There's A Book For That...

Joyce Carol Oates said, "Reading is the sole means by which we slip, involuntarily, often helplessly, into another's skin, another's voice, another's soul." We need more of that. Be curious.

Nov 25, 2023

Now, more than ever, the sentiment of Oates needs to sink into our homes, and into our lives. Empathy, it seems, has been rotting in the fridge for far too long. As the months have crept on, I have found myself in a growing panic about how many people are not reading. This includes adults in my life and also stems from students across America who are reading at such severely delayed grade levels, but that is a piece for another time. Teachers are tired, kids are apathetic, and words on pages have lost their luster for school-aged adolescents. This is not for teachers to read and implement reading techniques (yikes), but for adults to pass down a love of reading to new generations. (Can 1,500 words do that?…)

We must enmesh ourselves into the world of imagination again. We are caught up in a world of flash headlines, quick opinions, and 90-second reels where we have lost our ability to be cognitively patient and in awe.

Brain Massage

I am not writing this piece as a cure for reading comprehension in our nation’s schools. I can’t write that. That thing would be a monster. My aim is to be passionate with the hope that just one person reads this (the irony) and picks up a dusty ass book from the shelf to crack it open and have their brain chemistry change. Literally…your brain chemistry changes when you read. One of the many health benefits of reading includes an increase in your brainpower by improving your memory and brain function. Reading can help slow the process of brain deterioration and memory loss. You are literally exercising your brain when you read (off of a screen preferably) just like you would exercise your body. If we need to be active in our bodies for a myriad of health benefits, it only makes sense that we must exercise our minds as well. Crossword puzzles and brain games are excellent for this too, and can be a bit more fun if you are not a bookworm. Exercising your brain and having it do some heavy lifting could decrease your chances of Alzheimer’s later in life as well.

Reading helps you sleep (take it from the insomniac…it does help). Reading lowers your cortisol levels, something that is too pervasive in this society to go unnoticed. We are STRESSED y’all! Go read a freakin’ book. Put your hands on some pages.

Theory of the Mind

Have you ever heard of the Theory of the Mind? It’s the “human capacity to comprehend that other people hold beliefs and desires and that these may differ from one's own beliefs and desires.” ←The obvious statement here is that we all have opinions and know other people do too. Big woop. But literary fiction has been proven to kickstart the readers’ performance on theory of the mind tasks. This means that reading has been proven to help build our empathy. And if you don’t think we are in desperate need of empathy right now as a world…then sheesh, I don’t know what to tell ya. Opening up a book that was not written by anyone we know about something we didn’t already know builds our capacity and expands our worldview tenfold. We learn, we get educated, we cry, we laugh, we ponder, and we are challenged by words on a page written by someone who experienced these events, and emotions, or who was moved to embody another. Writers completely slice themselves open onto pages, and don’t we want to partake in that vulnerability? It is a beautiful thing to witness an author toil and give themselves to the craft of writing just for our enjoyment.

A Fifth Grader Told Me…

For as long as I can remember, I have been a writer. But what I have been learning (admittedly in my late twenties and in graduate school) is that to be a good writer, you must be a good reader. This is not a shocking revelation of course, but I’ll do you one better: To be a good, healthy human, you need to be reading. I could throw a hundred disclaimers in here about how I know there just aren’t enough hours in the day; people have full-time jobs, kids, and personal lives that are eating them alive…but reading, for just 20 minutes a day is achievable.

Now I will say this…a 5th grader that I have been working with recently wrote an essay about why every American adult should read *drum roll please* 10-15 books a year. Heck yes! A FIFTH GRADER! Gosh, she is so cool. When she initially posed that number, I admittedly clapped back with, “10-15?! I mean… I was thinking like 3-5 would set our country on a different path.” She said if she can read close to 80 books a year, then adults can read 10. My god. So then I gave her all of the counterarguments that I wrote out above (time and energy being the main ones) and then I threw out accessibility. “What if books aren’t accessible to some people?” She immediately retorted with, “Well library cards are free.” I said, “Sure, but what if someone’s town doesn’t have a library?” Was I trolling a fifth-grader? Maybe…then she said, “I know of a few programs nationwide that send books to kids in situations like that. Adults too.” I mean… ultimately that is a bandaid answer, right? We need more reading programs, and we need more celebrities like Dolly Parton who send out books nationwide to children 0-5 years of age. We need this for teenagers, we need this for adults. But starting locally, in your own city, amongst your community, you can champion reading simply in a conversation. We know what our friends like, what shows they watch, etc, so certainly books can enter into those conversations.

