Replenish your reading

“To acquire the habit of reading is to construct for yourself a refuge from almost all the miseries of life.”W. Somerset MaughamIs reading all that tedious a task? So it is made out to be in this age of computrers and video games. Reading may be a delirious act for some and replenishing for some others, but it has been an accepted fact that reading maketh a man. He who sows the seeds of reading into anothers heart is blessed. Teaching and parenting are noble tasks which have the power to inculcate the habit in young minds.  “The latest books I have read are The lord of the Rings, Chronicles of Narnia, The Kite Runner and Da Vinci Code. This has helped me improve my vocabulary a lot and thus help me to be able to tell stories and explain facts to my eight-year-old son and 12-year-old daughter,” says Kala M,  a house-wife from the city.Reading requires interest in the subject matter, focus and a diligent mind. It allows you to grow personally and professionally. Also, it allows you capture different cultures, letting you move across geographical borders. “I love reading books like Harry Potter and other magical and wizadry books since they entertain me and also keep me up-to-date while talking to my peers,” says Achu Jacob a class 5 student of Sri Atmanada Memorial School, Malakkara. One of the most important benefits reaped out of cultivating reading habit is that it increases the depth of the mind, giving him or her a better understanding of the world around. Contemporary writing is found to be lucid and in an easy-to-understand language. This makes reading less strenuous and it means reading a book without the help of the dictionary. To  Jacob Abraham, a third year student of Computer Engineering from Bharath University, easy reading is key to his bookish getaways.  “I would go for books like Chetan Bagat’s Five Point Someone or One Night at a Call Center as it just relieves my mind and it is also easy reading,” he says.   There is an increase in the readership of books by Indian English authors and most of them are the centre of research activities in the international academia, points out Rani Shyam an Assisstant Professor in marketing at a B-School in Kottayam. “Arundathi Roy, Anita Nair, Jhumpha Lahiri and the likes have conquered the reading world and most of them have won national and international literary awards,” she says. Fiction books are a good read for beginners who want to get into the habit. They help you develop a love for reading; from fiction books one can slowly move to science fiction or thrillers, Rani suggests. Making sure to carry a book along wherever you go helps get into the habit of reading. Also setting goals like “I will read a book every month” and listing out your favourite boos to be read increases reading habit.Also, reading daily before going to bed or during free time helps reduce consumption time over the television or the internet. Visiting book shops close to your home will keep you aware about the latest books available.