Reading to Learn vs. Reading for Leisure

[Sandy]

How many of you fellow bloggers read with a puporse to obtain knowledge? How many of you read as a hobbie or simply for fun?

 

I have always shied away from subjects such as investment, politics, self-help or even biographies, because I find them less enticing than ficitons. My reason for reading is solid, I want to enjoy a good story. I'm not so much of a learning reader. It makes me feel like I'm reading textbooks.

 

But what about you? Do you find spent your time reading to learn a set of skills or certain knowledge or do you read just for the fun of it?

[paula schuck]

I read to learn and relax. Why do the two have to be mutually exclusive. When I read (I am a writer by profession) I learn from excellent writers how to write better articles or fiction. I learn how to adjust or improve as a stylist. I learn too from poor authors how to not make their mistakes. I just completed Still Alice and enjoyed this book immensely. While it is fiction, it is also loaded with information about neurological conditions such as Alzheimer's. I left that book with a good deal of information I did not know regarding how the brain functions. That to me is the best of both worlds.

http://www.thriftymommastips.blogspot.com/
http://www.thriftymommasbrainfood.blogspot.com/

[JessicaW]

Pleasure mostly but most of the time if a book is set in an historic setting you end up learning stuff anyway. I do sometimes read non-fiction books but not often.

Jess
http://pbbookends.blogspot.com/

[Mary Salvato]

I read mainly for fun but also read to learn occasionally!

[Lisa Snellings]

I do both. I like a good story too---from shorts to long, meaty novels. I like reading non-fiction too. It sounds like you're interested in reading to learn. It might be a good idea for you to start with smaller doses---like magazine articles. I read Make magazine when I want to 'geek out.' I confess that's fairly often. But I've also found myself drawn deeply into non fiction. For instance, Rats, by Robert Sullivan, drew me in and didn't let go. If you find non-fiction that's well-written and in a voice that you respond to, it can be just as fascinating as fiction.

Lisa
www.lisasnellings.com
Likely the best way to enjoy non-fiction is to find subjects that matter to you.

And don't forget that we learn a lot reading fiction. Happy learning!

[Akhilesh kumar]

I read for knowledge and fun both. I really enjoy reading subjects like science, politics, culture, history, investement, geogrophy, or even biography. But i really love histroy. I enjoy reading histroy. I love to be surrounded by books (good books)
I also find great fun talking to person who know really the subject.

[Ruby E]

i read to learn and for pleasure.
i find that for every new book i read, i learn a new word, a country, a history. i love it!
Sometimes i read to a point where I want to go to the country that's set in the book!

[Titli]

I always read for pleasure. But the most important thing is that you get to learn something from reading a book even if you read it for fun. Therefore, rather than focusing on text books only, one should read lots of other books (of his interest). It may not be helpful in exams, but it will serve at least some purpose in life - sooner or later.

[David Gutowski]

I read for pleasure, but learn about the human condition from novels and well-written non-fiction as music as I would learn about the stock market from a finance book.

[Pete Karnas]

I'm not sure the two can really be separated in most cases. Getting sucked into a good story, you're inevitably going to learn something, even if it's just about what it takes to write a good book.

As for histories, biographies, and political works, they can often be just as fascinating as novels to certain people (myself included). The trick is to discover what it is you really are fascinated by and you will naturally gravitate towards those books, fiction or non. I'll never willingly read a book about French art in the 1800's, but give me a book on imperial China in the same period and you'll have a hard time prying it out of my hands.

Pete

http://petekarnas.wordpress.com

[Diana M.]

I read for pleasure and for knowledge. Because I am in university I have to read a lot of books about certain subjects when I'm doing research for an academic paper. Some are boring, but some reveal themselves to be very interesting, sometimes leading me to other authors, books and themes.

But usually I read for pleasure. And, even for pleasure, I think I always learn something with the story =)