Where to Start

I was fortunate enough to grow up in a household where we were talking about books constantly. Whether that was my mom’s book club coming over or my dad ripping through three novels a week, reading was part of the fabric of my childhood home. Not everyone gets that luxury or has adults in their life who champion the power of words (be it in reading or writing). Oftentimes, when I talk to someone who does not read frequently, it is a matter of them not liking reading (which is a focus and stamina issue as an adult) and them not knowing what they want to read. Reading does not have to be scary! I promise.

Like the show Yellowstone? THERE’S A BOOK FOR THAT. Cormac McCarthy and Paulette Jiles are your authors.

Like reality TV? (We all do…zero judgment here.) THERE’S A BOOK FOR THAT. Starting off with Emily Henry or Jennifer Weiner, among many other authors, would satisfy the drama and juiciness you crave.

Love a sci-fi film? THERE’S A BOOK FOR THAT. Octavia Butler for the WIN. George Orwell, Ursula Le Guin, and Margaret Atwood would do ya proud.

Obsessed with animals, plants, and nature? Religion? Self-help? Going through massive grief? Needing something funny and light? Something that will shake you awake? THERE’S A BOOK FOR THAT.

Reading Guides are also helpful :) Follow libraries on Instagram (@milwaukeepubliclibrary is an excellent follow) or @nytbooks for each year’s list of the greatest books. Short stories, graphic novels, poetry, and articles are all ways in which we can engage in reading in shorter bursts. You can work up to the 1,000-page novel if you’d like. Don’t start with it.

You Didn’t Hear It From Me. Librarians, Educators, Students, and Friends answering the question, “Why Read?”

“Well, one of the main reasons that I read is that the right book reminds me of who I am, once was, or long to be.” -Educator
“Reading is an escape; a learning opportunity that is personal yet oddly interpersonal. Where else can you be alone and with others?” -Educator
“To have a more human experience one must read from others human experiences.” -Educator
“Windows and mirrors! So you can see yourself reflected back to you in words and also experience worlds that are completely different from your own and a way to travel through time and space without leaving your living room! And to build imaginative muscles since you get to decide how the page comes to life in your mind.” -Therapist
“Reading opens windows into other lives and possibilities and helps you see your own life more clearly. Reading is stimulating and relaxing and helps center you both emotionally and physically. Reading is just plain fun.” -Librarian
“Why read… from a visual artist perspective, reading is what informs the work. It’s why I have new ideas and inspiration. Reading also prompts me to widen my own opinion on something.” -Former Student
“Reading, at least for me, is necessary. Doesn’t matter what the reading material is: a novel, a news article, research, a recipe, magazine, the back of a cereal box…I just want to KNOW. Know more about the world, about a culture, about an understudied disease or syndrome; what’s the research on that? I want to know how this author writes, or this one, or this one. How this author tells the story of this marginalized group or this underrepresented viewpoint. I want to know why this country and this country are fighting and what’s the history behind that. Why does our government function this way? Why does this congressperson believe what he/she believes? Why? Why? Why? How do I make that dish? Or that one? So, reading is my gateway to all of that. It softens the buzz in my brain that NEEDS knowledge and words to explain. I need words that will give beautiful shape to something I can’t on my own.” -Educator
“Most often I read to escape the mental load in my brain. Reading requires my full attention and exercises my imagination. I can’t scroll through Instagram while reading like I sometimes find myself doing while watching TV or a movie. Reading has a calming effect, even if the story is not tranquil. Sometimes I read to learn, about history, the natural environment, and other people.” -Architect

There is something for every reader, whether you simply do not read or you are on your 250th book of the year. Ask a trusted source if you want to start reading more. We have all taken a hiatus before from reading. Some have lasted a year, and some have lasted since the last book we half-read in high school. It is OKAY! But reading really can save us…so why not start now?