Books are powerful things. They can help us to find solace in our darkest of times. They can provide us with information about how to do the things that we want to do in our lives. They can sometimes be our best friends. In my own life, books have frequently inspired me to do things that I otherwise would not have thought of doing.

For example, it was a book that inspired me to go on a romantic vacation in Canada. I don’t recall what the name of the book that I read was but I know that it was a fictional story about a woman who had taken a Via Rail Canadian Rockies vacation. She fell in love during the trip and I fell in love with the description of the scenery depicted in the words of the novel. Shortly after reading the book, I planned my own trip to the Banff Canadian Rockies with a guy I had only recently started dating. It was the best trip I’ve ever taken.

I wouldn’t say that books tell us what to do. However, I do think that we can learn a lot from them and that our lives can be inspired by them. The message of the book itself may not even be what inspires us. As long as we take something away, though, I would say that a book has done its job.