Spotlight
Are you scared of reading? I was......
4
Whats your story? Competition Winner 2nd prize Kindle
I remember a time, a few decades ago, when a library assistant was reading to a lot of children and I was amongst them. It gives me a happy, warm feeling as I remember the time. I was about 5 or 6 then and I was just beginning to read.
Most of the children had begun to read much sooner than I had and I felt confused as to why I couldn’t read well. I loved to look at the pictures and make my own story but was determined that one day, even though I was scared and perhaps different from the other children, I would one day read fluently.
Reading time at school was always a terrifying experience. I hated being picked on to read a passage and almost always tried to hide at the back of the class or in the toilets, hoping I wouldn’t be missed.
I became a bit of a loner because I didn’t want people to know that I was different and had a stutter. I didn’t have anyone to bring out the confidence in me, anyone who believed in me, anyone who would encourage me.
I remember a time when I was in a local library, whilst studying on a short course at City College, that I noticed a young woman engrossed in a book. She was literally transfixed, not knowing what was going on around her. I thought to myself, “She must have a good book there!”
I followed her and as she put the book back I picked it up, full of curiosity. I found my self reading this book and I couldn’t put the book down as I wanted to know what going to happen next in the story. The transformation was so sudden... I could read and understand. I was engrossed. All wasn’t lost. The feeling was as if I’d found my best friend. “Where have you been?” I asked.
Sadiza is a former dyslexia student. Here she explains how she came to love books and reading.