Books give me hope

By Ethan, Age 11

It was a brisk morning, March 13th, 2020. That was the day I heard the news that
school was going to be taking place virtually. I had so many questions without any
answers. How long is this going to last? Are we going to be okay? Millions were infected by the virus we called Covid-19. Months went by and everybody was losing hope, including me. Tantrums were thrown,
tears were shed every day. The lockdown was taking a toll on me, but hope was on the
way. In 2021, I joined my first virtual book club. Books were one of the only things keeping
me sane during that time of uncertainty. Stories take me to faraway lands, they give me
hope, and the one thing better than reading novels is discussing them with other book
enthusiasts. Soon, I connected with authors about my reviews of their great reads. After every book I
read, I wrote a book review. Every day I read a book, and every day, another book
review was written. Writing about the stories I read kept a smile on my face throughout the pandemic, and that smile has never faded.

Books. Give. Me. Hope.