By Angelina Carini
With a full load of classes and stacks of textbooks, one would not expect students to have the time or eye energy left for extra-curricular reading.
However, some students have another story to tell.
Ashley Shoaf, 19, a sophomore from Columbus, Ind., majoring in construction management, said she loves reading, but it is a dangerous thing for her to do during the semester.
'I get really into the story line and I read it instead of doing my homework,' Shoaf said.
Still, she said she takes time on Sunday afternoons to read 'A Marvelous Work and a Wonder'.
Some students say they take their education into their own hands and read non-textbooks that supplement their homework.
Aaron Edwards, 24, a junior from New Haven, Conn., majoring in English, said he has a goal to read non-homework materials for an hour a day, though he admits it cuts into his required studies.
'For me it''s kind of cheating because I want to be a writer, so I have academic interest in it,' he said.
Edwards said he reads to educate himself, because he feels he doesn''t get enough education in his classes.
On the other hand, another student reads to escape homework, rather than supplement it.
Kelsey Draper, 20, a junior from Carmel, Ind., majoring in humanities, said she loves recreational reading during the semester, exercising her freedom to choose for herself what to read.
One student has taken his love for reading extracurricular books to the next level and formed a book club.
Jeremy Call, 25, a graduate student from Boise, Idaho, studying law, said his book club has been meeting monthly since March to discuss books by authors such as Jane Austen, C.S. Lewis, J.K. Rowling and more.
He said one of the best parts is when they get together for breakfast the first Saturday of the month to talk about how the books apply in their personal lives.
This discussion often leads to self-revealing topics, Call said.
Call said he was inspired to make reading a priority by a friend in Jerusalem who read a book a night.
However, not all students share this same enthusiasm.
In fact, Call said nearly all of the book club members are not enrolled in school.
'Students just don''t think they have time,' he said.
Kiasa Larsen, 23, senior from Davis, Calif., majoring in psychology, who said she doesn''t have time for recreational reading, may represent the majority of students at BYU.
'I don''t have enough time to read my textbooks, let alone extra reading,' she said.