5 Reasons You Should Be Perpetually Reading BY T.A. Stanley

There are so many old books.
From Jane Austen to Virginia Woolf and everything in between. The Iliad, Crime and Punishment, The Great Gatsby, Beloved, The Bell Jar—the list goes on and on. These are books that are rich with history, context, and significance. They are books you are assigned in high school and hate, but read later in life and love. There are a staggering number of these books. They may look stogy and unapproachable, but they can be so worth it.

There are always new books.

As if that weren't enough there are new books coming out every day! With the beauty of the internet and e-readers there is no end to new books. There are critically acclaimed, New York Times Best Sellers and there are independently published e-books. All have merit and all deserve some attention. It's impossible to keep up, but it's worth a noble effort. Besides...


People will act annoyingly shocked when you haven't read something.
“Whaaaaaaaat? You haven't read X? You've gotta read X. I can't believe that you haven't read it.” Whether it's a classic or a new release you are undoubtedly going to face someone acting surprised when you haven't read something. Especially if you are a writer. Even more so if you work in a bookstore, as I do. And of course, they will only ask you about books you haven't read. They might even ask you about several books, one right after the other—these will all be books you have not read. I don't know how they do it. You shouldn’t feel stupid, but you will. It’s impossible to read everything, but it will seem as if you just aren’t even trying. The more you read the less likely this is to happen. Hopefully.

If you don't read for a while you will never catch up.
I went through a phase of a year or so in between undergrad and graduate school where I barely read anything. Shock, gasp! And now I feel behind. For eternity. There’s too much! Don’t ever stop! Don’t make my same mistake. Save yourself!

Books smell good.
Books just smells good to read. Whether it’s a physical book or an e-reader, it’s gonna smell good. I think it makes you prettier too. Scientific studies have yet to prove this, but I wouldn’t doubt it if it were true.