When reflecting on the Oprah’s Book Club presentation and how I go about picking books, there has definitely been a natural progression throughout my life. When I was younger, my parents obviously made this decision for me, choosing books like Junie B. Jones or Cam Jansen Mystery books for me to read. My parents also enrolled me in multiple monthly book membership clubs, including the Dr. Seuss Club and a Disney one as well. Looking back, I realized that while these weren’t all necessarily what I would pick, I trusted my parents’ judgment and continued to read what they chose for me.
However, as I got older, other influences like reading programs, friends at school, and teachers began to have a greater influence on my reading. At school, I was encouraged to read for programs like Battle of The Books or Accelerated Reader, being awarded for doing so. At this point, I was choosing my own novels, but still reading teacher-selected picks in order to compete in these programs.
Following this, in high school, I didn’t particularly read much, as I was involved with so many extracurriculars. It was during this time that I found myself instead watching a lot of television and movies instead of reading the book. I thought that reading was too time-consuming for me at that time and chose to instead opt for shows that my friends had suggested to me.
Now that I’m in college, I’ve found a love for reading outside of the classroom again. As for who influences this, I choose to base my judgment off of reviews I read online or what is popular at the moment. Usually I will opt for novels that many others are reading and suggest on the internet, as it makes novels seem more credible and interesting. I, now more than ever, choose what I want to read for fun outside of the classroom, but am still influenced by others.
