My love for reading wasn't something that was ingrained in me from a young age. I moved from picture books to full prose fairly early, but it didn't really bloom until I was an adult.

I do remember my first encounter with the love of reading, though. It began with being read to by my teacher. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis was that book for me. It was my entry into a world of wonder and the realisation that a story could take you somewhere completely different, into a world that existed in your own imagination.

The next book to captivate me was Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl, which again took me on a ride of fantasy and imagination.

When I reached my pre-teen years, reading became compulsory as part of the curriculum. One book that really stood out for me was Hatchet by Gary Paulsen. As a young boy myself, and despite having a preference for more immediate forms of entertainment, I was completely drawn into it. The main character, Brian, is a boy around the same age I was at the time. He survives a plane crash and is forced to survive alone in the wilderness with only a hatchet. It was exactly the kind of adventure that could grab a young boy's attention.

There were books I read between then and my late teens, but it was The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien that really pulled me back into reading as a form of complete escapism.

I remember being surprised by how enormous the book was. But once I started, it became very difficult to put down. Being taken on a quest through a world filled with danger, strange creatures and incredible characters is something that still captures me today. I'm still drawn to that same genre, with books such as Elric of Melniboné, Conan the Cimmerian and The Blade Itself.

There is something wonderfully comforting about sitting safely at home while following your heroes through brutal trials. Apparently, watching other people suffer fictional hardship from the comfort of your couch is one of the things that keeps me reading.

So, I suppose I became a reader in stages. It started with someone reading stories to me, then grew through fantasy, adventure and eventually discovering the kinds of books I genuinely loved.

Image, Daniel Allen, supplied.

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