I have been asked by a few friends about how I read so much and I never really managed to give a good response. Typically it would be a shrug, or some (genuinely ashamed) comments about how reading too much in fact negates my ability to do anything else. More than as an encouragement to spend every waking moment glued to a book (which I have done more often than I want to admit), I’m writing this as a rundown of some personal suggestions which my friends could try if they indeed are hoping to read just a little bit more.
1. Don’t see reading as an aspirational thing
This is targeted at the “successful and happy people read, so you should too” type of advice that abounds on the Internet. Not only is this a false or at least indeterminable claim (citing Bill Gates and Warren Buffet as avid readers clearly isn’t any robust or reasonable statistics), it may even perpetuate some destructive attitudes towards reading. One, framing a hobby in reading as a path to “all the good things out there” often drains the inherent joy of the activity. Reading becomes labor, a sort of hard drudgery one needs to go through before tasting the sweet fruits of success and bliss. Two, pursuing reading as an aspirational thing can impose unrealistic expectations for what should come after one has read sufficiently. The expectancy does help propel a reader through a number of books, but the hyper-pragmatic and fixated attitude may result in more disappointment in what benefits books can bring.
A side note to this: avid reading in itself could be an aspiration. I admit that I started out on my journey with books in recent years because I put myself to a challenge of fulfilling a certain count of how many books I manage to read. This can be a fun game, or a terribly dry approach to something as pleasant as reading. Some time ago I would also see hitting my book count a mere symbol of intellect, which is as vain as it is shallow. So the bottom line of this advice is to not pressure yourself to read in order to fulfill any check box, any target or life goal you have established for yourself, then reading could finally be somewhat fun.
2. Know exactly what you look for in books, and seek books that can give you this
To respond to the temptation to read for the ambitious goals of success and happiness as mentioned above, I would suggest getting to know the particulars of one’s interests in books. At different points in my life, I notice that I crave different things out of the contents I consume. For example, when my days are monotonous and uneventful, some adventure fiction or controversial nonfiction can help spice up life. When I feel lost and helpless, a heroine or some self-help guru could either guide me through a process of self-discovery or push me out of my head into some action. Heck, when I feel uncertain about my stance on a topic or social issue, I even turn to books that support my preexisting beliefs just to feel more assured. Once again, these are not necessarily to dictate any aspirations, but to fulfill some emotional or intellectual cravings. My experience is that when I am clear on what I look for and just go after that, I derive so much more enjoyment from whatever I am reading.
The idea is to not start with a “list of 100 books you MUST read before you die” type of thing. Rather than forcing yourself through a list of books others only recommend you on the basis of their own ambiguous criteria, start with where you are in your circumstances, and look for something that seems to offer exactly what you wish to find. It can be selfish, simplistic, embarrassing, silly – doesn’t matter. Let’s just start with books being a source of joy first, then we can consider its other benefits later.
3. Mix up the genres and give unfamiliar genres a chance
To continue with the preceding point, I want to suggest that every genre can offer a bit of what you look for in books. Let’s say what you seek is self-improvement: the self-help genre isn’t the only thing that can offer you something useful for this. In fact, fictional works can be a well of inspiration for any of your self-improvement endeavors. Classic fiction hosts enduring stories of how humans repeatedly make mistakes and learn from them, while contemporary fiction applies these narratives to our present time and a multitude of challenges that it brings. Even political or sociological books can aid a self-helper: one learns to be a better citizen, a more constructive joint in the whole system of our society. If you struggle with stress and anxiety, poetry can soothe your emotional upheavals, children’s fiction brings you back to simpler times, and fantasy opens an escapist gate away from the intensity of real life. As comfortable as sticking to one’s favorite genres is, treading new territories can be not only a fun way to expand one’s interests, but also a more effective way to fulfill what you look for (see advice 2 above).
4. Find your favorite medium (physical books, e-books, audio books)
One of the best purchases I made in recent years was an e-book reader. I attribute my refreshed adoration for books to this device almost exclusively (umm maybe I’m exaggerating a little, but this is not an ad – I swear!). In reality, I’ve consistently read more over the past years due to the accessibility that various forms of books can now offer. The onset of the pandemic lockdown prompted me to switch over to borrowing e-books from the digital catalogue of the public library, and I barely had to worry about carrying heavy volumes back and forth or storing physical books at home. And for someone who constantly moves around with all my possessions in little suitcases, owning a slim reading tablet is a dream compared to lugging around kilos of papers. Though I still prefer physical books, I find having options for the medium of books a game-changer for building a reading habit.
It’s also worth noting that technology merging with traditional books means that books are becoming more creative and unconventional. I have listened to audiobooks in which the author sang a whole chapter (with background music and all), or come across interactive e-books that allow readers to use digital tools to customize their reading experience. Even on the topic of genres, a certain book or genre may appeal to the readers differently depending on which medium it comes as. I have found memoirs or poetry books to be particularly heart-rending and emotional when read out loud by the author, but classic fiction is best read in its traditional medium of paper for full immersion in its original form.
5. Don’t hesitate to drop a book if you don’t like it
I am most guilty of refusing to give up on a book once I have started, but I put this advice out there for both myself and everyone else. Laboring through an unpleasant read can be the most destructive habit one can take on for one’s own relationship with books. For whatever reason, either internal (dropping a book means a personal defeat) or external (the book is supposed to be good!! Why am I not enjoying it? Am I weird?!), giving up a book mid-way or even quarter-way always seems like a tougher choice than ploughing through the rest of it. Still, I constantly need to remind myself of two things: one, there are simply too many good books out there that it makes so little sense for me to force myself to read this one book and missing out on others in the mean time; and two, it is not personal – a book can be good and enjoyed by many others, and it’s okay if I don’t experience it the same way (the author wouldn’t personally sue me). Taking oneself and one’s reading habit a little bit less seriously can give more breathing room and not drain the pleasure (or possibilities) of finding good, enjoyable books. There is a chance that a book will get better eventually, or you may find a reason to continue later on (if a close friend swears by it, for example), but hitting pause on a book or dropping it for now isn’t such a terrible idea as you have previously thought.
The common theme across all these suggestions is that reading is meant to be fun, enjoyable, and full of possibilities. In the end, it is just one among a myriad of things that can offer enjoyment, so I wish to emphasize that no one should feel the pressure to pick up a reading habit as a hobby that appears superior or more ‘desirable’ than other activities. These suggestions are what I would have said to my friends who inquired about my own reading when I have the time to reflect and articulate my own experience, but there are no rules for or no expectations of a reader. Books are my source of fun, my haven of comfort, and I only hope that perhaps you could find in books these same things, albeit through your own, personal journey.
iamtreefarm 
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