Does reading a lot actually make you smarter, more insightful etc?

[cocoaero]

Recently I've been hitting a good reading streak reading on average 1-2 books a week since the start of the year. I read mostly contemporary (well last 50 years up to present day) literary fiction, some classics and a few non-fiction books.

I am enjoying it, I feel like it helps me relax and that I sleep better after reading for an hour than I do if I've been scrolling. I am enjoying less time online in general so that is good and I enjoy the entertainment of the books and I am not expecting it to do anything special other than that. I was talking to a family member the other day and they were saying reading is beneficial for your mind that it helps creativity and improves thinking and can even help protect against dementia.

Is this true do you think?

I’ve always been a voracious reader, I do think it helps with vocabulary and stress relief. I wouldn’t say it’s made me smart though.

Which A S Byatt would you recommend? I've never read her.

My preference is to read a newspaper rather than a novel. I read The Times every day- and every day I’m impressed with the journalism in it, the clarity of thought of the writers, the ability to change and shape my opinions on so many matters.
i prefer documentaries rather than drama on on tv too.
Fact rather than fiction for me

Any of them but The Frederica Quartet is a must. The first one I read was Angels & Insects which was a nice short one (it's a two novellas) to see how I liked her writing.

@kingprawnspaghetti I think some of the benefit from even reading fiction is from the engagement in a text over an extended period of time. However I would think long form journalism would also be good for this. The Financial times is also excellent. I like a mix of fact and fiction. I need that little bit of escapism although I'm not saying you can't get that from non-fiction as well!

@User37482 No well I was a big reader when younger and read sporadically over the past 10 years maybe a 10 or so books a year and then far more since the start of this year. Not to sure if it makes me any smarter either however they say the more you know the more aware you are of all you don't know perhaps that doubt is a good sign!

But I always want to issue a reader warning for a certain incident involving a household appliance, which absolutely horrified me when I first read it in my teens!

I’d recommend starting with Possession for someone new to Byatt. (Not necessary to read every word of RHA’s poems…)😀

It certainly helps expand your vocabulary and, nonfiction in particular, your knowledge, also helps with mental health

@Shitmonger I looked into it and there is some evidence showing that reading can increase both fluid and crystallized intelligence. Most people associate reading with increased crystallized intelligence as this is things like vocabulary, facts, general knowledge. However reading has also been shown to strengthen neural pathways in the brain, to improve working memory and attention span, encourage mental stimulation and improve abstract thinking and problem solving skills all of which can increase fluid intelligence. Many IQ tests measure both fluid and crystallized intelligence so it could perhaps be said that reading can indeed increase one's IQ and make a person smarter in various ways.

Reading Literary fiction in particular has also been shown to improve theory of mind and enhance empathy, it also reduces "need for closure" i.e. a persons desire for a straight forward, clear and resolved answer which is often incongruent with the reality of life and situations. Reducing need for closure can improve decision making, increase your tolerance for ambiguity and uncertainty, and make you more open minded, flexible and creative in general.

All these benefits are more closely associated with reading more complex texts including literary fiction, theory, non fiction and philosophy and less associated with genre fiction or simpler texts.

Listening to more complex audiobooks also does provide benefits but actually reading the texts appears to offer more benefits then simply listening.

@Mahout Yes quite, that was very unexpected. I won't say more.

It depends on what you read.

I know many people put too much store in being well read. Just because you can quote from a classic literature doesn't make you smart, just shows you have a good memory. It's easy to read a book and completely miss the point of the story.

@MarkingBad True, although I'd assume more people reading for personal enjoyment aren't reading to memorise the text so they can quote it to impress people. Most people I know wouldn't give a toss what I'd been reading. I also doubt it's likely that people are reading Iris Murdoch or Dostoyevsky out of choice without reflecting on what they are reading and getting something more out of it.

Reading was my escape from a difficult childhood. I'd hide out somewhere my parents couldn't find me (including up a tree!) or under the blankets with a torch at night, and go into a different world. I was a 'precocious reader' according to an early school report (my mum had to look that word up in the dictionary so I remember i!) I read far beyond my age, raiding people's bookshelves for anything that seemed interesting and I'm sure helped me navigate schooling better, those I have had to return to re-read some of those books as an adult to really understand them.

Yes I think it helps improve cognitive ability, certainly gave me a much wider vocabulary and an ability to understand and explain difficult concepts and feelings in different ways. That's helped enormously in my professional career, which requires a lot of reading, analysis and keeping up to date. Plus yes, it prevents mental decline as you age.

OP, I find the reduction in 'need for closure' thing very interesting, maybe it helps in not expecting black & white answers and outcomes in ife?

But more importantly reading for pleasure is exactly that, pleasurable.

I'm not a snob, and think all reading of anything at all is valuable. As a child I read everything from Barbara Cartland to the Classics and at 16 loved Graham Greene! I went on to do an English Lit degree so am reasonably 'well read' but as an adult I'm as happy to read a Sci Fi fantasy or the Jack Reacher books as I am the latest book award winners. I also enjoy loads of non-fiction and autobiographies, including celebrity ones!. I love a charity shop find of something out of print and unusual.

