My book

23. If you were to write a book, on what theme or subject matter would it be based, and why? (Stanford/93)

As a high-school student, you have to write essays or paragraphs all the time; either for English assignments, history tests, or even mathematic projects. Writing surrounds you. But for some reason, never have I ever truly considered writing a book.

I doubt anyone can know the number of books written by human beings. They are infinite, not only in number but also in the stories they tell. Some books become bestsellers; others lead more private lives, only ever being read a few people. It all depends on the fate of an individual book, along with its story and writing. I do believe that there are brilliant books which simply never made their way to big publishing houses.

If I were to write a book, I think it would be a children’s book. Children have an imagination that seems to disappear with age.  This is not to say that adults do not have an imagination, of course they do. But the imagination of child is different; it is bigger with more dimensions.

If you tell a child that there are dragons in the back of your garden, they will not question your mental state or burst out in laughter at the apparent absurdity of your statement, they will believe you. They might even check in the garden to see if they are lucky enough to encounter one of the magical dragons.

My tale would be a magical tale.  An adventure in which the protagonist, a brave young girl or boy, has to overcome difficulties, encounter dragons, fight off goblins, drink tea with fairies, and make new friends. The plot would be to save a town or the world from doom.

Stereo typical one might say to the above description. Yes, this story would not be revolutionary in any way, nor will it be a new genre. Yet, this story would, hopefully, teach children about the choices one may have to make in life, and the way to go about making them whilst remembering that your imagination is always there to support through times of difficulties.

I grew up reading these tales, and I believe that, to a certain extent, it is my duty to pass on such stories. These books made my world a lot more interesting. I learnt that you had to stick your friends and help them, that you sometimes had to make tough decisions in life whose benefits only became evident after a while, and that adventure exists.

A garden was not just an eco-system inhabited by different plant and animal life, or as Oxford dictionary says “a piece of ground adjoining a house, used for growing flowers, fruit, or vegetables”. A garden was an adventure; it was the playground of imagination. It was home to fairies, to dragons, to every possible creature I could imagine.
Perhaps being shorter made the whole world more intense, and gardens in particular. What I now look at as a flower beds were once jungles, or tall grasslands.  I believe imagination is vital to having a happy childhood, and it is important to utilize the imagination children are gifted with.

While doing this, children’s books also help shape individuals, their beliefs and values, thus shaping the future of this world. One day a little child will grow-up to become a world leader, and if that child read a children’s book that taught him or her value of integrity, loyalty, and that the end doesn’t really have to be the end. There is always more to life, all one has to do is keep on going and looking towards the brighter future. This child will be able to be optimistic in times of trouble.

It is instances like these where one’s imagination can help, and hopefully bring back the happy memories created by a certain special children’s book, a certain book, hopefully, written by me. Word-count: 663