"Words are, in my not-so-humble opinion, our most inexhaustible source of magic. Capable of both inflicting injury, and remedying it." -J.K Rowling
People are not reading as much as we used to. Television shows, streaming services, and Youtube have all replaced our want to read. But, books have something that no television series or Youtube video will ever have; books are magical.
Books have the ability to transport us to other worlds, see things we've never seen before, experience different versions of life, and give our minds the ability to think outside the pages. Books are our gateway to another world, yet the majority of us won't pick up a book on our own. People have to be told in school to read books, and even then, people often opt for the Sparknotes version of the book.
The lack of people that I see reading deeply saddens me because more and more often, people are choosing the easy way out of things. Why read a book when they are turning it into a great movie or television series? Why read a book when, for the same amount of time, I could binge watch two seasons of my favorite television show? Books do more than just tell a story; reading improves every facet of your life.
Reading does more for your brain than any television show can. Reading is not only good for education, but it improves memory, focus, imagination, and critical thinking skills. Reading teaches your brain how to focus, how to remember things for longer than six seconds, and how to think of things on your own.
Television shows and movies are good for quick entertainment, but books are what we need to grow. The stories some books tell can stay with you for the rest of your life, and continue to entertain you for the rest of your life. Most books take longer to read than your average 45-minute episode, but that's because they have more meaning and story that could never fit into 45 minutes. Sitting down and getting lost in a good book is an experience like no other.
I often think that a majority of the world's problems would be solved if people read more books. If more people read books, we would choose our words more carefully, have more creative solutions to our problems, and people would have more empathy because they've been shown that the world is larger than just what you know of your world.
So, do me a favor: The next time you find yourself mindlessly clicking through the depths of Youtube, put the phone down, and start reading a book. It may change your life.
