Some people like to read about history, biographies of famous people, science and other non-fiction books or publications. On the other hand, others like to read fiction that takes them to a faraway place and time simply for the pleasure of it. Whether you're reading a book on quantum physics or the latest Paolo Coelho bestseller you bought from the Book of the Month Club, you probably know that reading is food for the soul. It makes our existence rich not only with new information that we gain but more importantly with the emotions that good books elicit in us and the ways that these emotions make us discover ourselves deeper than thought we could. In other words, reading is always a personal experience, whether or not the reasons were personal when we decided to pick up a book and read it.

Of course, this personal encounter we have with books is the first thing we'll yearn for unknowingly when we start reading. But did you know there are more practical uses to the activity? Reading is, in fact, very helpful in our daily lives in ways that we probably never knew before. For example, when we read a lot, our vocabulary naturally increases. When we encounter a word for the first time, we would naturally want to understand what that word is or else, we wouldn't understand completely whatever we're reading. Thus, we look up the meaning of those new words in the dictionary. Each time we do that, we widen our vocabulary.

Another thing we'll always love about reading is the way it improves our spelling. Sometimes, we pronounce words very well without even knowing how they're spelled. When you read a lot, you will see all those commonly misspelled words finally spelled correctly and you're going to learn from that so that next time you have to write those words yourself, you can do it error-free.

When you talk about the benefits of reading, you cannot skip the part where the brain is enhanced by the habit. Yes, reading regularly keeps your brain on its toes and keeps it sharp. In fact, studies show people who read as a routine activity are less likely to develop Alzheimer's disease or any brain-related disease. You can

Lastly, reading is relaxing, therefore, anyone who reads regularly can enjoy rare moments of peace and being one with oneself - a feeling that is possible only when you have a good book that you feel like skipping work over. If you're going to join a book club, you might have a harder time closing that book and getting ready for work each morning. Just the same, you can carry the book around. Just don't let it get in the way of your important tasks.

Author: May Thorne

The Mystery Guild book club and Literary Guild book club are two popular groups where people who love to read come together online, share ideas, and even become friends even if they're situated on opposite sides of the country.