Why You Should Pick Up a Novel to Read This Weekend — and Not Just to Chill
Reading books in general makes you smarter. Now there’s scientific evidence that reading fiction has a positive effect on brain function.
For complete transparency, I am — and always have considered myself — a bookworm. It’s a solitary activity, and one I’ve enjoyed ever since I discovered the school library and begged my dad to give me some spare change to buy used paperbacks at the local book sale. It’s one of those rituals that makes me feel at home in myself, and I’ve kept it over the decades. I read for pleasure, to learn, experience new things, and open myself up to many, many questions that I’ll try to get answered after I finish that last page.
Imagine, then, how happy it made me feel to stumble upon a scientific journal that promotes the value of reading. One study in particular was published in the Brain Connectivity Journal by scientists from Emory University. The study is called Short and Long Term Effects of a Novel on Connectivity in the Brain.
The conclusion of the study?
Reading books (especially fiction) has a positive effect on brain function and improves all connectivity in the brain.
For this experiment, students were given one novel to read — Pompeii by Robert Harris. The book was chosen because…
