Talk about an exciting book you recently read?
- What is the name of the book?
- Who is the author?
- What is the storyline of the book?
- Explain why you liked the book?
I believe that books are the best friends of human beings. Books are the repository of knowledge and information. Sometimes these tend to be our guides, sometimes people get inspiration and motivation from them and sometimes one can simply enjoy reading to drain his stress and anxiety. Even, there is a vast variety of books available in the market – fiction, drama, romance, satire, mystery and lots more, from which one can pick his favorite accordingly. The one which I found the best page-turner out of all those I have read so far is “The Alchemist” by Paulo Coelho. It was originally written in Portuguese and was translated into 56 languages – which is a history in itself. Moreover, it is an international bestseller till date.
Around two months ago, one of my friends recommended this book to me as she knew that I am an avid reader. I remember I was out of bucks that time, so was unable to purchase that. Therefore, she lent me her edition to peruse it. Without wasting even a single second, I started devouring it. To my surprise, I felt amused as I moved on. Coming on to the storyline, the story revolves around a young shepherd Santiago who faced all the obstacles and fears and travelled a huge distance in search of a treasure, which was supposed to be near the pyramids of Egypt, which often came in his dreams. During his quest, he met many people and learnt many lessons. Initially, he met a Gypsy woman who helped to interpret his dream and King of Salem who introduced the idea of personal legend to him. After getting inspired by their motivation, he set off to chase his dream. Then he met a crystal merchant who gave him a job and an opportunity to earn good money. While crossing the desert, he met an Englishman, who inspired him to pursue chasing his dream. He fell in love with a girl named Fatima, she too asked him to go on. With the help of the alchemist, he completed his last phase of journey and got to know about the treasure.
The fable encourages people to face and overcome the difficulties, challenges, fears which come across their ways and to follow their heart and dreams. Not only I had enjoyed perusing the novel but I also insisted my friends to read it. It is an amazing one.
Vocabulary Used
- Repository: a central location in which data is stored.
- Satire: Irony/ Sarcasm
- Page turner: An exciting book
- Avid: Keen/ eager
- Out of bucks: Out of money
- Peruse: Read in a careful way
- Devour: Read quickly and eagerly
- Amuse: Delight
- Quest: Search for something
- Legend: Tale/ Story/ Saga
- Pursue: Continue
- Fable: A short story
FOLLOW UP QUESTIONS
Ques1: Do people enjoy reading in your country?
Ans: Nowadays, my countrymen are turning towards reading with a huge interest. People love to read in their leisure time – not just to pass the time but because of the inevitable benefits it has. They opt to read books, novels, magazines etcetera.
Ques2: What kind of books are usually read in your country?
Ans: Well, it varies with the tastes of individuals and their moods accordingly. The novels based on love stories, autobiographies of great personalities and spiritual books are quite popular in India.
Ques3: Why do you think reading is important?
Ans: Reading, most of all, gives immense pleasure which really works well to strain out one’s stress and anxiety. And it also helps to build one’s vocabulary and to develop the language skills.
Ques4: Do you think children should be encouraged to read?
Ans: Definitely, as it would help them to learn new vocabulary words, to hold good command over the language. In addition, it would also help to enhance their knowledge and creative skills. Moreover, it would provide them the joy of reading. So reading habits should be inculcated in children.
Ques5: Do you think gifting a book is a great option?
Ans: Well yes, I believe that books are the best friends of the human beings. Also,
nowadays, people are quite particular about the usability of the things they are gifting to
someone. What can be more useful than a book? It is the best option for sure.
