Book The Book!

"Who coined the term 'dinosaur', dad?" a young daughter asked. The father was confused, and then bought her beloved one her first dinosaur book, First Dinosaur Encyclopedia. He asked, "Have you got the answer, sweetie?" She replied, "Yes, dad! A man named Richard Owen did so. Thank you for buying me this book, daddy."

A little depiction of what a book is. Our life is full of books! Those who have never read a book, please comment below – I am sure that you have at least one book in your bedroom now. ;)

When in primary school, people read a lot of books, such as math and art books, and some people have gotten books as a birthday present from their friends or their loved ones (never? poor you.. :p). Some read books while on a train or bus (don't do this while driving a car!), whereas others read them during the time of pooping (eating? sorry.. :p). Yeah! Books have been our "guardian angels": they are everywhere! The question is: Why?

There is an Indonesian saying: books are windows into the world. Through books, we see the world. We know innumerable things such as natural science, psychology, economics, and sports by reading books. They are very important as they—including Facebook :p—can't be separated from our lives. Not reading books simply means being "blind".

Books can also entertain us. Two types of books which are considered to be entertaining by many people are comics and novels. I believe many of you like to read them, don't you? My favorite comics are Kungfu Komang and Doraemon. Personally, I think Kungfu Komang is the funniest, while Doraemon is the coolest.

Not only knowledge and entertainment, but also inspiration can be gotten by reading books! We can be more positive-thinking, more courageous, more confident, and so forth – there are many lessons we can learn from reading these sets of written and often illustrated paper sheets. When you read about a tough character, such as Chinmi in Kung Fu Boy, you may be inspired to be a tough cookie in your life. Besides the character(s), the story and even the author of a book might inspire us.

One thing worth mentioning is that books are generally reliable sources. If you want to look for information – for your research, for example – books are a good place to start. Nevertheless, the most reliable sources are journals; books should be "satisfied" with being "the runner-up".

However, keep in mind that books can also have a negative impact! They can be demotivating, contain misleading information, and the list goes on and on. Therefore, you really have to be selective or careful when choosing a book to read.

At present, it is so easy to get books. In the past, you had to go to a bookstore to buy one (not necessarily, if you are the son or daughter of the owner.. :p) Nowadays, there are online bookstores, which cater for bibliophiles and novice readers alike, such as Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble. You can place an order on the internet in just a few minutes and what you want will arrive at your home by mail in a certain length of time, depending on how much money you are willing to spend. Purchasing books is now really at your fingertips!

It is suggested that you buy books that you like and you need. Never buy any books that you wouldn't read as there could be many people needing them. In addition, you need to make sure that you read all the books you've bought – we are taught to eat all the food we have ordered and the same thing applies: we have to "eat" all the books we have bought, don't we?



Two days later. . .

"Honey, I've just arrived home from a bookstore. There was a dinosaur book titled "Dinosaurs: The Most Complete, Up-to-Date Encyclopedia for Dinosaur Lovers of All Ages". I'll go there again tomorrow. Do you want it?"

"Book the book, please!"