Are lost reading skills the canary in the digital coal mine?
When did you last lose yourself in a good book?
The idea that people don’t read books as much as they used to resonated strongly with several subscribers.
Connecting our lack of book reading to too many digital distractions to read deeply, however, was a surprise.
Makes sense on many levels
After reading that post a neighbor called me up to say “That hit me right on the nose.”
A subscriber who recently returned from a several week meditation trip to India said she noticed it took her two to three days to finally settle into reading a book while there.
A Gallup poll in late 2021 found that Americans said they read an average of 12.6 books during the previous year, a smaller number than Gallup has measured in any prior survey back to 1990. That translates to roughly two or three fewer books per year than between 2001 and 2016.
Reading helps define us as humans
“Reading is one of the most important skills our species has acquired,” said Sam Harris, the NYTimes best-selling author who wrote the book and created the meditation app Waking Up. (Emphasis mine.)
What disturbs me is that our species has little awareness we are on the edge of losing our ability to read and think deeply. That possibility is already here – in the palm of everyone’s hand – and more frightening than any of the “sky is falling” fears about AI.
Books and Nature: tripping without the drugs
Getting lost in a book, like Nature, is an immersion experience. We lose ourselves in the sights, sounds, awe and wonder of a natural place just as we are transported to an author’s landscape and story. Both trigger our imagination and creativity, rather than the urge to click.
No guilt. Don’t beat yourself up if you’re not reading. Get yourself outside and let your attention wander and be fascinated for 15-20 minutes. Then read. Build your reading time.
Better yet – take your book outside!
3 Resources for You
Books, articles, tips, tools and advice to help you unplug.
Gallup: Americans Reading Fewer Books Than in the Past
Scott H. Young: Are We Losing the Ability to Read Books?
Sartorial Greek: 5 Reasons Why Adults Don’t Read Books
At some point in life the world’s beauty becomes enough. You don’t need to photograph, paint, or even remember it. It is enough. Toni Morrison
