Similarities Between 'Tough Teen And The Selection' By Kiera Cass

Growing up, I struggled to gain the motivation to read. I thought that it was because I wasn’t smart enough, or something else about myself that was to blame for my lack of focus when reading. That was until one day when I picked up my favorite book in middle school that changed my life. My favorite book is “The Selection” by Kiera Cass. When I read the book series “The Selection”, I fell in love with the story and the way it was written. I had never enjoyed reading so much, I became addicted mere minutes into reading it. Little did I know, this was a very common occurrence for people. Two stories that help demonstrate this idea are “Sometimes the “Tough Teen" is Quietly Writing Stories” by Matt de la Pea and “Learning to Read” by Frederick

Both readings describe their lives and how reading changed them for the better. They remind me of when I picked up this book, and became so obsessed with the story I read about. This feeling and addiction is very common for many who used to believe that reading was too complicated or out of the norm. One question that many ask when told or recommended to read is “Why Read?” Reading means many different things to different people, but no matter what it means to read or why one should read, one thing stays the same: The way it makes you feel and how it changes your perspective on life. Pea’s story talks about how he had to grow up with stereotypes and with the feeling of being judged just for reading. His family pushed these personalized stereotypes onto him, saying that “Guys who read books — especially for pleasure — were soft. Sensitive. The snare is a snare. And if there was one thing a guy couldn’t be in my machista, Mexican family, it was sensitive” (Pea, 2013). This led Pea to never finish a novel until after high school. However, despite what Pea thought, he did have people in his life that were able to push him in the right

Interpretations from two or more different people are never the same. Reading opens your mind to more expansive ways of thinking and comprehending certain situations and words. I’ve learned from reading both of these stories that there are so many different ways to read and so many different obstacles some might have to overcome and face in order to read. Looking at both stories, it’s shown that reading is not as easy or possible as it is for others. Everyone lives through different stories, leaving them with only certain possibilities due to their specific circumstances and lifestyle. For many, the question “Why Read?” only has one answer: To escape the world they are currently in. Reading is not only an everyday activity, but it is an enjoyable pastime as well as an escape. For both Pea and Douglass, reading was something that they were not capable of doing without getting judged or hurt. Despite this, reading became their entire life once they picked up their first book. Just like both of these authors, myself, and many others, have been greatly affected by the words of these writers that create or convey stories onto