Despite the fact that e-reading has become the new ‘normal’ these days, there is something undeniably special about reading an actual physical book. Indeed, books help us escape the constraints of our own reality and take us beyond our world. Some might even say that reading, like exercising, offers a safe and healthy replacement of troubling thoughts one might have. Books also give our mind a safe place to rest and provide a stable source of companionship during challenging times. Indeed, someone once said that if you have a book, you will never feel lonely. Books are like old friends: even if you are not reading them over and over again, you know they are there. They are part of your history and your life. They tell a story about your journey.
Nowadays, however, “books are becoming luxury objects, status symbols, decorations rather than sources of inspiration, erudition and imaginative escape.”[1] This is especially so in the case of immigration detainees. In fact, for many people who have gone through the process of being detained and housed at the immigration detention centre, the memory of their experiences brings up countless unpleasantries, to say the least. For many detainees, reading a book becomes an oasis of sanity and is the only way to escape the harsh reality and the challenges of their immigration journey.
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