from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit
Spending time engrossed in a good book is a great past time. Books can be an escape from a boring life, or an adventure full of excitement and intrigue. It's easy to lose yourself among a book's beautifully written pages, reading word upon word of a literary masterpiece. Of course, there are ways to enjoy books to their fullest extent. Would you like to become an avid reader?
Steps
- Figure out which kinds of books you like. If you don't read much, this might take a little while, but don't worry. Think about your favorite movies: are they action, adventure, science fiction, romance? Try to find a book of the same genre. A lot of movies were actually based on books, so a great place to start is by reading the book that spawned your favorite movie.
- Look for book and author recommendations. You can ask your librarian or your avid-reader friends, look for good reviews in literary magazines. Alternatively, if you're a young adult, a great place to start is with a book that has won or been nominated for a Newberry award. There are Newberry winners and nominees in every genre, and you'll recognize them by a silver, gold, or bronze seal on the cover that says "John Newberry Medal".
- Find a nice, quiet place to read. In your room, near a pond, at the library, whatever suits you. As long as there are no distractions. As time goes on, you might figure out that you read better with music on, or even while you're walking on the treadmill or doing some other habit of yours, so you might want to experiment.
- Try visualizing yourself in the main character's place. If the book is about battling dragons, imagine yourself wielding a sword, ready to take action. A great part of reading is the fact that the reader has the ability to completely immerse themselves in the story. If the author did a good job of it, you should feel you can relate to the characters, that they are as real as your friends and neighbors, and this is what you're going for when you read.
- Ask yourself questions after having finished the book. "Did I enjoy that book?" "Were the characters believable?" "Did I learn anything from reading it?" This will let you figure out what other books you should read next. If the answers are yes, you might try another similar book, or another book by that same author. Once you've done this, and you're having a great time, just remember that you don't have to stick to one genre. Now that you know what you like, it's okay to branch out a bit.
Tips
- You might find that after a while, you no longer need to read in a place without distractions, and you may find you're suddenly able to read on the bus, during math class, and in the middle of the downtown mall!
- Start off simple. Don't overload yourself with too many books to read, and try to begin by reading short, easily understandable books.
- Create your own reading space. Maybe a corner in your room, with a comfortable chair.
- Try and relate to the characters. Find your favorite character, and ask yourself why that character interests you.
- If you really like a book, write your own alternate endings. This is known as fan fiction.
Warnings
- If you are a young reader, it's best to stay away from adult rated novels. Young adult novels are just as enjoyable. If the subject matter interests you and you have the requisite reading skill, then by all means feel free to read adult rated books.
Things You'll Need
- A good book
Related wikiHows
Article provided by wikiHow, a collaborative writing project to build the world's largest, highest quality how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Become an Avid Reader. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.
No comments:
Post a Comment