Throwback Thursday: Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

Books Change Lives

When I was eight years old, I wanted to be just like my big sister Christy. She is smart, kind, and can do anything, so I read what she read. When she read Jane Eyre, of course I had to read it too. There were a lot of things in the book that went right over my head, but this book changed my life.

I learned that no matter how bad of a beginning your life has, you have the power to create your own vision for your life when you grow up. I decided that when I grew up, there would be no drugs in my house. I decided that when I grew up, I would not be on welfare.

Jane Eyre was strong. She valued education and knowledge. She didn't allow a man to take over her life. She was plain but her goodness shined through. I identified with the fact that she starved at Lowood because I was starved as child, so I understand that pain. I also decided at age eight that my children would never go hungry. Hunger hurts and makes your body prone to all sorts of illness.

Charlotte Bronte wrote Jane Eyre in October of 1847. I read it in 1972, and it is the book that most changed my life. It gave me power when I was a helpless child to know that things would get better, and that someday, I would be in charge of my own life. Charlotte lived for less than 39 years and died before she could give birth to her first child, but she forever changed the life of this child, me, and I will always be grateful to her for putting her story down on paper.

I think it is important to meet the right book at the right time. Books mean something to us when we connect with them. What book have you connected with that changed your life? Have you read Jane Erye? If so, what did you think about it? Let 's discuss it in the comments below.