You Should Read More: Why reading is so valuable

It’s no secret that I love to read. I read all the time, at almost any opportunity. I read more than I watch TV. I read while I’m having breakfast, on my lunch break, and often in the evening too. I read on holiday by the beach, curled up by the fire, in the garden, on trains and planes, in waiting rooms and coffee shops. The only time I don’t tend to read is at bedtime — I tend to get way too invested and I end up reading for longer than planned and not going to sleep.

I’ve always been an avid reader. Since a young age, I was flying through the reading levels and reading ‘above my age’ (not to brag). I was a frequent visitor to my library (the smallest permanent library in Bedfordshire!), took on the summer reading challenge each year in school, and generally just amassed books whenever I could. At an estimate, I have around 200 books, but some of these are in storage, and I am frequently rotating titles out to charity to bring new ones in; only exceptional reads get to stay on my beautifully curated shelves.

With the New Year, many people will have set themselves the resolution to read more. Fantastic! We should all read more! In a recent article on The Writing Cooperative, it shed some interesting light on the fact that there are far more budding authors than there are readers, so for the sake of all us writers, get reading and help expand the audiences.

But why should you read more? Many people find reading a chore, even though it’s something we actually do more than ever before now, thanks to social media and smart devices. But reading books? I’m not sure if it’s that people get intimidated by committing to a title, or don’t really know what they like to read, or feel rubbish if they have to give up on a book so they just stop trying altogether. Maybe you hated it at school or university where you were forced to slog through titles such as Of Mice & Men, Romeo and Juliet, To Kill a Mockingbird, 1984, Animal Farm and other literary classics — my worst experience of reading at school was being forced through Charles Dickens’ Hard Times for a YEAR at A Level. I hated it.

As an adult, I can appreciate these kinds of novels. As a teen, I endured them. Why do we insist on trotting out the same titles year after year? Why not try some novels that teens might actually want to read but that still challenge them? We should be encouraging a love of reading rather than making it into work. There are plenty of excellent YA novels that could be used for all the usual ‘compare and contrast…’ ‘discuss the meaning behind…’ ‘what was the author trying to illustrate with…’ essay questions. Scythe by Neal Shusterman examines issues of morality, dystopia, the value of human life and the corruption of power. Noughts and Crosses by Malorie Blackman takes a sharp look at racial tensions, colonialism, equality and segregation. The Fault In Our Stars by John Green takes a look at life with terminal illness and how this impacts family, friends, relationships, and our own perception of mortality.

All of these titles are written for a YA audience, so why aren’t they in the curriculum? I’m positive that if we had more accessible, interesting titles that actually appealed to a teen audience in school, so many more people would be keen readers as adults.

I digress. Getting people to read more is one of my real hangups and I get quite passionate about it. I’m convinced that most people would enjoy reading if they could only find the right kinds of titles and environment to read in.

Reading is a unique pastime in that it requires your entire focus. Unlike TV or podcasts where you can multitask, when you read, you have to put everything to one side. This is the true value of reading. It forces you to switch off from everything else and get stuck in. A good, well written book (on any topic or genre) shouldn’t feel like work. It should draw you in, make you forget about the outside world, and bring you onto the page in a way that when you look up you realise an hour has already passed without knowing.

People tend to not really know where to start when looking for a good author or book, or even a genre. There are a lot of bad and mediocre books out there, so I know how frustrating it is when you take the time to pick something, start reading it, realise you hate it, and just give up altogether. Looking around a bookshop can feel intimidating — how do I know what I’ll like? What if I choose something and it sucks? Is this bestseller actually good or is it all hype?

My suggestion is to think about the other kinds of media you consume. Love true crime podcasts? Maybe you’re a fan of science and nature documentaries? Perhaps you love superhero movies? Is a will-they-won’t-they romance your thing? There is no shame in liking any of these genres (ignore the snobby people who deem any of these as trashy or bad). Interestingly, romance, often sneered at by more ‘high brow’ audiences, is actually one of the most popular genres, as well as the most self-published genre and one of the most read on the whole. Never feel bad for enjoying a certain genre or author — if you’re reading, that’s good enough.

I appreciate not everyone has the time to fully switch off and get stuck into a book — kids, family, work, exercise, just life in general means that reading isn’t always viable. Audiobooks can be a real saver here if you’re into that and want to find more time to read. But for me, reading is about the quiet, the time you spend sat in your favourite spot, the only sound the turning of the page. It’s about getting lost in a story that allows you for just a few hours to forget about the shitstorm that is the world around us currently. It’s the original form of escapism, and when you find a book that you really love and get lost in, there’s no feeling quite like it.

Reading allows us to imagine scenarios outside of our own life, it educates us, broadens our horizons, allows us to experience things and perspectives we might not otherwise. It’s different to film or TV too, because the vision you have in your head is unique to you. The author can communicate it, but you get to imagine it; create your own little world from the words on the page. You journey with the characters and the story, as much a part of the world as the words on the page. A good story or novel should leave you inspired, breathless, inquisitive and pining for more. I refer to this state as a ‘book hangover’ and it’s a strange mindset where you feel both empty from having finished the book and full because the story is within you. Book hangover tends to occur at the end of a series as you’ve journeyed so far with the characters and story and closing it feels so…final.

If you’re serious about committing to read more this year, I highly recommend you use GoodReads for finding titles and authors. There are a number of collections covering every genre, length, and topic. You can also check the reviews from members and professionals alike so you can judge if it’s something you’ll enjoy. And there’s no shame in not liking a book or starting it and not finishing it! It just means it wasn’t right for you — try again and don’t be disheartened. The right book is out there for you.

I’ve written this from a perspective of fiction novels, but no matter what you like to read, I encourage you to read more of it. Set time aside for reading, or rather than reaching for your phone or TV remote, reach for a book instead. Make it a habit, and you’ll soon realise why the printed page is such an enduring and wonderful way to spend your time.