Jeily Sanchez #1

Coffee House #1

In the short essay “Where I Learned to Read” Salvatore Scibonas narrates in first person to openly describe the impact books had in his life. Scibona was balancing both work and school and found himself prioritizing his job repeatedly. Despite this he had a comfort zone where he enjoyed reading and called the “Backyard-rehab”. Reading made him feel happy and later on what started as a hobby became his daily need not only mentally but physically too. He found a group of friends who helped him better understand what reading refers to. They were able to further analyze what they read together and in a fun environment. When everything wasn’t going well for him he found refuge in reading books and thanks to the friends who he found amongst him he was saved from his own reality, for at least as long as he kept himself reading. The main message in the essay written by Scibonas is the power books hold on us. I enjoyed reading this essay because it is a piece of reading that I can strongly connect to my own experiences in which reading and books have saved me from my own reality and allowed me to live thousands of lives aside from my own.