Top 10 Reasons I Love Reading

Reading Time: 4 minutes

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature created by The Broke, and the Bookish and is now hosted by Jana at That Artsy Reader Girl. Join us every Tuesday to see MBJ’s Top Ten Listicles!

It’s been a while since either of us has posted, but we’re back once again with a TTT post about the Reasons I Love Reading.

Reading has always been a part of my life. I was lucky enough to have parents who read to me every night and are even big readers themselves, particularly my Dad. I loved having books read to me as a little kid and that love transformed once I was able to read myself.

Unfortunately, my own ability to read was somewhat hampered. I left Grade One without being able to read by myself. That summer, my mom put every effort into teaching me, a little to her regret. Having caught the reading bug, I caused my fair share of trouble by reading when I wasn’t supposed to, mostly very late into the night. While those nights were enjoyable for me, my parents were less than impressed when I woke them in excitement at a plot twist, at five in the morning, the day of our long day of travel to Newfoundland. Oops!

The Entertainment Value

Can anyone deny that books are entertaining? If you’re visiting this site, you probably won’t be arguing with me on this. The entertainment value of books cannot be denied; whether it is fiction or non-fiction, reading can easily occupy an afternoon, day and night. The ability books have to entertain is one of the main reasons I love reading.

Escaping into Another World

In particular, this is one of the reasons I love reading the fantasy genre, but it also applies to all books. I love being immersed in an alternate world created by the author. In the fantasy genre, the world that the author creates is usually magical, or unlike any in our reality, I’m transported. In books that aren’t fantasy, travelling to where ever the story takes place in the world is another of the reasons I love reading. Sometimes, the places may not be great, but they are places I’ve never been to more often than not.

Learning

As much as I love reading fiction, reading non-fiction brings me just as much joy. Learning about history and other topics is one of my favourite things about reading. My brother and I also have a bit of weird competition where at family dinners, we both try and one-up each other with interesting facts. Reading definitely helps me with this, much to my sister’s annoyance. Reading is a huge part of how I learn and because I love learning; it’s one of the reasons I love reading.

Escaping From My Life

I know that this reason is closely connected with escaping into another world. Still, sometimes my life is neither interesting nor adventurous, so reading provides me with an escape from my lack of life. Reading also allows me to escape from dealing with my anxiety or anything that I don’t want to deal with.

Romance

Personally, my romantic life is non-existent, not that I’m complaining. One of the reasons I love reading is that I can get my romance fix from books. Romance novels are great for this, of course, but in reality, more books than romance novels have a romantic element. It is really nice to live and love vicariously through the characters of books.

Relaxing

Cozying up with a book, some tea or lying in the sun with a book and cocktail immediately rids me of stress. Reading’s ability to relax and distract me from my problems is a benefit and a reason I love reading.

Making Friends

I make at least one friend in every fiction book I read, they don’t know, but that’s ok. The books themselves are friends too. I can pick up anyone, and it’s like visiting an old friend. I also have made friends over books. Let’s not forget how Sash and I became friends. We connected over our love of the same book and books in general.

Being Exposed to Alternate Perspectives and Lives

The alternate perspectives and lives that reading books offer aren’t just a benefit but also one of the reasons I love reading. I acknowledge that I have lived a privileged life, but books have exposed me to lives and perspectives different from mine. I know that there are so many books out there that can expose me to alternate perspectives, and I can’t wait to read as many as possible. There are always more perspectives and lives to be exposed to and learn from.

The Tactile Experience

I get a lot of enjoyment from feeling and smelling books. The smell of vanilla and wood, the sight of ink on the page, the fonts, and the various types of paper used in books all contribute to the reasons I love reading. The tactile experience of reading and being surrounded by books brings me both comfort and joy. It’s part of why I want to be a librarian and work in the book industry.

Productive Procrastination

Sash says that I should also add this as one of the reasons I love reading, and she’s not wrong. Reading allows me to be productive and yet still avoid the tasks I’m supposed to do.

Does anyone else read to gain the edge in a competition?