Why Reading Is A Cool Pastime
I am so fascinated with time – how life keeps moving, and there’s no way to freeze a moment. I read historical novels, because I feel like I am reliving history. Imagine living in a palace where you’re the royal muse, adorned in elegant dresses and a sea of jewels. Or you’re a traveler in a country you’ve never been to. The smell of the Earth beneath you. Reading these books is kind of like time travel. I mean it is the closest thing. I’ve always been intrigued by the idea of time travel. I think back to that one Phineas and Ferb episode where they time-traveled back to sometime in the Mesozoic era. Maybe novels don’t take us that far back but books allow us to be in a different place and time. It doesn’t matter where you are, when you open a book and begin reading, you’re in a completely different place.
I think it’s insane how big historical events have happened, and for the most part, they end there. I feel like when I read a novel, the event comes back to life, and I see it from the figure’s perspective. It’s not like watching a documentary or a movie, it’s as though you are that person experiencing all these moments. Books also remind me that life moves on and we should live fully while we can. Reading, in a sense, puts real-life situations into perspective because you take a step back from reality. Once you put the book down, you’re back to reality. Maybe what you thought was the most important thing in the world, isn’t the biggest deal.
Historical novels can be similar to fantasy books if that’s an interest of yours. There’s that same thrill depending on what the story is about. The nice thing about historical novels is that there isn’t one genre. It’s quite literally people living their lives with all the excitement, sadness, fear, or any cards that have been given out to the protagonist.
What our elementary school teachers told us is true; reading is IMPORTANT. You’re learning but it doesn’t feel like school. There’s been plenty of studies about reading regularly and some common benefits I’ve found are: becoming more empathetic, reducing stress levels, and improving creativity. Those are just SOME of the benefits.
Let’s go back to how you can imagine what’s happening in a novel. We all know or have heard that the Harry Potter books are way better than the movies–which applies to almost every book with a movie remake. Reading allows us to envision what the author describes. There are a million things to do in our life and time isn’t always generous so reading is like getting a glimpse of experiences we may never actually live through.
Marcus Tullius Cicero said, “A room without books is like a body without a soul.” I saw this quote a couple of years ago and I was curious to find out if there is truth to it. I had read books in school but never for my own pleasure. “The Good Earth” by Pearl S. Buck is the first novel I picked up. It was about a farmer in a Chinese village in the early 20th century. I may not be advertising it that well, but I promise it was so good; I loved it so much that I read the second two parts of the trilogy. This past summer I read “Khufu’s Wisdom” by Naguib Mahfouz. The novel was set in Pharaonic Egypt and had such a meaningful life lesson as did The Good Earth.
I’m working on becoming a better reader, because I want to flip through pages rather than scroll through Pinterest every night. I recently borrowed “The House of Ulloa,” by Emilia Pardo Bazán, but I’m only getting into it. However, I’m excited to see what new lens on life I come out with!
Sources:
https://www.healthline.com/health/benefits-of-reading-books
https://www.sacap.edu.za/blog/applied-psychology/benefits-of-reading/