The biggest advantage I have ever had is loving books. 

I've had books since I could sit up without support. My earliest memory is staring at a poster with pictures and words under them, imagining that CAKE and BALL were real. I read enid blyton and charlotte's web and archie comics - thank you, grandparents. I grew older and read harry potter and heidi and anne of green gables - thank you, parents. 

Years passed and I read TKAM and Disgrace and Jane Austen - thank you, school. 

Books have always been my friends. More, they let me live a thousand lives within my own short timespan. 

When I read, I see the story in my mind. It's as if I'm standing there, in front of the characters, watching the smoke drift across the snow. I smell it. I feel it. The chill of winter brushes my ears, and the silence in the woods echoes in me. 

I grew older, and started reading nonfiction, learning other people's life lessons. Almost no magic, but a lot of mentoring.

I love books. They make me laugh out loud and often make me cry. Every great book I've had is a gift and I've countless ones.