Benefits of Pleasure Reading
by Caitlin Hill
In the age of media, the popularity of reading for fun has gone down drastically. There are many benefits to reading, both fiction and nonfiction, across the many different genres and subgenres. Today, I’m going to share with you the benefits of pleasure reading, and how to actually get started.
1. Being Interested in the reading material
When schools try to encourage reading by assigning books for students to read, it typically decreases the student’s willingness to read. This could be because of the student not being interested in the novel, being forced to focus on specific details about the book, or just being forced to read. However, when students read for their pleasure, students are able to choose what to read, how to read it, and when to read it. It could help inspire creativity or spark an interest in a topic/issue.
2. Helps reduce stress
According to the University of Minnesota, “Reading can relax your body by lowering your heart rate and easing the tension in your muscles. A 2009 study at the University of Sussex found that reading can reduce stress by up to 68%.” Reading a chapter or two before going to bed can also help with eye strain for looking at screens all day, including making it easier for you to fall asleep.
3. Increases vocabulary and writing skills
While reading, you can learn new words and their context, which can be used in future. By reading, you can also improve your writing skills. Because of your being exposed to different writing styles, genres, and voices, it can affect your own.
4. Improves empathy
People who read fiction, in particular, tend to have a higher empathy. Because most fiction novels are written from a first person point of view, it is easier for the reader to empathize with the characters, knowing their thoughts and feelings. This often translates into daily life increasing someone’s capability of empathizing.
5. Reading is addictive
A not well-known fact is that reading can be as addictive as watching television or going on social media (speaking from experience and science). An engrossing plot can make the reader want to read more and to know what is going to happen next, the same as a T.V. show. Most students need pleasure reading in order to read books like this because many schools don’t enforce reading novels that spark students’ interest.
Over the course of 2020, I set a goal on Goodreads to read 50 books during that year, which I have proudly accomplished and exceeded (83 to be exact). Goodreads is a bookish social media platform to get recommendations and make friends with people who like the same books. This is a good platform to find books you might like. Another way to get book recommendations is to explore “Bookstagram”: the bookish Instagram or “Booktok”: the bookish TikTok. Thousands of people post reviews and thoughts on books daily. Popular books like Six of Crows and Percy Jackson have thousands and thousands of memes that I infinitely scroll through. There is, of course, the old-school route to get recommendations like asking the librarian or a friend (I’m always available for book recommendations, feel free to email me @[email protected]).
In order to actually get books, the school’s library is an amazing resource. Currently, in times of hybrid learning, if you’re not able to go to school to get books, the school has a digital library for eBooks: Sora. Click here for an interview Star Status did with our school’s librarian, Ms. Quiles, for more information. On Sora, you are able to borrow popular and current books and audiobooks from all different genres. It’s a fantastic resource that I’ve used too many times to count.
To read more books, don’t be afraid to read. Feel free to read one page one day, and a hundred the next. Don’t worry about finishing a novel just enjoy it. If you read the first fifty or so pages and you don’t like/despise it, feel free to choose another book. Just don’t give up on finding the book that introduces you to the wonderfully amazing world of reading.
1. Being Interested in the reading material
When schools try to encourage reading by assigning books for students to read, it typically decreases the student’s willingness to read. This could be because of the student not being interested in the novel, being forced to focus on specific details about the book, or just being forced to read. However, when students read for their pleasure, students are able to choose what to read, how to read it, and when to read it. It could help inspire creativity or spark an interest in a topic/issue.
2. Helps reduce stress
According to the University of Minnesota, “Reading can relax your body by lowering your heart rate and easing the tension in your muscles. A 2009 study at the University of Sussex found that reading can reduce stress by up to 68%.” Reading a chapter or two before going to bed can also help with eye strain for looking at screens all day, including making it easier for you to fall asleep.
3. Increases vocabulary and writing skills
While reading, you can learn new words and their context, which can be used in future. By reading, you can also improve your writing skills. Because of your being exposed to different writing styles, genres, and voices, it can affect your own.
4. Improves empathy
People who read fiction, in particular, tend to have a higher empathy. Because most fiction novels are written from a first person point of view, it is easier for the reader to empathize with the characters, knowing their thoughts and feelings. This often translates into daily life increasing someone’s capability of empathizing.
5. Reading is addictive
A not well-known fact is that reading can be as addictive as watching television or going on social media (speaking from experience and science). An engrossing plot can make the reader want to read more and to know what is going to happen next, the same as a T.V. show. Most students need pleasure reading in order to read books like this because many schools don’t enforce reading novels that spark students’ interest.
Over the course of 2020, I set a goal on Goodreads to read 50 books during that year, which I have proudly accomplished and exceeded (83 to be exact). Goodreads is a bookish social media platform to get recommendations and make friends with people who like the same books. This is a good platform to find books you might like. Another way to get book recommendations is to explore “Bookstagram”: the bookish Instagram or “Booktok”: the bookish TikTok. Thousands of people post reviews and thoughts on books daily. Popular books like Six of Crows and Percy Jackson have thousands and thousands of memes that I infinitely scroll through. There is, of course, the old-school route to get recommendations like asking the librarian or a friend (I’m always available for book recommendations, feel free to email me @[email protected]).
In order to actually get books, the school’s library is an amazing resource. Currently, in times of hybrid learning, if you’re not able to go to school to get books, the school has a digital library for eBooks: Sora. Click here for an interview Star Status did with our school’s librarian, Ms. Quiles, for more information. On Sora, you are able to borrow popular and current books and audiobooks from all different genres. It’s a fantastic resource that I’ve used too many times to count.
To read more books, don’t be afraid to read. Feel free to read one page one day, and a hundred the next. Don’t worry about finishing a novel just enjoy it. If you read the first fifty or so pages and you don’t like/despise it, feel free to choose another book. Just don’t give up on finding the book that introduces you to the wonderfully amazing world of reading.