Why Do We Read Books?

 

 

To the millions of book readers in America, the answer is obvious yet hard to put into words. We just love to read books and that’s that. But, some read books because they were assigned them. Others read out of guilt or fear. Some read to achieve a specific goal. Others come upon a book accidentally or as a gift. We read for all kinds of reasons, from desire and fantasy to a need to know. Most book readers find the whole process a pleasure, one that’s rewarding and invigorating. 

 

A new book, Why We Read: On Bookworms, Librarians, and Just One More Page Before Lights Out by Shannon Reed, takes a poignant and insightful look at why we read books and it serves as a celebration of reading books.

 

The author encourages us to read or re-read books that were assigned to us years ago in school, you know, the ones you relied on Monarch Notes, Cliff Notes, Spark Notes, or some bullshit book-summary site to get through the class. Now you can read them with life experiences and a new perspective. Even if you actually read them back then -- which many of you may not have -- you likely didn’t get the books full meaning without the lived perspective that you now hold. 

 

The authors note that we read, at times, to learn about -- and from-- the past. She notes we read to feel nostalgic and to take us to another time period, as reflected by books written in another era. We step into a time machine when we read old classics. 

 

Mature readers know that a book is to be savored, not raced through, though many readers enjoy devouring a book or even a series, the way we binge-watch on Netflix. 

 

Reading, it is pointed out by Reed, is done to feel less alone. We are comforted by another voice, even if it is our own in our head as we read from the vantage point of another. With a good book, I can travel on a train or bus, I can sit by the pool on vacation, or I can cozy up to a meal. 

 

Though sticking with a particular genre or author can be enjoyable and comforting, we should also seek to challenge ourselves by exposing our minds to other genres and writers. It can be fun. It can shock us.  It could even help you see things differently and shake up your perspective. 

 

Reading gives us a sense of morality and standards. 

 

Authors tell us how the world was, is, and should be. Whether fiction, poetry, non-fiction, a children’s book, essays, short stories or a graphic novel, readers are always shown some kind of way to live under some type of circumstances. 

 

Sometimes we read for the purpose of wanting to feel what we can’t right now, from a good cry, to a passionate romance, to a normal family. Books can compensate, to a degree, from where our lives fall short of the ideal. 

 

Books also introduce the life we can’t live or would never choose to. Want to be in the world of war heroes, space, travelers, time travelers, serial killers, or vampires? Read a novel. Escape. Don’t be yourself. It’s risk-and cost-free. 

 

Many of us read to feel inspiration and motivation, from how-to, self-help books, to beautiful novels that make us feel empowered and help us see ourselves with confidence, strength, and vigor. 

 

We are what we read, drawn to things that support who we want to be or towards safely seeing what our opposite lives could be. And we become what we read, meaning our lives are enriched by the experiences, fantasies, ideas, questions, observations, and experiences of others. Books are great equalizers.  

 

I read because my dad read a lot and valued it. So does my sister, my wife, and daughter. 

 

I read because books can reveal truths, hopes, and insights into how to best live life, or to at least take joy in the lives I shall never live due to time, circumstance, and conflicts.  

 

I read to evolve, to grow inwardly, and to feel beyond whatever my experiences have afforded me. 

 

I read because words are an art form and books arrange words like a puzzle. When placed in the right order, these words can reveal a masterpiece. 

 

I read because books make me smart, wealthy, horny, curious, motivated, and laugh. 

 

I read to learn new words. 

 

I read to feel connected to history and to humanity. 

 

I read, therefore I am.

 

 

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About Brian Feinblum

Brian Feinblum should be followed on www.linkedin.com/in/brianfeinblum. This is copyrighted by BookMarketingBuzzBlog ©2024. Born and raised in Brooklyn, he now resides in Westchester with his wife, two kids, and Ferris, a black lab rescue dog, and El Chapo, a pug rescue dog. His writings are often featured in The Writer and IBPA’s The Independent.  This award-winning blog has generated over 3.9 million pageviews. With 5,000+ posts over the past dozen years, it was named one of the best book marketing blogs by BookBaby  http://blog.bookbaby.com/2013/09/the-best-book-marketing-blogs  and recognized by Feedspot in 2021 and 2018 as one of the top book marketing blogs. It was also named by www.WinningWriters.com as a "best resource.” For the past three decades, including 21 years as the head of marketing for the nation’s largest book publicity firm, and director of publicity positions at two independent presses, Brian has worked with many first-time, self-published, authors of all genres, right along with best-selling authors and celebrities such as: Dr. Ruth, Mark Victor Hansen, Joseph Finder, Katherine Spurway, Neil Rackham, Harvey Mackay, Ken Blanchard, Stephen Covey, Warren Adler, Cindy Adams, Todd Duncan, Susan RoAne, John C. Maxwell, Jeff Foxworthy, Seth Godin, and Henry Winkler. He hosted a panel on book publicity for Book Expo America several years ago, and has spoken at ASJA, BookCAMP, Independent Book Publishers Association Sarah Lawrence College, Nonfiction Writers Association, Cape Cod Writers Association, Willamette (Portland) Writers Association, APEX, Morgan James Publishing, and Connecticut Authors and Publishers Association. His letters-to-the-editor have been published in The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, New York Post, NY Daily News, Newsday, The Journal News (Westchester) and The Washington Post. His first published book was The Florida Homeowner, Condo, & Co-Op Association Handbook.  It was featured in The Sun Sentinel and Miami Herald.