Reading is....

...experiencing the thunderstorm from a place of safety

 

My baby daughter stood at the window watching the rain fall, listening to the thunder.

She pointed at the rain, then reached up to touch her hair, as if wondering why the rain wasn't getting her wet.

We can safely experience the world through a good book. 

All the thunder.

All the lightning.

It can be a little scary, but we're never hit, never hospitalized.

With an open window we can even smell the rain, taste it, maybe even feel the sharp, cold splatters on our cheeks, but we're never drenched.

This must be one of the allures of reading. 

What else draws you to a good book?