Sometimes it's a desolate feeling when you read the last page of a book.

I love visiting my boy who lives states away from me, but I hate the see-ya-later part. It’s a punch in the heart. Of course it’s only natural to feel that way when you’re walking away from someone you love.

But does it make you a freak if you weep when you close the last page of a book? When you mourn the loss of saying goodbye to fictional characters you’ve grown to love?

Come on. Admit it. We’ve all been there. A great story is hard to come by and even harder to let go of. But why exactly is saying farewell to a book so hard?

1. You’ve formed an emotional attachment

Spending time with someone, even a fictional someone, creates an emotional attachment. There’s no way around it, especially when an author does his job and connects with the reader via a character through real-life feelings. This doesn’t necessarily have to be the hero, though oftentimes it is. Even a secondary character, such as a child or a hapless, lovable klutz can bond with us.

Example: The Pursuit of Tamsen Littlejohn by Lori Benton
Though I read this several years ago, the hero, Jesse Bird, stuck with me. His thoughtfulness, his childhood pain, his courage and protective spirit are all traits that I admired from the get-go.

2. You feel as if you’ve lived in the setting and now you’re being evicted

Everyone needs an escape now and then. When an author creates such a vivid story world that you wish you could live there, it’s tough to go back to your own reality.

Example: A Moonbow Night by Laura Frantz
This book is taking me forever to read. Why? Because I am seriously savoring every single word. From the thimbleberries growing in cool mountain ravines to the pluming steam of mineral streams, Laura Frantz paints a time and place that is magical. And I don’t even care if there’s no running water or air conditioning. I just want to live there.

3. You’ve learned an eye-opening truth and are grateful

There’s a reason Jesus used analogies. Truth is best conveyed in the guise of a story. It’s life changing when a Biblical truth goes down deep and takes root for the first time. That’s an experience that’s hard to walk away from.

Example: Streiker’s Bride by Robin Hardy
It’s not like I didn’t know Jesus didn’t love me before I read this book. But after devouring this story, I had a whole new understanding of His incredible strong but freeing love for me in a way I’d never experienced before.

Stop feeling like a freak next time you set down a book and are sad. You are not the only one.