Luke Aulbert

UWRT 1103
2/1/2016
Malcom Campbell
A Reading Renaissance
Reading has been something in which I both hated as a rebellious teenager and enjoyed
as a child and a young adult. When I was a child, I craved to read books such as Magic Tree
House, and The Hunger Games. In middle school and early high school, however, I began hating
reading. The act of picking up any book and forcing myself to miserably engage in the dreaded
act of reading a book was pure agony for me. I rarely spent any time reading books and decided
to read only when I was forced to read. Why should I read when reading is dull and boring and
other activities such as television, running, and surfing the internet were more engaging and
overall a more enjoyable activity to engage in? This has been often the logic of my early
adolescent self, however, during my senior year, my attitude as well as my perspective on
reading drastically changed from hating reading to actually enjoying to read. Because I learned
to find my love for reading as a senior in high school, I learned that reading could give me a
sense of freedom as well as some interesting creative ideas.
In the course of my senior year, I remember being in the microcosm known as my room,
wrapped up in a snug blanket, in a rather cozy bean bag chair and listening to a rather soothing,
quiet, elderly voice of two academic professors debating about something to do with
postmodernism and literature relating to postmodernism with the audio pouring sound through
my noise-canceling Bose headphones to minimize outside sound. This magnificent, tranquil
atmosphere I crafted, induced an almost hypnotic state on me as I listened to the debate. I do not
recall the name of who exactly was talking, but I do remember the podcast was on the Guardian
Books Podcast. The podcast was specifically about debates on postmodernism and its application
to modern society and these two professors went back and forth exchanging viewpoints on the
concept of postmodernism particular on postmodern literature. I do not recall any specific books

Luke Aulbert
UWRT 1103
2/1/2016
Malcom Campbell
they reference as they listed piles and piles of book that could probably fill the congress library,
however I do remember one particular statement. I remember one of the two professors stated
reading was as important to the human existence as the invention of oxygen. He then went on
more listed literary reference to post-modernism but I could not remember the reference yet
again. After I took my headphones off and engaged back into reality, I decided to face to this
statement the professor said head-on.
After hearing this podcast, I couldnt decide which book to read first, so I decided it
would be best to surf the internet in an attempt to find a book best suited for me. I remember this
process took a few days as I was uncertain about whether or not each book was suitable for me. I
searched google for the best modern books, but found these books to be a bit light to read, I
looked at Goodreads for recommendations for what book I should read, however I did not like
any of the recommendations Goodreads provided. Eventually I ran into a blog post about a book
claiming a book to be one of the best books of the 20th century. This book was called Lolita. I
began to read Lolita and I havent regretted this decision since.
Vladimir Nabokovs Lolita is a book in which enlightened me about why exactly should I
read. As I read Lolita, I remember becoming transformed by Humbert Humberts (the narrator)
words. I remember Humbert Humbert convincing me of his action of seducing a 12-year-old girl
into being a heroic feat. The way Nabokov painted the story on paper was so intriguing, I began
to actually sympathize with Humbert Humbert and began to paint the 12-year-old girl as the
villain. I remember just how shocked I was when I read the ending of Lolita, when I discover
Humbert Humber narrated in a mental institution, I was appalled to see myself giving in to
Humbert Humbert pleas and whims and actually saw a 12-year-old girl as evil. After I closed the
book, I saw books as a powerful tool as well as a dangerous weapon. Since Nabokov manages to

Luke Aulbert
UWRT 1103
2/1/2016
Malcom Campbell
convince me that wrong was right, imagine what this implication could do on a larger scale.
Lolita taught me books were vital to the human existence as oxygen and I must read in order to
escape the wills of others and form independent thoughts. By reading I was practicing the art of
freeing myself from others and becoming an independent spirit.
Lolita is a book that ignited a fiery literary passion that still exists to this day. Lolita has
led me down an unpredicted path of books which have not only taught me to think as an
individual, but also taught me things I wouldnt have even thought about had I not read books.
Books such as Stories of Your Life and Others have taught me different perspectives of
spirituality and religion which is something I doubt normal people discuss or think about in
their daily lives. The Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell is a book teaching me how different time
periods connect with the mystery of Luisna Del Rey connecting to modern times and with
modern times connected to future Somni in which the world is run by Somni which are human
clones and watching a movie in the classic era in which is todays modern period. Without books,
I would have never delved into thinking such as this and would have dived into the world of
ignorance and stupidity.
Unfortunately, as much as I enjoy reading, I know people around me do not feel the
same. Growing up in my household, no one in my family came even close to the amount of
books I have read. I would even go so far as to said that I read more books as a 19-year old
college student then my parents have read for their entire lives. I did not have the luxury of
growing with a family encouraging to read at a young age. I remember a conversation with my
mom that showed just how much encouragement I received from my parents.
Can I have the new Artemis Fowl book that just came out, I just finished the newest book and
really want the new one

Luke Aulbert
UWRT 1103
2/1/2016
Malcom Campbell
We have plenty of books at home.
Now to anyone who reads books intensely you could see just how absurd this argument really is
as each book is a different being by itself and as a result, not all books are created equally. I
wanted to read something that had far more value to me than any of the books we had at home. I
wanted to read a book that would challenge me as an individual. To go further what exactly the
books we had at my house, my mom was referring to books such as Huckleberry Finn, Pretty
Women, Oliver Twist, and the Bible. Given I was a child at the time, maybe you can now see
why I wanted a new book.
Unfortunately, my parents are not the only people to berate books. During my senior year
when I worked at Bojangles, I remember a co-worker insulting another co-worker simply
because she read books. I decided to defend my fellow literate co-worker with the following
phrase,
Well I read books too, in fact, I like to finish a book a week.
My illiterate co-worker responded with the following
That is because you are weird.
While she didnt have the best argument as to why she thought reading was weird, many
people unfortunately feel the same way she does. By reading myself, I hope to demonstrate an
example to society that reading has its uses and is indeed an activity everyone should take apart.
By reading, maybe I can convince others to partake in reading to escape the wretches of their
everyday lives. I lived in a small town and being in a small town if I didnt keep myself educated
about matters abroad I would be ignorant to the world around. Ultimately, by reading books, I
am creating a new sense of being. Ultimately by reading I am recreating my life.

Luke Aulbert
UWRT 1103
2/1/2016
Malcom Campbell
Without books, I would have never been able to escape the confounds of my hometown.
Without books I wouldnt have learned more about human society and failed to have built on to
my morality as I simply couldnt fathom these ideas by myself. By reading books I managed to
create a unique sense of freedom that lasts until this day as well as delving into the academic
world of intellectualism and increases my understanding of civilization and morality as a whole.
By reading, I am escaping this oppression. By reading, I am free.