Reading has given me so much and something that I will always love.

On a more basic level my spelling and grammar have always been spectacular bacause I've always read a lot. I know what the words are supposed to look like.

My point, though badly made I admit, is that people often do this to impress. Orwell's 1984 is one of modern days most quoted books but it is also the one people claim to have read when they haven't or they got part way through and gave in. Most people have no idea what it's about yet still happy to churn out quotes from it. This isn't the only book they do this to.

I don't think we can assume what people do and don't do for leisure. I've met many who read widely for pleasure and that includes Ulysses and Crime and Punishment, and before anyone points out Dostoyevsky didn't write Ulysses, yes I know, but it is a complicated book hence the mention.

If you gain pleasure and insight from reading that's great and what makes reading worth it. I don't find reading a pleasure, but I read mainly to gain knowledge with the occasional tap into Christie, Adams, etc. it takes me a very long time to read a book.

I think benefit of reading novels is to introduce you to situations and thoughts you may never ordinarily come across in you life. It doesn't make you fully understand those things but it can help give you a small connection to other worlds.

I just don't think reading in and of itself makes people smarter. But that's ok, as long as people enjoy it.

Oh and because I read so damnably slowly, I do remember whole tracts of books and amazingly people have assumed I'm well read when in reality I have just accidentally read something so much but, the memory lodged it in there. I don't do it to sound well read, but some people definitely do.

@MarkingBad Well I do agree that reading should be a pleasure and there isn't much point in slogging though a book if its not fun. Any other benefits that come by the way of that enjoyment is great but not the point for me and I don't irl go about boasting about what I read it was just this one relative who is also a keen reader told me about these side benefits.

@Gerwurtztraminer That is so great the reading helped you though difficult times and shaped your future even!

Yes I think perhaps the fact that through reading you gain so much insight into different points of view and experiences that you have more scope to see the nuance in situations or other peoples behaviour? I think that makes sense and that it would help you tolerate not having a definitive answer and stop you jumping to conclusions as seems so common.

I too love a charity shop find and I love obscure titles from the 70's especially as I am fascinated by that time period. I used to describe myself as randomly read as opposed to widely read because most of my books came from charity shops! I don't think I'm snobby, I'm just not too into any genre fiction such as romance or crime. I did used to enjoy Arthurian type novels such as those by Rosalind Miles as a teenager but they left me a bit cold as an adult. I do enjoy a bit of science fiction now and again. I read Solaris by Stanislaw Lem a few weeks ago and I want to try the Doris Lessing SciFi series so perhaps that is my genre?

"... people often do this to impress.*
I read such books, not to impress (anyone other than myself), but because I should to improve my knowledge, and although I might not enjoy them compared to a page turner, the book will stay in my mind. I can't say that I've heard anyone quote from 1984 other than 'Big Brother' or 'Room 101'.

Ulysses - sod that.
Iris Murdoch - not read any.
Dostoyevski - yes.
Agatha Christie - page turners.

A lot of phrases are quotations, but people generally won't recognise that.

FWIW, I've read 1984 more than once.

@GloriaMonday I read 1984 in high school and again a few years ago after watching the film with John Hurt. It is a good book. I've heard some people quote "Do it to Julia"

Iris Murdoch is worth a read, I haven't read any Christie but my husband is a fan. Perhaps I should.

If my dad is anything to go by, reading is very good for your cognitive skills and brain function in later life.

He ALWAYS had a book on the go. He died after a brief 2 week illness at almost 94, but he was as bright, sharp and interested as he’d always been. Watching quiz shows or doing the telegraph and times crosswords with him was evidence of how broad was his knowledge. He passed on his love of poetry to me. Like him, I learn poems constantly and can recite one for most occasions (to my family’s eye rolling). And he’d read anything, from Homer to sports biographies to chick lit, like Marian Keyes 😁 It made him the most interesting and interested person I’ve known (until I had his grandsons).

@PorgyandBess That's lovely, your Dad sounds brilliant and your a lucky daughter to have had him!

Iris Murdoch is worth a read, Why?
I haven't read any Christie but my husband is a fan. Perhaps I should. I read them when young and liked them then. The BBC tv adaptations are good. Why not try one or two to see if it's your thing?

I can't imagine reading anything by Marian Keyes, sorry. Her books might be great, but I CBA to find out. I find her annoying, although I accept that she might be lovely IRL.

Anything I've read that has won an award, has usually started off well then got so boring I abandoned it, or I only read a few pages.

Thank you! He was the best of us. Funny, clever and kind.

@GloriaMonday I think she's worth reading because not only are her books very well written, with great characterisation and enjoyable but they offer a good deal of philosophical depth and psychological insight into the human condition. They can be challenging and require a fair bit of engagement from the reader but they are worth it. A Severed Head is a good one to try as its is short and lets a potential reader see if they enjoy her style. I will admit though her books aren't for everyone.

Thanks @cocoaero , I might give it a try.