When we read books, the stories in them transport us from the world we are in to the world within the pages of the book. To be transported by a book requires the reader to have an emotional response to the book, to visualise the story and eventually, become immersed in it. As a reader, I consider myself lucky to have read several books that have made me lose awareness of my existing surroundings and drawn me into the story unravelling in the book.
“There’s always room for a story that can transport people to another place.” – J.K. Rowling
When I think of being transported by a book, a recent incident comes to my mind. On a winter morning, I had boarded a train to Furkating, a small town in Assam. It was a bleak morning and the sun was a pale yellow, melting into a silver sky. In a compartment colder than December, I sat tucked in my winter clothes amidst rows of filled seats. As the train started with a jolt, I brought out a book from my overstuffed handbag and started reading the first chapter.
Soon, I was deeply engrossed in the story and before I knew it half an hour had passed… The train was starting to slow down as we had reached a station; on a cemented slab in yellow, the letters read ‘Panbari’. Some of the seats in front of me that were previously filled now lay empty. Two of the solo passengers who sat ahead of me had struck up a conversation about the weather in Dimapur – probably the place they were heading to. The winter sun was now splattered across the sky and shining over thatched-roof villages that we were fast leaving behind as the train gained momentum.
Mary Balogh describes it perfectly, “Have you ever wanted to travel back in time? I know I have. And I think that’s why historical romance is so appealing. That experience of being so immersed in the story that it feels like you’re really there: strolling along in a moonlit rose garden with a duke, or taking tea in a lady’s finely appointed drawing room. And if you’re the adventurous type (like me), perhaps you find yourself riding on a cable car in San Francisco, or exploring the canals of Venice in a gondola. Whatever the tale, these new experiences are just waiting to be discovered; beckoning you, enticing you, entreating you to pause, to sit down and to spend time between the pages of a good book.”
