People read for a lot of reasons, but never forget that reading is truly one of life’s great adventures. Here are 10 easy ways to put more reading into your life.
- Read the book your favorite movie is based upon. Movies derived from novels must of necessity condense the story into truncated form, but you can get the complete story by reading the entire book. In fact some insist the Wizard of Oz was actually a political allegory.
- Read an autobiography of someone whose life you admire. You’ll discover great people often developed a reputation based on ideas they gleaned from the writings of others. That should be an added incentive to read more biographical books.
Read a Tolstoy book and live to tell the story. No one has truly sampled one of life’s most momentous experiences, until they have read a Tolstoy book from cover to cover. It actually can be done, and you won’t look like Rip Van Winkle when you turn that last page. In case you didn’t know, Van Winkle was a character who first came to life as a sketch by Washington Irving, a famous American author.- Read every single joke in a popular joke book. Humor is good for the soul and will put you in a better mood, helping you surmount life’s vicissitudes.
- Read a book written more than 100 years ago. This is a great opportunity to see first-hand how the language has changed and shifted with the times. Who would have fathomed the myriad ways in which the English language has adapted to the mores and customs of the American people? And what might be around the next curve in the road?
Read a horror novel without skipping ahead. Sure, you may have hidden yourself under the covers with a flashlight while reading that scary novel as a teen. But now that you’re grown, read it again one scary page at a time.- Re-read your favorite childhood book. There’s nothing like a trip down memory lane to rekindle a love of curling up with a good book. If you’re getting along in years, read it with a grandchild perched atop your lap.
- Read a story in The Atlantic Monthly at least once. Every American should sample at least one issue of this magazine, which has some meaty intellectual content. Don’t simply depend upon those tabloids that tempt many a shopper at the checkout stand.
- Read the U.S. Constitution. Every American should read the Constitution all the way through from beginning to end at least once. It’s an awesome privilege. And maybe you’ll vote with a little more appreciation for how cool it is to live in a democracy, because some men in powdered wigs put some truly momentous words to paper.
- Read one ridiculous news story just for fun. This won’t be hard, as a million such stories are shared each day via social media. And it will give you an opportunity to spread a little cheer to your coworkers, too.