Reading books has been very common ever since the 19th century and over the years many people have grown fond of reading books in many different genres like Fantasy, Comedy, you name it. At Eureka High School, according to Dawn Jerger and Ashley Eiswirth, librarians, a total of 8,112 books have been read within the year of 2025.
Adalyn Swallow, 10, is a vivid reader and really enjoys reading whenever she has the chance.
“I just like to read because it gives me a way to imagine a world of fantasy world and stuff,” Swallow said. “I just like reading a lot. And it inspires me to help others.”
She even changed her opinion of what books, graphic novels and chapter books she enjoyed more.
“If you had asked me in middle school, I probably would have said back to the novels,” Swallow said. “But right now it’s more the chapter books stuff because there’s more to read for chapter books.”
Language Arts teacher Mark Mosley and known author of “Convict Island”, also enjoys reading.
“I find it just a calming thing to do and just kind of a way to escape,” Mosley said. “I mean, as nerdy as it is, for instance, I love Harry Potter, I love Lord of the Rings and I just love being transported to those different worlds outside my own reality for a little bit. It’s a nice escapism and it’s just kind of a comfort. Nothing better than sitting down and just having some peace and quiet and reading something.”
Mosley appreciated both graphic novels and chapter books for certain reasons.
“I’ve read a couple of graphic novels that I enjoyed, but I’m more of a chapter book person,” Mosley said. “I can’t really say why. I think there’s a lot of great things in graphic novels and I appreciate how well they’re written. My sons love a book series called Lightfall and we read that. We’ve read that a few times, but I’m more of a chapter book guy partly because I listen to a lot of books, because I have a 30 minute commute to that I really enjoyed.”
Language Arts teacher Grace Daugherty has her own shares of interest in reading.
“I like to read a lot because I like how it’s an escape and I like the amount of detail it gives whereas movies don’t give quite as much detail,” Daugherty said. “I think it’s just a nice relaxing calming form of entertainment. I probably like to read so much because my mom is also an English teacher. She would read story stuff a lot when we were little.”
She even gives an honest opinion of her choice between the two types of books.
“Probably chapter books,” Daugherty said. “I don’t have anything against graphic novels, but I feel like the books that interest me the most aren’t in the graphic novel form.”
While chapter books might seem to be a better or more common choice, that doesn’t mean other people can enjoy graphic novels as well.
“Find the thing that gives you joy in the world and throw yourself into it fully,” Daugherty said.
