Advice on Reading
After reading the blog about “Reading habit” a student asked me: “What kind of book do you recommend us to read? Next year I will go to college and I want to prepare myself. I will study computer science so do I need to read a lot of computer books? Please advice.”
Answer: You do not have to read computer books or scientific readings to build your reading skills. The best way to start is to read whatever you are interested in. You could start with newspapers, magazines, novels or any topics that you like. You will learn a lot of information by reading for enjoyment. When I was young, I liked to read classical historical novels such as “The Three kingdoms”, “The Water margin”, “Journey to the west”, and Martial art novels. Basically I just read anything I found. Eventually I found what I like so I began to select certain authors, certain types of book and that was how I developed my own reading habit.
Do not take reading so seriously, you should enjoy it first. For example, I enjoy the heroism, loyalty, principles, and strategy in historical novels. I learn about good and bad, honor, friendship, protecting the weak, and compassion in martial art novels. The key is that you learn a lot of information by reading for enjoyment. When I learned English in High School, I started to read English books, mostly classical stories such as “The Three Musketeers”, “The Count of Monte Cristo” to develop my reading in foreign languages. By reading foreign books, I developed my language skills as I learned more vocabularies. Reading for enjoyment helped me to build my reading skills so when I went to college, I never had any problem with thick textbooks or extra reading assignments. Basically, reading is a skill and that the more you read, the better you are.
Do not start with something difficult to read. You should develop the reading skill first. It must be something that you love and enjoy that help you to relax. When you have good reading skills, you can read almost anything. After many years, I still enjoy reading as it helps me to enjoy from the day’s work and stress.
Sources
- Blogs of Prof. John Vu, Carnegie Mellon University
