A Return to Reading

For a few years now, I've done very little reading. I always used to be a voracious reader, especially as a child, but in recent years I've felt very distracted, and found it really difficult to sit down and pick up a book. I don't think the advent of smart phones and other online activities (i.e YouTube) have helped. Recently, however, my enthusiasm for reading has returned and it's wonderful. It's like being reacquainted with an old friend.

Whereas it used to take me months to work my way through a book, I've read half a dozen in the last couple of months and I am really enjoying myself. I tend to read in bed, in the morning when I wake up, as there are no distractions and I'm snug and comfortable under the covers. (I know I'm very fortunate that I can do this, due to not working at the moment) I do sometimes read at the kitchen table or lying on the sofa, but not often and only when I'm really engrossed in a book.

I've just recently finished an engrossing book and have now started reading another from my TBR (to be read) bookshelf, which has accumulated over the last few years. The book in question is called 'Feral' by George Monbiot, who is a writer and environmentalist and it concerns itself with re-wilding the land and sea and our human instincts for wildness. It's very interesting.

I've also lined up a couple of other reads on a similar subject, which seems to have become a favourite genre in recent weeks. Living in a big city, it is so easy to become estranged from nature, yet I find it very important for keeping myself sane and grounded in a chaotic and difficult world.

Reading is such a wonderful activity. It doesn't have to cost much, if you use your local library or buy books second hand, yet it can provide hours of entertainment.  I have to admit that, in general, I'm more drawn to non-fiction, which I know is not everyone's preferred choice, but it can be so interesting and enlightening about our world and our experiences in and of it.

I'm hoping that I continue to enjoy this hobby going forward and don't get too distracted from it again. Do you read much?