Is there anything quite as relaxing as reading? Finding a comfortable chair, a spot in the sun or snuggled up under a blanket with a hot cup of tea and instantly being transported to another world. Reading for pleasure rather than reading to study or for work can help to shut out the worries and concerns of everyday life and expand your horizons without leaving your seat. This is one of the best hobbies too since it’s free! Just visit your local library or download a classic on your Kindle if you have one.
Making time for yourself to relax is especially important in this day and age of so much stress and bluelight exposure from too many hours of screen time. Finding the time to read as a child was much easier, especially if you were born before mobile phones came into such popular use as online entertainment, but as an adult finding time to indulge in this hobby can harder. Maybe you haven’t found the time to read recently what with having so many daily obligations with kids, work, studies and life, so why not make a promise to yourself? This weekend give yourself an hour or two dedicated to reading. Get comfortable, get offline and open a good book.
If you don’t have any books currently on the go, here’s a few favourites you might want to pick up. They are also amongst the highest selling books of all time; testament to just how good they are and that they are accessible to so many people across the globe!
A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens – “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times” Perhaps you’ve heard that quote and never read the book but it’s an absolute classic tale of revolution and duality, resurrection and transformation set in London and Paris.
The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien – by now you have probably seen the Peter Jackson film, spanning an epic 3 movies. Why not revisit the book and immerse yourself in the full Tolkien middle earth experience? Something about the richness of the language gives the books huge gravitas and you’ll likely find yourself eagerly turning the pages to see what happens next on Frodo’s perilous quest, even though you know the story already.
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis. It’s almost impossible to think of Turkish delight and not recall the scene of the White Witch in this fantastical classic children’s book. Join Lucy, Edmund, Peter and Susan on a magical adventure through the wardrobe and forget all about Brexit.
The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger. Banned from some American schools due to bad language and sexual content, The Catcher in the Rye became a classic tale of teen angst told by central character Holden Caulfield, who did not spend his time playing Candy Crush or playing online games.