I’ll follow this with another question: Can “just one book” change one’s life?
It’s a stupid question I know, and I already know the answer, I’m honestly just looking for reaffirmation to see if it changes anything in my mindset lol.
I want to become an avid reader, but I have this stupid resistance of thinking “goddamn, I’m such a slow reader and there’s so many freaking books, what’s one book gonna do for me? It’s not like it’s gonna make me more interesting, especially considering so many people have already read it”. It’s really dumb, I know, but it’s the source of my paralysis.
Can this first book actually have an impact on a person’s life? and make someone more interesting regardless if it’s the only book they’re ever gonna read?
by Edu_Vivan
9 Comments
I’ve read quite a few books in my life, and very few (none?) have changed my life.
In my opinion, reading books with the expressed intent for each of them to change your life is going to be a struggle. It’ll be hard to choose a book, hard to get through them, and probably not at all rewarding since they’ll often fall short.
I read because I enjoy reading.
If your only motivation to read a book is to become more interesting, I think you’re going to struggle to finish anything.. I’ve read many books that have altered my perspective on things, but I don’t know of any that I would say made me a more interesting person just because I read it.
I think if you really want to become a reader, you may need to adjust your perspective on the act of reading itself. Try looking for books with characters you’d think you relate to. Or topics YOU find interesting, not because anyone else does.
If you need some help getting started, I’d suggest taking this [quiz](https://www.readyourcolor.com/take-the-assessment). It should help you figure out what kind of stories you enjoy and what you hope to get out of a good book 🙂
Also, let me know your color if you take it! I’m a purple / blue reader myself, and find myself gravitating towards sci-fi / fantasy / horror. I can give tons of recommendations for those
A book that changed my way of thinking was from a BBC TV series called Connections by Sir James Burke. Never looked at history or science the same after that.
If you’re a slow reader, check your library for audiobooks.
Print or audio – drop your expectations and pick up something to enjoy – a space opera (We are Legion – We are Bob) or a murder mystery (Where the Crawdads Sing) or popularized science like Gulp and Stiff.
Watership Down
Just start with the popular titles. There’s some titles that get mentioned again and again, and it’s nice when you come across them and can go “yeah I’ve read that”.
Frankenstein, East of Eden, Picture of Dorian Gray, Slaughterhouse Five, Fahrenheit 451, 1984, Catch-22, Flowers for Algernon etc etc
I started simply with young adult books and worked my way up to more complex stuff.
You want to read for the wrong reasons. If you just want to become more cultured and know stuff, you can do so through any medium; there is also the equivalent of brain rot in book form, too.
To be honest, I started reading more seriously to sharpen foreign language skills and vocabulary. The first books I picked were those with movies or series made after them, which I already watched and liked. For instance, recently, the Three Body Problem netflix series made me want to read the books.
It’s also a nice thing to do in your downtime, in transit, or before bed, instead of doom scrolling away. It’s like a much needed break for your brain from all the noise around. Non-fiction can be heavy though and you want to read it when you are fully mentally ready.
There are two things to address here, 1) a great book, 2) improving yourself.
I think it’s valid to want good books to break the habit of not reading. And make no mistake, reading is a habit, and like all good habits, it takes some conscious effort to form it. To that end, having a lineup of great books is a very good starting point. I encourage you to start with something you would find really interesting and not to worry about whether it is high brow. Again, the point is to get into the habit of reading on a regular basis, and that’s a lot harder to do if it feels like you’re only eating your veggies.
As for improving yourself: it comes back to the same thing. It’s by maintaining the reading habit. One book alone won’t change much. If you just parrot what you read in a single book, you won’t really elevate yourself — you could just as well watch an interesting documentary on Netflix and then repeat its contents to other people. In the same way that going to the gym once doesn’t give you a chiseled physique, reading one book doesn’t sharpen your mind.
Here’s what I suggest: set a goal for yourself. Start with something achievable. For instance: “This year I want to read 5 books, and at least one of them should be a good non-fiction book on a topic I don’t know much about but want to be educated on.” Get through that goal, and then update it. Maybe it becomes “This year I want to read an average of one book per month…” etc.
I would recommend an author known to be approachable. Stephen King is the first example that comes to mind.
I wouldn’t say he is a favorite of mine, but he is popular because his books are often well paced and good about propelling you forward in the story – short chapters where the story develops quickly.
Pick a shorter one that isn’t a series. I would recommend “The Long Walk”.
It’s been a while since I read it, but I remember liking it.