When’s the last time you read a book you couldn’t put down? More to the point: when’s the last time you read a book? I don’t mean a required text for class, or articles to skim through before lecture. When was the last time you sat down, opened a novel, or even the Kindle app and let yourself get lost in a story?
Just a couple weeks ago, Alix Earle was interviewed by Mel Ottenberg of Interview magazine. Ottenberg asked her, “What’s the last book you’ve read?” and Earle responded : “I’ve never read a book.” Her last book she recalled reading was “Like, maybe Dr.Seuss”. This interview caused an uproar in the media, and started many conversations about the declining literacy rate. On the other side, many shared the same sentiment as Earle, unable to recall the last book they read and deeming reading as something outdated and unimportant.Â
Getting through an entire book can be intimidating. It might seem boring, too long, identifying with the book, and empathizing with unknown characters can be a challenge. The main issue, for many people, is paying attention. The average person’s attention span has gone down from 2.5 minutes to 47 seconds. According to Dr. Gloria Mark, a large part of this comes from the need to constantly switch tasks. This increases stress, and also makes it harder to do the task you’ve switched back and forth from. For example, if you’re doing schoolwork but also watching a show your attention becomes compromised. You will also most likely be checking your phone, switching between texting to social media. By the time you return to doing your schoolwork, it’ll feel a lot harder to pay attention to it because your brain has basically started from scratch on the project. This is called a switch cost. Dr. Grant states that, “Every time you switch your attention, you have to reorient to that new activity, that new thing you’re paying attention to, and it takes a little bit of time.”
When you apply the switch cost to things like reading, it makes sense why it can seem like a hard task. Reading is a habit and a skill, both things that require practice and time that is spent solely on that activity. It might feel like a chore at first, just like building any healthy habit, but it can feel like watching a movie in your head as you read. Recreational reading can also reduce stress. When many people crave rest, they usually go to scroll on their phone. This bombards them with a ton of different information at once, and each video elicits a different emotional response, actually causing more stress. Reading, especially a leisure book can make someone less stressed. When reading, your heart rate is lowered, and your muscles can relax. Â
Additionally, reading helps build amazing skills you use every day. It can expand your vocabulary, letting you articulate your thoughts better. It helps you build empathy for those in situations that differ from yours. It allows you to detach yourself from your own world, so you can train your brain to think critically about complex plots. It can improve your performance at school, and most importantly, the habit of reading supports long term brain health.
Personally, when I want to read a book that feels leisurely yet compelling, I gravitate towards books that feel like unreal gossip. Literary fiction, and magical realism are my favorite genres. Ones that contain real world characters with relatable dialogue, crazy yet believable lives, and complex inner voices. I enjoy characters that aren’t perfect, and aren’t reliable narrators. Every page feels like a new revelation, and the emotional rollercoaster of finding yourself frustrated, sad, and happy for the character throughout their journey is addicting. Some books I would recommend that once I picked up, I felt like I couldn’t down were “Conversations with Friends” by Sally Rooney, as well as her book “Normal People”. “Milk Fed” by Melissa Broder and “The Pisces” also by her. “Yesteryear” by Caro Claire Burke, and anything written by Otessa Moshfegh, Toni Morrison, and Lena Dunham. Reading books for leisure is an amazing habit to build, and taking the time to let yourself get immersed in a story is incredibly important.Â
