We truly enjoy reading — it is one of the ways we practice gratitude, meaning, hospitality, openness, and enthusiasm. Some books we pick up when we're seeking knowledge on a subject that interests us. Or we may feel like exploring an alternate world created by a novelist or sci-fi writer. In the process, reading also exercises our faith, fires our imagination, stirs our soul, and expands our circle of compassion.

Lina Weltner hits the nail on the head when she writes: "In real life I have qualms, a moral code, a sense of duty. I live within confines. In books, I am free to soar and to explore. There are no limits to my being." We get the feeling that Leah Price, a distinguished professor of English at Rutgers University, is in sync with the same love of reading.

In this spunky and enlightening book, she reveals the many times books have scurried out from under ominous death sentences in the past. In fact, statistics show that print sales have increased in the United States each of the past four years and that a third of Americans in their late teens and twenties reported reading an e-book in 2017.

Even though Price stands by the idea of the solitary reader, she also believes that books should be celebrated for their important role in building community. Bookmobiles keep great works of literature and modern best-sellers out on the streets. A nonprofit called Libraries Without Borders places books in laundromats in the Bronx.

All those who really care about books are finding many new and creative ways to share them with others. Now there's some good news for these troubled times!