Brain Candy: Feed Your Mind With Books
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Enrich Your Mind. Expand Your Life.
Less than half of Americans read books for pleasure. That’s what the National Endowment for the Arts reported following a 2004 survey of 17,000 adults. This is not to say that people are reading less.
With the rising popularity of the Internet, people are probably spending more time than ever reading as they browse the web, shop online and interact through social media applications.
Our networked culture promotes the feeling that we need to keep connected, consuming short bursts of information in the form of email, blogs and tweets. Besides the Internet, there are films, television and video games to distract people from reading books for pleasure. The instant gratification of image-based entertainment is more appealing than the challenge of reading a good book.
The discipline required to read a book involves a certain type of focus. When you pick up a book, you connect with the mind of the author. To really appreciate the process of reading a book and to make the necessary connection with its author, you have to slow down and narrow your thinking. Reading an absorbing and challenging book is like engaging in a form of meditation. Instead of seeking nothingness, you are seeking immersion in the thoughts and fantasies of another person.
As we read a book, especially a work of literary fiction, it engages our conscious mind and then moves into our subconscious. We think about a book while we read it, but are often surprised when it rises back into our consciousness months or even years later. A truly memorable fictional character like Holden Caulfield from Catcher in the Rye or Elizabeth Bennet from Pride and Prejudice will stay with you forever.
A book that makes an impact on you will become part of your life experience.
If you’re interested in feeding you brain with some solid sustenance, set yourself a goal to read at least one well-written novel a month (or two months). These are some benefits which this challenge will bring you:
- Reading a book will exercise your mind. We all know about exercising our bodies to keep fit, but if you don’t exercise your brain it will get just as flabby as an unexercised body. Focusing on reading a book will stop your brain from becoming a couch potato.
- A good book can take you to places you’ve never been and put you inside the minds of other people. When you’re absorbed in a book, you can escape from your problems in the real world, set out on adventures, and even live a different life.
- Besides offering an escape, books can open your eyes to life and give you a better understanding of the world around you. How can reading be both an escape and a way to learn about the world? When we read, we enter the mind and the world of the author. Each book we read enlarges us as we enter into more and more minds.
- Reading can make you a more interesting person. It’s one of the best forms of continuing education. It’s also a great way to learn more about yourself.
A lot of people feel they were forced to read novels in high school and college and now they’re done. Reading because you choose to and deciding what you’re going to read is an entirely different experience. Not sure where to start? Talk to friends, start reading book reviews in the newspaper and online, take a visit to the library. Maintaining a list of books that you want to read is one way to make sure you always know what you’ll be reading next.
“Outside of a dog, a book is a man’s best friend. Inside of a dog, it’s too dark to read.” – Groucho Marx
The National Endowment for the Art survey also revealed some interesting facts about people who read literary books. They’re more likely to attend performing arts and sports events. They’re also more likely to participate in volunteer activities. The survey also showed an interesting correlation between income and reading. People with higher levels of income read more books. If you aspire to financial success, it pays to read.
There are certain classic books that survive across the decades and even the centuries. The wisdom they hold is timeless, their words invaluable. Every reader should include some classic books on a list of future reads.
Here’s a list of 10 classics to start with, in no particular order.
- The Odyssey, Homer – This compelling and powerful ancient Greek epic poem tells the tale of a hero’s long journey home from war.
- Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen – Love, marriage and social class are indirectly examined in this story of courtship in 19th century England.
- Crime and Punishment, Fyodor Dostoyevsky – A classic Russian study of the power of evil and the possibility of redemption.
- The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald – This near-perfect novel deals with the influence of dreams in 1920’s America. If you were forced to read this novel as a student, read it again as an adult to fully appreciate the beauty of Fitzgerald’s prose.
- The Light in August, William Faulkner – A study of race relations in the American South, told through a complex web of interconnected plot lines.
- Lolita, Vladimir Nabokov – A controversial plot is combined with innovative prose to create an unforgettable story of a man obsessed with a 12-year-old girl.
- Mrs. Dalloway, Virginia Woolf – Woolf’s mastery of the interior monologue is showcased in this novel about a single momentous day in the life of several characters.
- 1984, George Orwell – A famous portrayal of a totalitarian government and repressive society of the future.
- To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee – This Southern Gothic novel that deals with racial injustice and the loss of innocence.
- War and Peace, Leo Tolstoy – An epic novel about Russian society and the invasion of Russia by Napoleon.
Approach reading like an act of meditation. Find some quiet time to relax and focus. You’ll soon find yourself reading for pleasure and reaping the benefits of literature. It make take a little searching, but before long you’ll find a book you really love, the kind of book you can’t wait to get back to when you have to put it down. When you find this moment…you will find happiness. 
My question to you: What book has had a great impact in YOUR life?
I would love to hear what everyone else has enjoyed!
Posted on August 28, 2009
I wish more people would read books. It’s sad how few actually do. But I can’t be too hypocritical because it wasn’t until my senior year of college that I actually started to read for pleasure. Hopefully this will spark a new interest for some people. Good post!
