14 Signs You Were Born To Be A Reader

If you’ve ever been asked, “Were you born with a book in your hand?” This one’s for you. Some people hated books when they were younger, but grew to enjoy them later in life. Others have a love-hate relationship with books, and still others feel indifferent toward novels. But you could never feel that way, because you were simply born to be a reader.

For a long time, you’ve been known as “the one who loves books.” If your squad dresses up as the Disney princesses, you’re always Belle, because your friends know it fits. If you take a “what Harry Potter character are you” quiz, chances are you’ll get Hermione Granger just based on the fact that you’re a total bookworm. When you think of a happy place, you automatically think of a bookstore or a library, because it just makes sense.

And even though it seems as if you were born with a book in your hand, the truth is that your love of books developed over time. You didn’t come into the world knowing how to read. But you did come into the world and start exhibiting some signs that, yes — you were just destined to love books.

1. You Were Picking Up Books At An Early Age

Some kids played with blocks, some played with Hot Wheels cars, but you couldn't keep your hands off books. From Goodnight Moon to Olivia, you couldn't wait to decipher those mysterious symbols on the page. Also, the pictures were so pretty to look at. You wanted MORE BOOKS.

2. You Are Fascinated With Learning

Kids who read are pretty smart, according to science. Naturally, you've had a penchant for learning since you were a kid, and that desire to discover everything there is to know about your favorite subjects drove you to books.

3. You Have A Great Imagination

Some kids were pretty matter-of-fact, but not you. You know you were born to be a reader, because you were always coming up with or listening to crazy stories. Unicorns, wizards, outer space, stories from around the world — all were of extreme interest to your imaginative brain. Did you become imaginative because of reading, or did you read because of your stellar imagination? Now you can't even remember which came first.

4. You're An Empathetic Person

Studies actually show that people who read fiction are more empathetic, because reading stimulates those emotions in the brain. So if you were already hoping to read a book in order to understand people more fully, this cycle will only continue.

5. You'd Drop Everything If A Story Was Involved

When I was younger, and my parents were trying to get me to eat vegetables, my dad would start telling me a story. The stories he told were always about the Loch Ness Monster, which was a topic of extreme interest for me. Immediately as he started talking, my mouth would fall open, and I would eat as many vegetables as they wanted me to because I was so engrossed in the legend. You know you were born to be a reader when you drop everything to hear a story.

6. Bedtime Was Your Favorite

Some kids hated bedtime. But you LOVED it, because when you were a kid, bedtime meant story time. And then when you were older, it meant staying up all night reading next to your night light so your parents wouldn't know you were still awake. That little streak of rebellion (combined with bouts of insomnia) sealed your fate as a born reader.

7. When You First Went To A Library, You Thought You Were In Heaven

Hundreds of books in one place? Yes. You want to go to there.

8. You Know The Best Way To Unwind From Stress

Lots of people have hobbies to help them relieve stress, from yoga to knitting to binge watching Netflix while eating an entire sleeve of Oreos. But reading is scientifically proven to help you relax — even reading for just six minutes can help you unwind! If you were already a stressed out person, you were born to be a reader, because turns out it's the ultimate stress relief. I'm still going to be eating those Oreos, though.

9. Words Fascinate You

It's probably no surprise that reading develops your vocabulary. If you're someone who has always enjoyed words, large or small, complex or simple, you were born to discover ~myriad~ terms to fully express yourself within the pages of your favorite tomes.

10. You Started Hoarding Books At A Young Age

Forget collecting Pokemon cards or Mighty Beanz (remember those?). You knew there was something special about books, even from a young age, which is why your current collection is pretty impressive. It's not hoarding if it's books, right?

11. You Have Confused Book Plotlines With Your Own Memories

Because you're so empathetic, you sometimes forget if something actually happened to you or if it happened to a book character. That extreme investment in books doesn't mean you're crazy — it just means you were meant to be a bookworm. You know reading is serious business.

12. You Like Having Alone Time

If you're already the type of person who likes alone time, it was only natural that you became a reader. What better way to relax and unwind, far from the madding crowd, than on a window seat with a great book? Like wine and cheese, alone time and reading is the perfect pairing. And those two pairs incidentally also make a great pairing.

13. Your Family Reads A Lot

Studies show that kids who are surrounded by readers, will also develop an affinity for books. If your family is full of fellow bookworms, you were pretty much destined to be one, too.

14. You Want More Than Reality

In One for the Books, Joe Queenan claims that "if you have read 6,000 books in your lifetime, or even 600, it's probably because at some level you find 'reality' a bit of a disappointment.” But the thing is... books are part of reality. They just transcend this one. If you've discovered that secret, you know that reading lets you experience many worlds, making this one that much more epic.

Images: Giphy (13), Wordstuck/Tumblr, TriStar Pictures