Ever since I was little, I have loved reading. I flew through childhood classics from The Boxcar
Children to Harry Potter and would pretty much read whatever I could get my hands on. I kept
this habit up until high school when schoolwork and required texts stole the priority. Of course, I
squeezed in as many books around holidays as I could, but it was never quite the same.
In my opinion, the TikTok “For You algorithm” is one of the best I’ve seen to date. So, I wasn’t
surprised when after I started reading more last year, book reviews were starting to pop up. I
heard people raving about The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller (I’m still on the waiting list
ugh) and Daisy Jones and the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid (it was INCREDIBLE) and I was
excited to start adding these titles to the ever-growing notes page in my phone. What did astound
me was when my childhood best friend, who had never understood my reading knack, started
texting me about book recommendations. That’s when I knew the revival of reading was
spreading across our generation.
I’m sure this rising trend of our generation experiencing a growing appreciation for literature is
related to escapism. COVID-19 has made people eager to hear a story that takes them away from
the burden of living in a pandemic. Reading is the perfect strategy for this – but when you’re in
college and books are at least ten dollars each, it can become a surprisingly pricey habit. So
below are a few ideas of how to make reading, which is good for your brain, also good for your
bank account.
- If you’re a Purdue local stop by the West Lafayette Library! There’s a branch right by Chauncey. You just need to have one document that shows a West Lafayette address (this can include a dorm or FSCL housing) and you’re good to go.
- Download Libby! Libby is an app that many libraries subscribe to. You sign in with a library card (I use mine from Ohio) and you’re able to download eBooks and audiobooks on your phone. Not all libraries use Libby, but chances are if you check out your hometown public library there will be some type of app available to use.
- If you’re really starting to fly through books, you could subscribe to Kindle Unlimited. With this app, you pay $9.99 a month and can read whatever you choose from their library. The only constraint is that you can only have ten books at a time on your shelf. Other than that, there is no stopping point of how many books a month you can read.
There isn’t anything better than finishing a Sunday of studying and being able to curl up with a
good book. Using one of these options is a great way to take full advantage of all the incredible
stories out there right now!