if you couldn't tell) and I flew through this book, written by Stephen Chbosky. I found it an odd combo of enlightening+disturbing+just kind of weird, but the way Charlie's words were strung together in sentences felt sincere. I definitely was NOT a Charlie in high school, but I could identify with some of his moments, particularly some of his words:

--

"Sometimes, I look outside, and I think that a lot of other people have seen this snow before. Just like I think that a lot of other people have read those books before. And listened to those songs. I wonder how they feel tonight."

--

"After the song finished, I said something. 'I feel infinite.'”

--

"Do you always think this much, Charlie?"
"Is that bad?" I just wanted someone to tell me the truth.
"Not necessarily. It's just that sometimes people use thought to not participate in life."
"Is that bad?"
"Yes."

--

(Please sing the blog post title to the tune of "I wish I were a rich man.")

xo-LP