Commentary: Has reading for pleasure vanished from our lives forever?

RE-READ BOOKS FOR COMFORT

I’ve read so much in my youth that those stories still live in my head. I don’t feel the pull of new novels as I did when I was younger. Besides, between news and social media, reading a book can feel like more work.

I’m not alone. Studies show people are reading much less now with our devices, our brains attuned to constant stimulation and instant gratification, with information at our literal fingertips.

Ask the right question and Google will tell you the answer. As a person who used to hate knowing the endings of intriguing stories, I find myself on Wikipedia searching for exactly that.

Occasionally, I pick up one of the 30 books always surrounding me and pat it with great affection before indulging in a poem, short story, or essay I’ve read many times before. Reading a familiar piece offers bite-sized morsels of nostalgia and a sense of comfort, but that feeling doesn’t last.

If we want to read for pleasure again, it can be done. Our brains are wonderful, pliable things and we can rewire them to slow down and slip us back into other worlds, into other dimensions, down the rabbit hole.

It may feel uncomfortable initially, but read a little each day. Schedule time for it – first a chapter, then two.

Re-read your favourite books first. The familiarity helps immersion. Then, when you’re back to reading a novel all the way through again, try something new.

My plan is to reach old age and hopefully still have my eyes to enjoy reading once more. I just put reading for pleasure on my bucket list. It may not happen this year or next year, but one day I will.