You Are What You Read

For some inexplicable reason I have had the movie You’ve Got Mail in my head all week. While it’s among my all-time favorites, it’s not new and there’s no real reason for it to have been rattling around my head.

In case you, for whatever reason, have missed seeing this 1998 gem of a movie, I’ll give you the low-down on it. Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks are the (SPOILER) two main characters who both work in book sales. Eventually Tom Hank’s character, Joe Fox, runs Meg Ryan’s character, Kathleen Kelly, out of business. Fast forward to the end where they fall in love and all is basically forgiven.

These two pieces from the movie that have especially stuck out to me are tiny moments. They are but passing quotes that could have easily been edited out though instead, here they are showcasing the true power of words upon a page.

“I see so many things in life that remind me of what I’ve read in a book, when, shouldn’t it be the other way around?” 

The above quote shows up while Kathleen is unknowingly pouring out her soul online to Tom Hanks. The business she runs and owns is struggling and she’s wondering what worth her life truly has now that her dream is coming to a disappointing end. Her status as an avid reader, her love of books, her bookstore are all elements that are heavy with doubt now. Has she missed out on life simply because of too many books?

I am in the throws of a read-a-thon right now which may make this quote resonate more with me for, at the moment the majority of my life, not at work, is spent reading. Periodically I share this same insecurity: Am I missing out on life because I read too much? (Spoiler: the answer is no but that’s a post for another day)

 “You are what you read.”

In the movie, Kathleen’s eccentric writer boyfriend Frank writes an article in defense of her bookshop. The last line of that article is the quote “you are what you read”.

I’ve been twisting those words around in my head as I try to take inventory of what I read. My TBR is composed of mostly non-fiction, contemporary, mystery and fantasy though when I do read fiction, I throw in a few classics for good measure. It’s as if my reading were a recipe for me.

Neither of these thoughts that have been parading around my head nonstop for a week are earthshattering, however, they do make me feel understood. Similarly to Kathleen, my insecurities about being such an avid reader are what make me who I, proudly, am: a devoted bookworm.

What movie makes you feel understood as a reader?

YouTube Channel: WB Movies

 

Featured image via Hello Giggles

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