“Reading is setting out to discover a universe; it is also setting out to meet who we are.”
Victor Hugo.
Hello, young padawan
Today, we will discuss the importance of reading, the challenges many people face in maintaining their reading habits, and potential solutions to help us engage with literature more regularly.
You might wonder why we should start or return to reading in a world filled with digital content and instant gratification. The answer is simple: If you value your mental health, well-being, memory, imagination, creativity, IQ, and want to ensure healthy brain aging, then reading is your most reliable companion. With that in mind, let’s dive in.
The enemies of your concentration
With the advent of the internet, but not only that, our concentration has dropped to the level of that of a goldfish. Here we are, Nemo, sweeping digital fins across our ocean of content every thirty seconds.
Bombarded with information, images, and sounds, we have never had so much to manage in such a short time, and this super-stimulation got the better of our attention. In big cities, the formerly advertising posters were on paper and were changed every fortnight, but today, they are digital and offer you a new visual with every blink of an eye. On TV, you have the show to listen to, the images to watch, but also to read the little banners that scroll by. At the office, you have to deal with 150 emails per day, of which only 15% concern you, and I’m generous, in addition to your daily tasks. On your smartphone, you swipe faster than your shadow.
You think you will become multitasking in this epileptic-digital universe, the modern superman capable of managing a thousand pieces of information per second like a strobe on psychedelics; you are subject to anxiety attacks.
We become impatient and binary, and many of us self-diagnose ADHD (attention disorder with or without hyperactivity, ed) because we are unable to concentrate one minute straight and get started on a task without thinking of another thing. Telephone messaging, noise from the coffee machine, peep-peep in the garden, and we take twice as much time, and therefore energy, to respond to this f***ing email — low self-confidence mode activated.
This brain, now unable to focus on the initial task it was supposed to accomplish, leads you to water the plants and empty the dishwasher when it was time to vacuum. You’ve been working for three hours, but the dust is still under the sofa. Some call it procrastination; the truth is that your Shiva’s brain has become intolerant to the agonizing frustration of a single task.
There are three radical solutions: get away from all screens as much as possible, (re) learn to be bored, and (re) start reading.
For the first, you don’t need instructions; discipline will be enough. For the second, you just need to start by going for a half-hour walk every day without technology, with just your underwear and your sneakers. As for the third, here we go.
Renew with reading
– First, start by reading what moves you: thriller, biography, book on gardening. If you are not keen on philosophy, don’t start reading again with a Hegel; you will have a headache. However, you can try another style or even close a book on page 100, just like on page 10, because your reading is uninteresting, you don’t like the author’s style, or, quite simply, because it’s not for you. You’re going to laugh, but it already happened to me that I didn’t read for about three months because I had started this book, a terrible one for me, that I was forcing myself to finish. What a stupid girl, don’t you think?! Lol!
– Then, all you have to do is establish a discipline, say a few pages per day, for a month. A month is ideal for the human brain to establish its routines. When your little challenge arrives, you will be surprised to see how much you begin to appreciate this ritual. Establishing a habit means taking it slowly. Start with three or four pages, and, depending on your desire, you may find yourself finishing your chapter one evening. “Chi va piano, va sano e va lontano”, as they say in the best pizzerias, lol.
In addition, if you decide to read in the evening, you will help your body fall asleep while staying away from blue lights. Speaking of reading at night, I always have two books going: one more “intellectual” intended for the day or evening and one to put me to sleep, rather entertaining, of the thriller type, of adventure, or a biography of someone I like, generally in the world of music.
– Always have a book with you, no matter what you must do during the day. Reading during your lunch break, in the waiting room, while you wait for your child to finish their sports activity, at the hairdresser, while waiting for your colleague or client at the restaurant, or any other occasion is an excellent opportunity.
– There are four possibilities for reading. Buy, borrow books, have a library card, and/or invest in a digital e-reader. When you become a big reader, all of these solutions are often adopted together, depending on the type of book and what you plan to do with it afterward. If you start reading again, you will see it later, but space will begin to run out on the shelves after a few months. You will be happy not to be burdened with books that you know you are only going to read once, and on the contrary, to welcome beautiful works into your library, which you will take pleasure in opening every year, five years, ten years.
Tools for comfortable reading
– Speaking of always having a book with you, I absolutely have to tell you about the digital e-reader. They are now available in all good shoe stores (this was to see if you were following, ed).
I was given a Kindle from Amazon without a subscription because their digital books in English are the cheapest to download on the market. I also now have a Kobo from Rakuten, with a subscription that costs me 9.99 euros per month, or the price of a digital book; well worth it for me since I read about 3-5 books/month in French, depending on the size of the book. There are also plenty of free books from these two suppliers, including old royalty-free works. I redid the entirety of Kafka a few months ago for free, thanks to my e-reader. I know there is a third license called Vivlio. I don’t have a device from them, but I’m told it’s cool, too.
Some people prefer to read on paper rather than on an e-reader, and I like both today. The e-reader allows me to have a book with me everywhere in my bag every day because it is lighter and more compact to carry than a paper book. Still, it is also the one I use to fall asleep since its night mode is yellow and perfectly designed for reading. Indeed, an e-reader has nothing to do with a classic digital screen because it does not have a backlight like the digital screen of a tablet, TV, smartphone, or computer. It is a digital ink display which, on the one hand, does not tire the eyes and, on the other hand, does not backlight from the panel towards you but from the sides, from left to right and from right to left. So, you can read in total darkness and let Morpheus come to you — Not the one of the red pill, the other one.
Another advantage is I now only buy paper versions of the books dear to my heart, those that I reread, and my history books because that requires a second look; in short, I made a little compilation of personal classics, and no more clutter on libraries.
– Reading lamps for paper books. It is a small lamp to install on your book, and you can adjust the direction, intensity, and heat. The yellow light option is ideal for the evening. This helps avoid tiring your eyes, especially after a tiring day on the computer, for example, when your peepers have already done a lot. I have two because one was a gift, but ultimately, I found a use for it; I use this one for small to medium-sized books +, and this one for my big ones since it is a little more telescopic.
This reading article to make you want to dive back into the pages of your favorite books. Again, here is a quick reminder: there is no right or wrong type of reading, the right one being the one that suits you. For example, the effects on memory, concentration, and creativity will be the same whether you read The Capital (book one, Chapter 26), 1984, or Fear and Trembling (Amelie Nothomb, ed), and all three are relevant today. Very relevant.
All that remains is for me to wish you a good weekend, and I’ll see you Friday for new adventures!
XO 📚
