Books Saved My Life by Hailey

Books Saved My Life by Hailey - March 2025 Scholarship Essay

As a kid, every other week I envisioned a new future for myself. One week I was convinced that I was going to be a scientist (just because I liked to mix soaps together in the bathtub and pretend like I was making something); and then the next week I wanted to be a lawyer because I watched too many episodes of Law & Order: SVU with my grandpa. The one thing that remained consistent throughout my life was my love of books.
Whenever my parents were arguing or my family was having a bad day, I’d hole-up in my bedroom and read a book. My problems seemed small when I was reading about Katniss Everdeen leading a rebellion in The Hunger Games; they seemed small when I was reading other dystopian novels like The Giver. I continued to crave the euphoric sense of relief from the real world–from my world. Because if Katniss can conquer a dictator, I could survive the unideal circumstances of my childhood.
Into my teenage years, I continued to be an avid reader, but for some reason, I never imagined pursuing literature in a professional sense. I was 15 and scared for the future, and at that point in time, I just assumed that I’d study Business or Marketing. But every Business class I took in high school left me empty; I didn’t feel like I was fulfilling my purpose. So after many conversations with my grandma, she convinced me that my love of literature is something that I should take more seriously.
With that all being said: what do I envision myself doing in ten years? At 28, I hope to be an English professor. I want to continue to promote the ideals of reading and writing on a professional level and help college students that don’t often read see the value in the activity. But I also want to be an activist for books–specifically banned books. Every year, more and more books that promote inclusive ideals and give a voice to marginalized communities are banned. Even classics such as The Handmaid’s Tale and To Kill A MockingBird have faced legislative restrictions from schools. Even the aforementioned Hunger Games has been banned.
All books deserve to be read. All books are deep wells of knowledge. We as a collective must fight against this because restricting books is restricting knowledge. This is what I hope to be my focus in ten years–for the rest of my life–because books are the reason that I’m still here.