I have recently been thinking about which books I should encourage my non-reading friends to try. I believe that most people would enjoy reading if they found the right book, but so many are turned off by the boring selection found in schools. The problem is deciding which book to recommend to a person without a list of favourite reads to draw from.
One day I was browsing through some book blogs and noticed a few had posted about their hobbies. There seemed to be a link between the type of pastimes they enjoyed and their taste in books.
Slow Paced Books = Love for Crafts?
People who enjoyed knitting, sewing or painting tended to like quieter books. I don’t have the patience to sit quietly and create things and perhaps this personality trait means that I don’t have the tolerance to work through gentler books. I often find myself becoming bored with books that lack a strong plot and normally abandon them without getting very far. I once tried to knit a scarf and didn’t finish that either!!
Fast Paced Books = Love for High Adrenaline Sports?
People who enjoyed sports with an adrenaline rush seemed to favour books with a fast pace. I’m easily scared and so would never jump out of a plane (or even go on a big rollercoaster!) Perhaps this is the reason that I often find books with non-stop action over-powering. I like things to slow down occasionally so that I can take a breath, admire the scenery and really get to know the characters. I find that I fly through some thrillers so quickly that I never feel I’m touching the ground – I end the book barely knowing the character’s names, let alone what they look like or why they react in the way that they do. This tends to leave me unsatisfied and is the reason I am very cautious when choosing a thriller to read.
What about me?
I prefer more moderate hobbies – enjoying cycling, canoeing, SCUBA diving and travel to remote places of the world. This means that I tend to favour books with a medium paced plot – some action, but also sections with more depth. I like to get out and see the world without scaring myself too much.
Need to recommend a book to a non-reader?
Look at what they like to do in their time off. Pick a book that has a pace matching their need for speed. Unfortunately this doesn’t help you decide which genre to choose, but it’s a start!!
Do you agree, or are you a skydiver who enjoys Marilynne Robinson?
Does your reading pace match your hobbies?
Have you had any luck persuading a non-reader to pick up a book?