Bender

I’ve been on a real bender lately.

With so many of us stuck at home anyway, it’s just been so easy to justify.

That’s right. I’m the one your librarian warned you about: The binge reader. I don’t even stick to the same book in a day; I easily have six going at any one time.

Just halfway through the next installment in my favorite cozy mystery – which doubles as a Victorian period piece, and triples as a character-driven romp – I cracked open Harry Potter again.

It’s for a friend, I swear.*

Just as the local watering hole supports a liquid bender, you can bet I rely heavily on local libraries. I can’t even count the times I’ve stayed until close, enjoying the delicious feeling of being surrounded by more books than even I can try to read at once.

My books, borrowed and owned, are all over the place: one lying half-read on the living room table, one in the side room, another (or several) by the bed. My bookshelves and e-reader are filled with dozens of half-read and to-be-read volumes.

Even my phone isn’t spared. I don’t have a certain candy-themed game or social media apps, but I do have three for reading books alone.

Let’s just say my library card sees more action than my credit card.

I’m a monster who constantly devours pages – slowly in bursts between other novels, news articles, and the occasional non-fiction work.

(But hey, at least I don’t dog-ear the pages.)

Thank goodness for the habit, because lately, my gaze doesn’t stray much further than my cup of coffee.

Aside from a few walks (carefully avoiding others’ paths), it’s only through books that I’m “getting out.”

I’m traipsing through Egyptian archaeological sites with a Victorian couple who solve murder who-dunnits (and yes, the Amelia Peabody series was the partial inspiration for this week’s Coeur Voice article featuring archaeology).

I’m horrified at 17th century Scotland (it’s the times, not the lovely culture itself) thanks to Outlander.

My partner is walking me through the fictional lands in the Four Corners of Civilization of Temerant, awed by magical Sympathists and Namers (preparing for the third installment of the Kingkiller Chronicle series this summer).

Yuval Noah Harris has taken me back to the dawn of human history – literally – explaining Early Man’s origins and making his way through the history of our species.

I just learned about the art of the “The 4-Hour Work Week” from Timothy Ferriss and how to achieve “Financial Freedom” from a Millennial millionaire.

*And I really am revisiting the world of Hogwarts for a friend. After all, connection isn’t all about Zoom chats or even phone calls. Sometimes you just need to share a good read.

But if it wasn’t for our local libraries, I couldn’t be the successful book monster I am.

Even while the buildings are closed, my library card still opens worlds for me. And enables my reading benders.

So in honor of National Library Week, I just want to say thank you to all the libraries and all the librarians and volunteers.

Thank you for a lifetime of knowledge and magic – with even more stories to come.

By the way, if you want to participate in the American Library Association’s American Library Week event April 19-25, you can still “visit” the library virtually through the Libby and Overdrive apps to check out e-books and audiobooks. Visit Cdalibrary.org/explore/288-overdrive for instructions.

You can also show your support on social media with free graphics provided by the ALA at Ala.org/conferencesevents/celebrationweeks/natlibraryweek.