90 pages 10 pages

‘The shadows of the Wind’ that’s the book you should read next Julie.

Thanks Michael, let me google and see what it is about. Hmm that

seems to be a mystery book. I am not sure if I would want to read mystery book.

Julie, do you like books that are well written, take you to

places and ignite your imagination?

Yes, I do Michael.

Do you like books which connect you with characters, and you get

to feel what they are feeling?

Yes of course that’s the best part of the books.

So why not a mystery book if you are getting all these things

that you are looking for in a book?

I never thought about it this way Michael, it’s a good point. I

do love the connection. Maybe my previous experience with mystery books hasn’t

been that great or maybe I can’t stand the stupid surprises we get in the end.

I feel like the authors usually create a lot of drama and suspense throughout

the book which is quite interesting, and I love that but in the end it’s not

the same. The magic is not the same. I feel that spark and connection in the

whole book until I turn those last 10 pages and there you go! The book goes in

the bin.

Hmm interesting. So, let’s say a book has 100 pages and you

thoroughly enjoyed 90 but the last 10 pages you did not enjoy could ruin the

whole experience for you?

Yeah, I guess..

So whatever books you have read so far and the moments you have

lived in the book, the breathes that you have taken while reading those 90

pages. If you get a chance to go back in time, would you rather not live those

90 pages?

Hmm I wouldn’t say that, Michael. I have enjoyed mystery books

but.. In the end it’s usually not what I would have expected it to be, or the

ending was so twisted that I felt disappointed, especially for some characters.

Are you saying that because you got so attached with the

characters you somehow wanted to control the ending and make it happen your

way?

That’s a tough one Michael. I think I did not expect it to go my

way as such because I never really imagined ending in a particular way. I was

relying on the author to satisfy my mind in the climax so I could feel that

reading those 90 pages were worth it.

Michael smiled. I never thought that the worth of those 90 pages

depended entirely on the climax and not on the smiles and blinks you

experienced in 90 pages journey.

Julie reflected. You are giving me a tough time now Micke. Ok tell

me more about the book you are recommending. What is it about?

It is about a mysterious character you could potentially fall in love with. It is about the young boy who is on a hunt for something, for someone. It is about the essence of Barcelona. It is about the breeze you can feel in the city. It is about the streets you get lost in to find those characters. It is about your own mind and the unique way it could imagine and connect with the characters. It is about.. Michael paused and got lost in the memories of that book.

Julie looked at Michael and said: “It is about that magical feeling on the journey. The smiles. The blinks. The skipped heartbeat. Isn’t it.”

Michael returned from his trip to the book and sighed like an old married couple who visit their initial honeymoon memories. Ah those good old days type of feeling.

But how was the ending Micke, Julie laughed.

Well, to be honest I can’t remember every bit of the ending and I don’t think I was very satisfied with the climax but what I do remember is the shadows I was chasing in the book. The conversation I was having with that young boy when I was out in the streets of Barcelona with him searching for something. Searching for someone who only appeared as a shadow in the book.

I feel intrigued now. I think I will read this book, but I will keep in mind that the climax is not what I should focus on neither expect too much from it. Maybe I would keep reading those 90 pages over and over again till I really find the courage to flip final 10 pages.

You know what Julie, I took a week to read the book but to read the climax I took forever. I so did not want to end the feeling of staying in the book. I kept delaying those final pages. It was a fight between ‘I want to know what happens’ vs ‘I don’t want this to end’.

Really? For me, on the contrary, I want to know what happens rather sooner. I guess I do enjoy the feeling of being locked in the book but I also want to be released from it so I could move on to the next one and experience someone else’ story.

That’s a fair point Julie, I never thought of it that way. Maybe I love the feeling of being locked up in someone’s world more than the freedom of being released. Not that I don’t want to move on, but I guess I fear the separation. The loss of contact with the characters. I fear the emptiness of it all being over. And the loneliness that I will have to face until I find refuge in someone else’s story.

Are you saying that because you get so attached with the characters you somehow allow them to control how it ends for you?

That’s a tough one Julie. I guess I am just terrified of the endings. It’s not worth reading those final 10 pages so soon and losing the feeling I experience in 90 pages.

Julie smiled. I never thought that the worth of book reading experience depended only on how much you want to be confined in the 90 pages and not on the freedom you experience in the last 10 pages journey.