Salman Rushdie's Haroun and the Sea of Stories Makes Me Want to Be More Childish

My favorite story is Salman Rushdie's Haroun and the Sea of Stories.  When I read it, for the first time in this class, I was entranced with its magic and creatively.  It has been a long time since I've read something so delightful.  It reminded me of what it felt like to be a child; the wonder and imagination that filled every moment of every day.  I wonder what my life would be like if I read such stories continually for a year, if it would change the way I see and interact with the world.  

I read the newspaper everyday, and have been doing so since I read James Cotes book, Arrested Adulthood: The Changing Nature of Maturity and Identity. One of the many significant points he makes in his book is that we need to fight against the current trend towards individualism and take part in our communities and that reading the local newspaper is the best way to stay connected to community issues and events. 

In addition to reading the newspaper, I've been reading a lot of books about the wild written by nature writers, activists, and environmental literature scholars.  There work is inspiring and many of them are on quests that incorporate many characteristics of good romance.

But now, after reading an ocean of stories, I feel the need to read more creative and nonsensical literature.  Rushdie's book awakened something in me and I feel it tingling inside.  My reading lists over the years have created a kind of sinew, a muscle that reaches toward movement, connection, and creating change.  But reading Rushdie makes me want to laugh more, dream more, and play more.