Hobby is fruitful work done in spare time. There is no monetary benefit in a hobby. It is pursued only for pleasure. It is based purely on interest and enjoyment and no other consideration. Thus, a hobby is totally different from a profession or occupation. What is a hobby for one may be an occupation for another person. An occupation is a regular work done to earn bread and butter.

The number of hobbies is endless. Reading, stamp collecting, traveling, gardening, photography, music, autograph hunting, playing with children, teaching illiterate adults, playing football etc., are some of well known hobbies. Hobbies make life more meaningful, and enjoyable. After a day?s hard work and labour, a hobby is so refreshing and interesting. Hobbies prepare us for more hard work the next day. They are very cheap source of entertainment. enjoyment and meaningful use of leisure time. Without a hobby a person will feel bored and annoyed during his leisure hours. In these days of scientific advancement and so many inventions, hobbies have become all the more important. Now, life is so comfortable and easy and there is lot of leisure time.
Reading is my hobby. I read magazines, newspapers, story books, short novels, biographics, travelogues etc. They enrich my knowledge and experience. By reading I also increase my skills and expression as it enriches my vocabulary and word-power. I have cultivated this hobby from my very young days. My father encouraged me to have and develop this hobby. He often took me to bookshops and book exhibitions and bought books of my interest and liking. I began with moral stores, fables and fairy tales. I found them so interesting, instructive, and entertaining that soon I became a book-lover. My love and interest for books is quite natural as it has evolved with the passage of time.

I have good collection of my own books. I bought them with my pocket money. Many of them I got as prizes and many others were given to me as gifts on my birthdays. There is hardly any book in my personal library which I have not read at least twice.

And some of them I have read many times over. Every time I read them, I find a new meaning, more enjoyment and some new experience. They are my best friend. I never feel sad or alone because of them. The pleasure they give me is of unique type and ever lasting.

My hobby has also helped me in scoring very good grades in the examination. It helps me in achieving concentration and economy of time. I borrow books from the school library and also from the public library. I love books, enjoy one or two hours daily in their valuable company, but I am not a bookworm. I never believe in rot learning without understanding their teachings and morals. Books are of great practical value and give us lot of knowledge, confidence, hope and inspiration.

There are some other students in the school who also have this hobby. We have formed a kind of informal Book Club. We exchange books and experiences earned by reading. On Sundays my friends come to my house and we have reading, recitation and dialogue sessions. It gives us so much fun, enjoyment and knowledge. We all do together whenever there is book fair or exhibition and browse through the books and then buy some of them which suit our pockets and interests. Many students in the school envy our hobby and friendship and our teachers feel proud of us.

While reading a book, I take brief notes, mark important ideas, new words, phrases and brilliant expressions with a red pen which help me in the recapitulation. As a result of my hobby I can read fairly fast and with very good comprehension and retention. My knowledge on various subjects, besides course subjects, is very wioe, authentic and valuable. I am proud of it but not arrogant and conceited. Reading of great and good books really makes one more gentle, humble and humane. By reading of great authors some of their greatness is bound to be rubbed off on the readers as well.