A trip down memory lane (From Swindon Advertiser)

A trip down memory lane

9:50am Thursday 6th November 2008

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ONE of my fondest childhood memories is the numerous, and frequent, trips I took to the town's library.

As a child, the fact the library was housed in a couple of huts didn't bother me and I can still remember the thrill of walking through the doors and being met by the sight of thousands of books, all waiting for someone to pick them up off the shelves and read them.

Running your fingers along the row of books as you tried to choose which one you were going to read next was one of the best feelings in the world and sitting down at one of the tables and opening it, before breathing in that book smell that only comes from years of loving page turning was magical.

I was amazed by all of the wonderful illustrations in the children's books and as a youngster couldn't believe that grown-up novels didn't have pictures.

I used to devour books, taking out a minimum of five every week and managing to read all of them from cover to cover by the following Tuesday.

And that love of reading has stayed with me my whole life.

So when the new library opened it's doors last month I was among the first to look around. It's light, airy, easy to use and there is even a cafe.

The excitement of it all got to me and I had to restrain myself from taking out the maximum 16 books, reminding myself - rather sternly - that there was no way I would be able to work my way through that many in three weeks.

So I settled for three instead and the first one I'm getting my teeth into is The Understudy by David Nicholls.

He's the author of Starter For Ten (which was made into a film starring James McEvoy last year) and while I'm only a few pages in I already can't put it down.

I'll keep you posted on the dramatic lives of Stephen McQueen and Josh Harper.