Books are things of wonder. You can dive into a novel and find the most unimaginable ideas, or if you’re not one for so many words, you can check out the graphic novels which are easier on the eyes. There are so many benefits to reading, the easiest to see is release from the stressful world around you. They can teach us valuable lessons about life and how to live. Whatever your reason for reading may be, it is clear that books have a profound impact on a person’s life.

Books are the most flexible form of entertainment. In movies and video games, producers are limited to what they can show on a screen as well as the artist’s artistic ability. Books are not that way, especially novels. They describe a scene to you, building an image–not on a screen, but in your mind. Wherever that author lacks details, your mind fills them in until you have a complete picture of the event. Senior Zach Tye said, “I like being sucked into a different world, I guess it’s a way to experience things that I can’t really experience in real life. I prefer fantasy or sci-fi kind of books, so anything from superpowers to worlds with dangerous monsters and things like that.”

But reading isn’t only good for entertainment. Senior Brinley Winberg said, “Books are important because they contain a lot of different information. Sometimes they’re stories and [other] times they suck. Sometimes they’re teaching you how to do something or they’re teaching you about something, like history or science, but they’re important.”

A 2016 blog on Expert Editor by Brendan Brown gives the insight, “Researchers have discovered that those who read about characters doing something are more likely to do that activity in real life. Empathy is [also] a quality that can be developed from reading books. When you read about characters in the story, you are able to understand where that character is coming from. This ability can be carried out into your life, and better relationships can be formed as a result.”

It seems books are a bit more powerful than some might imagine. Avid readers not only read about the plot, the story and the characters, but in a way, they also become the characters. An enthusiastic reader will dive so deep into the story that they lose themselves and become another character in the book, experiencing the adventures as if they were there.

Senior Joshua Painter said, “I like reading them and getting lost in the world that they create. It’s a nice escape from this world.”

His final thought is a good question for all of us: “if you’re not reading a book, what are you doing with your life?”