Dave
LifeExcursion
.-= David Damron´s last blog ..Book Review: Scratch Beginnings – Me, $25 and The Search for the American Dream =-.
Hey Dave, I was the same way. I really didn’t get into reading until I hit college, and then I actually ended up as a librarian after college for nearly 5 years. So needless to say, the reading bug hit me big time.
Thanks for commenting!
Dayne
Dayne,
I read constantly and sometimes it’s too much to take in because you never really know if you retain, and get to apply, all that wonderful information.
……………………
@David,
I never read in high school and now have started catching up on all my assignments that I used cliff notes for. Pathetic, I know, but it’s worth reading classics.
Pete | The Tango Notebook
.-= Pete | The Tango Notebook´s last blog ..The Meaning of Tango – The Story of the Argentinian Dance =-.
Pete, I think reading so much is not a bad thing, ever. You are probably retaining way more than you think.
I appreciate you commenting here.
Dayne
Books are essential to personal growth. WIthout personal growth, you become stagnant and stuck in one place mentally. Allow yourself to enjoy devouring a classic novel, which can stimulae your mind. Books are like oxygen to a human body, its necessary to breed life. As you begin to minimize the amounts of books you read, it creates stupidity, holding on old beliefs and mental cancer. Those who read become more valuable in the work place, are happiner and can handle whatever life thouws at them much better.
Lesson 1: READ READ READ
.-= jonathanfigaro´s last blog ..How to Turn Lemons Into Lemonade =-.
Jonathan, I agree with you 100%. Becoming “stagnant” mentally, can lead to such boredom in life and a great book is a good way to stimulate the mind as you say. Thank you so much for stopping by here, reading, and commenting. I really appreciate it!
I got rid of regular tv 4years, and while I still watch dvd’s and play games every once in a while, it is astounding how much more you can learn if you don’t have tv there.
In answer to your question thats tough. Code of the Samurai made me a better thinker, because it was the first book that I disagreed with but couldn’t figure out why (at first)
Ghandi is an incredible book on leadership, good example, and living a life worth while.
Atlas Shrugged added a sense of pride to my work, and has helped me be a more joyful person.
I’m going to have to go with Walden by Thoreau this time though. He demonstrated greatly that we must seek our own version of value and not the rest of societies.
.-= JS Dixon´s last blog ..5 Ways Serving Others Will Help You Succeed =-.
Thank you so much for commenting JS Dixon! I will have to check out that book you mentioned, “Code of the Samurai”. It sounds really great! Thank you for the suggestion. Ghandi is a fantastic one for sure!
I’ve got “Walden”, but have not read it yet. I’ve got it on my list though, it sounds right up my alley.
Dayne
Such a great post! So funny you wrote about this today because I have a post all ready to go out on Monday about reading and how important it is. I LOVE to read and I’ve read almost all of the books you’ve mentioned above. They are wonderful. As is the Marx quote, which I’ve read before, but had forgotten all about. Love this post!!
.-= Positively Present´s last blog ..how to be beautiful from the outside in =-.
Hey Dani, how are you? Thanks for commenting! I’m glad you liked this post and the Marx quote as well (I love it too!). I will look forward to reading your post on Monday.
I used to read these small cartoonish fiction books back in elementary for a little while until cartoons, sports,video games and girls came into my life. Then when it came time to read anything I was daydreaming. Perhaps that’s why I am still great at math but haven’t retained anything else from my school years: math was the only thing that I really was interested in and applied myself too whereas
with book assignments I would find a way around it.
I first got into reading for pleasure in college, as a sophomore. They offered me $400 to try the college reading skills program, how could I say no. After it ended,I wanted to practice my new speed reading skills. I had been given a copy of “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People” back in my senior year of high school and never read it. For some reason I picked it up and committed to finishing it. As you probably know that book was a big “Aha” moment for me. It gave me a high and provided me with some positivity if you will, a new perspective on the world,inspiration, encouragement, and etc. In my environment, and with the constant stream of negativity in my everyday life, that was a fresh breath of air. It set the foundation for everything else to come my way. Now I’d say I’m an avid reader, mostly of self-improvement,psychology, and acting books, but I’m going back and relearning my history and everything. It’s great.
My favorites, that’s tough, but I’d say:
The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People because it set the foundation for me. The way I think and go about everything, thinking on a deeper level,getting to the root of problems and thinking in terms of principles, patterns and habits.
Personal Development for Smart People because Steve Pavlina has it well thought out in this book. After understanding that the universe operates in terms of principles, this book really explains principles in great depth, reducing everything down to just three core principles of truth,love and power and then explaining the components that make those up. It’s my personal development bible.
Think and Grow Rich is so inspiring, a constant reread for me
Great Post
As a man thinketh, the science of getting rich and the alcbemist have impacted my life. They taught me about goal setting and going after my purpose. I have to read regularly.
.-= Omar´s last blog ..REJECTIONS REJECTIONS REJECTIONS =-.