Chicken Soup: A Bowl of Soup For Your Soul

Let me tell you first that I do love reading stories.That is specially with adventure and fantasy type of stories where it evolves in magic with the characters having some sort of abilities, then magical forest exist, gnomes or faes and there's a battle to be won between good and evil. The last series I had read and enjoyed was the "Dragonlance" series.

And then I was introduced into a book. There wasn't the kind of magic where wizards and secret portals to other worlds exist but it has some other form of magic. Reading the Chicken Soup for the Soul books gives courage, belief to one's self and life lessons from real people sharing their very own stories of life.

I learned about the book from my mom. 7 years ago, she handed me a book, the first chicken soup book I had laid my hands on.

"Try and read this," mom said to me as she handed me the book. "That is such a good book," she added. With the book in my hands, I glanced at it, "Chicken Soup for The Soul," it says in white cover. I just can't remember what series that was.

"This is not my kind of book," I thought to myself as I study the cover and flipped some pages. After few minutes of holding it, I tossed it aside. Weeks, or even months passed by.

I didn't exactly remember how I got into reading the book, but I could only think of one reason: I'm bored and that book must have been within my sight. And so I decided to flip the pages and found some stories that had captured my interest, it probably has some cartoons with captions in them that had made me laughed that lured me to read the story that came with it. And I just found myself reading stories after stories. There's this feeling of connection and feeling better about myself after reading a story.

And then... I had just finished the book! And I want more.

As of now, I have a total of 14 books of Chicken Soup for the Soul series. And there's reasons why I love them:

* Inspiration: There were instances where I would be reading a series and got into a story that really inspires me. Why? Because I can relate into it. Coming across stories that suits me and I can relate into is like piercing a light of hope through me and after I finished reading it, there's that feeling of comfort with a silent message of ," I can do it too."

* Learning and knowledge: Reading all those books, there would be some part of some stories that makes the reader go.... "Oh.. So that's what happens when going to a medical mission." Those were my thoughts as I read Chicken Soup for the Dental Soul. And while reading the book, I believed it was Chicken Soup for the Golden Soul, it gives me glimpsed on how war goes as I read a story about a boy who had managed to escape the Nazi soldiers.

* Laughter: I love flipping the pages the first time I got a new series and look at the cartoons. I enjoy reading those. Some makes me smile and there's those ones that really cracks me up.

With the 14 series I have, I'm still on the look out for other ones that I don't have yet. I enjoy reading stories.

(And this makes me want to have a trip to the nearby Thrifty stores for the weekend.) Why to a Thrifty store? Most, or I could say 12 or 11 of my books were either I got from Tierra Santa Ascension Catholic Church fiesta or from the Amvet or DAV from our area.

So what is your favorite series?