Welcome to 2011!
Of course, the New Year is often a time when people decide to make resolutions - generally to make some improvements such as to quit smoking, lose weight, eat more healthy food, exercise more, etc.
One of the best ways to broaden our horizons is by reading. Reading is not just educational, however, for it can reduce stress, make one feel less lonely, and improve one's general sense of well-being.
Looking outward can be so beneficial, even if the text is fiction. There are often kernels of truth in most works. And, of course, there is the added benefit of learning something new!
Just think, the average novel is 300 to 400 pages. If you read just ten pages per day, you will be able to read the equivalent of ten novels in 2011!
Try reading a wide variety of material though - not just novels. Read a play or two, some poetry, a comic, a magazine, and local newspaper. When reading short stories or poetry - you can be reading a novel in between, letting you absorb more from each short piece.
The famous Canadian author Mavis Gallant once wrote the following:
"Stories are not chapters of novels.
They should not be read one after another, as if they were meant to follow along.
Read one. Shut the book. Read something else.
Come back later. Stories can wait."
Gallant, Mavis. Preface. The Selected Stories of Mavis Gallant. Toronto, Ontario: McClelland & Stewart, 1997. XIX. Print.
At any rate, just a thought for the New Year.
Happy 2011 !
Happy Reading !
