Top Ten Tuesdays: Reasons I Love Being a Bookworm

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Hello! This week's Top Ten Tuesdays theme is Reasons I Love Being a Bookworm.

1. It's impossible to be bored. Reading is something I can do almost any time and in almost any place. In the car. At home. At the store. At Awana while I'm waiting for club to start. At church, before and after the service. Between school subjects. In the five or ten minutes before I go to bed. As long as I have a book or some kind of reading material handy, I always have something to do that I enjoy doing. (Unless the only books handy are science and math textbooks. Then we have a problem.)
2. It takes me to places and introduces me to people I'd never otherwise see or meet. Books are pretty much the real-world equivalent of portals, teleporting, looking glasses, or whatever other fantastical method of instant travel you prefer. And if you have not, at some point, read a book and felt like you were there and you knew the characters nearly as well, if not better, than you know your best friend, I feel very sorry for you.
3. It's a way to escape. It's like the song says: "Reality is a lovely place, but I wouldn't want to live there." Hiding from problems won't solve them; I know that. But sometimes you need a break, a distraction, a bit of time to cool down and stop panicking. And there is no better way to do that than a book. (Unless your problem is that you're not getting enough sleep, in which case, nap now; read later.)
4. I learn from reading. Writing-wise, reading helps me see what to do and what not to do. It shows me what works and what doesn't. Knowledge-wise, there have been many times when I've read something in a schoolbook (particularly in history) and realized I already knew it from something I've read for fun. And life-in-general-wise, most good books have themes and characters which teach you something. 
5. On a similar note, because of reading, I know what to do in a variety of situations I'll probably never actually face. The chances of World War III breaking out and shattering the world as we know it, or of accidentally ending up in another world, or of anything to that effect happening, are extremely unlikely. But if they do happen, I'll know what to do. Theoretically. I'd prefer not to test the theory, though.
6. It connects me to other people. I know, it sounds a bit odd. Isn't reading all about being off by yourself, immersed in a good book? But it's true. I became closer to one of my friends because she recommended (and lent) books to me and we'd chat about them. I met many of my good online friends through a forum based off The Berinfell Prophecies. In fact, the vast majority of my friends are bookworms like me.
7. It inspires my writing. I wouldn't have really gotten into writing if I hadn't loved reading. I wouldn't have written 'Rosa: A Snow White Remake' if it hadn't been for the prompt in the back of Ella Enchanted. My daydreams, which generally lead into my writing one way or another, take nods from books I've read recently. And two books that I'd like to publish (if I ever finish them) wouldn't exist without fairy tale retellings like Princess of the Midnight Ball, Entwined, and The Merchant's Daughter.
8. Books remind me that there's something more. It's easy to look at the world and think that this is all there is. Books like The Tales of Goldstone Wood remind me that it isn't. There's much more out there, and each person was made for a special purpose. Life doesn't always make sense- but in the end, we'll see that everything happened for a reason. 

Well, there you have my reasons. What are yours? Feel free to tell me in the comments, or to make your own Top Ten Tuesdays post!
Thanks for reading!
-Sarah (Leilani Sunblade)