Confessions of a Bookworm

Is there anything about your reading life that you think people would be surprised to learn?

That question is what sparked the following list of confessions related to books and reading. Some of them are slightly embarrassing, but mostly they are just #truth and I hope a few of my fellow bookworms can relate. At the very least, I hope they make you feel better about yourself and take away any guilt you might harbor about your own reading habits. Give me a shoutout in the comments if any of these confessions ring true for you!

1. I’ve never read Harry Potter.
   
   I know, I know, you’re all disappointed in me. But the good news is I have plans to rectify this travesty soon, because Middle-Grade March is only a month away and I do plan to participate.
   
2. Sometimes I hide from my kids so I can read a few extra pages.
   
   Places I have done this: the bathroom, the closet, in the floor on the far side of my bed. I mean, if I thought they really needed something I would come out immediately. But most of the time they just want to know what’s for dinner so they can go ahead and start complaining about it now, so I just stay where I am and enjoy one more page.
   
3. I check out library books I’m pretty sure I won’t have time to read.
   
   Why? Because I can’t walk away from a book that’s calling my name, even if it’s a siren song seeking to distract me from other priorities and obligations. Also I read somewhere recently that borrowing more books is good for circulation numbers, so I’m helping my library look busy (which hopefully equals more funding) even when I don’t actually read the book before I return it.
   
4. I buy books as gifts that I want to read myself.
   
   In my defense, I don’t gift a book only because I want to read it. I do try to choose books that the recipient will genuinely enjoy. But in the back of my mind the game plan is to wait a few months and then say something like, “Hey, did you enjoy Book XYZ? Wow, that sounds great, could I borrow it sometime?”
   
5. The library summer book sale is something I think about all year.
   
   As many books as you can stuff in a grocery bag for $5? I absolutely will adjust my plans to be there and take advantage of this once a year opportunity. It’s one of the few times in my life where I’m able to tell myself, “You can have whatever you want, girl” with no inner or outer recrimination.
   
6. Sometimes I fall asleep while I’m reading to my kids.
   
   The situation usually looks something like this: it’s late afternoon, we’re snuggled comfortably on the couch, and we’ve read this book approximately 5,394,571 times before. My eyes start to drift shut and I can still do one or two more lines from memory before one of the girls elbows me and I wake up and turn the page.
   
7. I wash all my clothes together and definitely don’t separate lights and darks.
   
   Oh wait, I think that was just a regular life confession, not a bookish one. Oops.

What are your bookish (or other) confessions?