In a layman's words, a book is some pages bound together with a cover which gives us immense knowledge about a certain topic. There can be different types of books starting from story books and books dealing with science, philosophy, literature, the administration system of a country and what not. As the proverb says "A friend may cheat you or leave you in moments of terrible danger, but book will always accompany you and hold up a hand to help you." It has not yet been found when and where books originated from but still we know that early people wrote in leaves, heavy stones and needless to say, with the invention of language, writing began and thus books came into the hands of general people. Even in this modern age, books are the supreme contributor of knowledge and nothing can be regarded as an alternative to it.

Story books are those that contain stories intermingled with imagination and realism. They offer us a great lot of entertainment and this is the proper food for mind. From age-old ones to children, regardless of age, story books are the best option to spend ones leisure time fruitfully. Teachers also advise students to read story books to develop their thinking capabilities which would enable them to write freely. Novels can be defined as large stories and there are many famous novels written by the poets Rabindranath Tagore, Sharatchandra Chattopaddhay, etc. Tagore's novels include Ghare Baire, Gora, Chokher Bali, Chandalika, Malancha and the short stories are Naukadubi, Galpaguchha, CharOdhay, etc. Charles Dickens and William Shakespeare are the prominent writers in English literature and their creations defy time and they will exist forever in the hearts of every reader.

With the advancement of civilization, science has become an integral part of our life. And so there are books about science covering the range of physics, chemistry and biology. They provide us with various information as for example, how this great space has been created and how from the simplest micro organisms we, the human beings, came into life. The most attractive books which alure the book lovers is science fiction. Science-fiction stories are such which puts us between two stools whether to believe-the science or to be stuck in the fantasy world. As for instance, robot domination over the human civilization is an apocalyptic sign for the future but still too hard too accept logically. Comic books are a bombshell which will explode one with immense fun and even a octogenarian person will love to look through a comic. Sometimes moral lessons are given by the story which is very much helpful for the young learners. These are the ones most commonly read by us but books are also written upon poetry, economics, technology, history and geography. Therefore, we rush to go to the library to have a flavour of different species of books and to indulge ourselves in some quality moments which will not only benefit ourselves but also give us a fresh conception of recreation.

But in this 21st century, life is becoming fast and so we people, do not have so much free time which our ancestors easily got. Those which we get we spend it by chatting in the net, surfing the websites, sending e-mails or just having some food cooked with a cuisine at a hi-fi restaurant. Some talk on mobiles to friends and relations and just waste the useful time in a useless way. This is applicable to most today's youngsters who have forgotten to touch books. Very few are seen to go to the library and just read for at least ten to fifteen minutes. Today's young generation think that socializing and talking with people will make them much more modern, ultra cool and not study geeks.

Those who read books are classified as total nerds and they are often humiliated in front of others. To change these pupils' view, necessary steps must be taken. Schools should start library classes where each student must read for an hour in the school library and do up a commentary upon that topic. This is to ensure that if the child has read the books or not. Teachers should try to encourage students to read books and they should be an inspiration towards them which can influence their minds. Today's children are the hope of our nation. They are just like blossoming flowers who need proper care and nurturing. That is why, a book is a must as a nourishment to their healthy little minds. They will one day turn into adults and at that time they can also do the same i.e. to turn their future generation to book lovers. "Education is backbone of a nation." Just as a person cannot stand and walk around without a backbone, a nation must have educated persons to develop herself. Above all, a book loving country is an educated one because the more you read, the more you learn.

By Shatabdi Biswas

With the greatest of ardour

With the greatest of ardour
I think of thee,
My heart starts to warm and my soul begins to sing,
I compose verse upon verse inspiringly in honour of thee,
My pen exudes emotion with passion, zeal and zing.

Passion I express for thee
is wrapped in fondness,
And thy affection returned puts me at absolute bliss,
Thou art to me more than this universe; my Goddess,
Oh, how I need to worship my Goddess with a sweet kiss.

With a sweet kiss I give thee also the warmest embrace,
A warmth I still feel when we're millions of paces apart,
As in my thoughts I see the perfect orchid; thy beautiful face,
And thy beautiful words of
kindness I hold in my heart.

Thy beauty extends to thy
wonderful mind of amazing wonder,
How I admire the strength and bravery of thy soul sincerely,
Wealthy to even know thee so in awe of thee I lovingly maunder,
As thy perfect self showed me that perfect is life so gracefully.

I never believed perfection could exist until I met thee,
As to my every want and need thou art my puissant pleasure,
I know truly that one day soon thou shalt feel the same of me,
As thee and only thee alone
can fulfil my deepest desire.

My desire: to love thee in everyway, be loved back as such,
Keep thee safe whilst thou art dreaming in thy sleep,
Be close to thee always so I may hear thy heartbeat much,
And gift thee my body & mind and my heart & soul to keep.

For I to thee am gladly
devoted for all that is space and time,
Tis granted always thou hast profound adoration from me,
As thy beautiful promise, twas given to me; thou art mine,
Hence, always, with the greatest of ardour I think of thee.

By ImZ