for reading and changed my life

How reading fiction renewed my love

If you are like I was, and are a very loyal supporter of non-fiction books, then you may find this article enlightening… It began after watching the movie Twilight. A story about teenage vampires. After watching this film, I knew there was no way that I could wait for the next movie to come out, so I immediately picked up a copy of the text three books in the series. On top of that, I saw a trailer for Angels And Demons. The prequel movie to a great book I had read a few years ago called The Da Vinci Code. Both excellent stories that I highly recommend you check out.

I picked up the book Angels And Demons as well because I find movies that are based on books ten times more enjoyable if you`re read the book first. So from going to see one movie, it inspired me to buy four books that I immediately wanted to start reading. And since I didn`t have any non-fiction books I was desperate to get started on, I decided to give this “fiction” thing a shot. Before I started reading these books, I`ll admit that I wasn`t an avid reader. The books that I was reading were OK. Cracking Creativity is what ultimately gave me the idea to start doing personal development experiments. It`s a very good book and is definitely my favourite idea book of all time. But something was missing. And I wasn`t quite sure what it was.

After taking a month off from personal development books to start reading fiction, I figured out what was missing. And it was passion. While reading personal development books used to light my brain on fire with inspiration , they simply weren`t doing that for me anymore. Yet, by reading these fiction books, I found myself eager to tear through the pages to find out what was happening next. Is Bella going to become a vampire? Is Edward going to die? Will the world be destroyed by antimatter? I didn`t know. But these great fiction stories made me flip page after page to find out.

Reading fiction showed me a lot of things about personal development and myself. And not just the fact that I would really love to become a vampire! First, it showed me that too much of anything is a bad thing. No matter what it is. Even though I`m an avid fan of non-fiction books, reading a good fiction book every now and then is not only fun, but also necessary. It opens your mind to a whole new place where things aren`t like your every day world. It also gives you that childlike mindset where anything is possible. The second thing that reading fiction books did was renew my love for reading. While reading was starting to become a chore, I relearned just how enjoyable reading can actually be. I learned that reading is usually ten times better than watching television.

After finishing one of my books, I asked myself when the last time watching a movie or television had me this excited and moved by a story. I decided the last time that came close was when I watched Schindler`s list, and that had been a long time ago! So reading fiction showed me the amazing power that reading can have on you.

Let`s not get carried away, I still love reading personal development books. That trait will last me a life time because the subject of personal development lasts a lifetime. But I`ve learned that you need to try new and different things occasionally. If you are like I was and believe that non-fiction is the only thing worth reading then I strongly consider that you reconsider your thinking. Fiction books are a great form of entertainment and is a hundred times better than slaving yourself through television. Grab a great fiction story, there are plenty of them out there, and find out for yourself just how rewarding a great story can be.

 

Ex. 2. Match the English expressions with their Russian definitions.

1. понять, разобраться a. enlighten
2. время от времени b. on top of that
3. в довершении всего c. an avid reader
4. склад ума d. check out
5. рутинная работа e. prequel
6. характерная черта, особенность f. mindset
7. прояснять, проливать свет на что-л. g. figure out
8. ознакомиться ( с книгой) h. now and then
9. предыстория i. a chore
10. человек, читающий запоем j. trait

 

Ex. 3. Paraphrase or explain (in English!).

1) you may find this article enlightening

2) I decided to give this “fiction” thing a shot.

3) It also gives you that childlike mindset

4) the subject of personal development lasts a lifetime

5) slaving yourself through television

 

Ex. 4. Answer the questions.

1) What category of readers is the article addressed to?

2) How did the writer develop the habit of reading fiction?

3) What kind of books did he use to read before?

4) What book triggered his personal development experiments?

5) What was missing in non-fiction books in his opinion?

6) What was the impact of personal development books on him?

7) What other types of non-fiction books do you know?

8) What arguments does he give to encourage people to start reading fiction?

 

Ex. 5. Write about the last book you have read recently! (about 10 sentences)

 

 

Составитель: к.ф.н., доц. И.С. Попова