5 Reasons to Read Books

Vasanth Kamath - speed cuber, curious character and my wing mate is a voracious reader. His room is always littered with books. I ask him - 'How do you manage to buy so many books?' He answers - 'I don't buy them all. I always ask for books as my Birthday present.'

One year on, I have become a bibliophile in some sense. The more books I read, the more I fall in love with them.

For the cynic who feels that reading books is a futile exercise - that what one gets out of reading 1000 pages is just 10 pages, here are 5 reasons to start reading books.

1. Authors are intellectual beings

An author's intelligence is almost always above the average human being's intelligence.

Research has shown that an author has an IQ of at least 130.

Even if you don't buy that or you don't believe in IQ scores, consider this. How many authors do you know who live in your neighbourhood?

I suppose, very few if not none. They are above the average plane. Their ideas count.

2. Powerhouse of Ideas

The author has specific ideas about a certain topic. And the author is an intellectual creature. Surely, their ideas count.

Pick up any book and you will find it packed with ideas and opinions which may well shape your life.

3. Role Models

There will be characters in certain books that may strike a chord. They might start serving as role models.

We would start looking up to the characters for courage and inspiration.

4. Pass Time

There is no better way to spend your time gainfully than by reading books.

Without having to attend any kind of courses, one can learn a lot just by reading books.

One can be satisfied of having spent one's spare time in a fruitful manner.

5. Experts recommend it

I was also a cynic. But when Arjun Malhotra and Sramana Mitra (who visited the Kgp campus) also recommended reading a lot of books, I started reading more and more.

If you are still not convinced, ask any person who you think is successful.

One thing they all have in common - they are voracious readers.

Books I have Read (in the last 1 year)

The God of Small Things; The Google Story; The Alchemist; Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman!; The Day of the Jackal; To Kill a Mockingbird; Joker in the Pack; Outliers; Angels & Demons; The Da Vinci Code; Blink; Atlas Shrugged; The White Tiger; The Guide; The 3 Mistakes of My Life; The IITian

Which book are you into?