The other day, I stumbled upon a fun quiz that guessed my
age based on my reading habits. Before I go any further, the results were very pleasing! It also got me thinking about what I read and fuelled by the impetus of the reading diagnostic test, I decided it would be interesting to delve deeper and
gain an insight into my reading preferences: the time I give to different types
of books, how deep is my inclination towards a particular genre, how much more
time do I spend on fiction over non-fiction, what do I prefer to read while on
holiday or when commuting to work.
This year, as my resolution for 2016, I intend to include more non-fiction in my reading palette. I have developed a
guilt about all of my reading having absolutely nothing to do with the real
world and facts. It seems to have become pure escapism over the years
(make-believe people in a make-believe world dealing with make-believe
situations) and while that is a proven pleasure, I would certainly like it
tempered with a dose of reality.
So, here’s what I did, summed up all I could about my reading in
a visual that tells me, at a glance, What's on my Reading Radar (Click/Touch on the image and zoom for a better view). What do you spot on your reading radar?
Insight into Fiction Reading: It is quite easily seen that the grip of the gothic is strongest with 20 hours out of the 40 reading hours I devote to fiction, in a month, being spent on discovering secrets that lie buried in ancient mansions (preferably with a rich historical setting and a ghost or two thrown in). This is closely followed by heart-pounding, nail-biting races against time with thrillers which get 15 hours of reading time. The least time is given to fantasy. Even though many of these stories are engaging enough to be one-sitting reads, I am deliberately trying to desist from spending most of my waking hours 'fantasizing'. Overall, I find the fiction genre more engaging, prefer to read it while on a holiday, and spend more money buying such titles.
Insight into Non-Fiction Reading: Not surprisingly, I spend a majority of the time (5 hours of the 10 devoted to non-fiction in a month) on self help (mainly books on spirituality and personal growth, preferably with humorous overtones). I have found, over the years, that I am more invested in reading heavy topics when they are written about in a lighter vein. Otherwise, there are greater chances that I will DNF the book. Memoirs, such as the Corfu Trilogy by Gerald Durell and the likes, grab about 3 hours while the remaining 2 hours are spent on investigative journalism and archaeological deduction (think Graham Hancock and books like The Lost City of Z). I prefer to read non-fiction while commuting to work (easy to leave it on the page I am when I reach my destination).
What do your reading habits tell you about yourself?
Insight into Non-Fiction Reading: Not surprisingly, I spend a majority of the time (5 hours of the 10 devoted to non-fiction in a month) on self help (mainly books on spirituality and personal growth, preferably with humorous overtones). I have found, over the years, that I am more invested in reading heavy topics when they are written about in a lighter vein. Otherwise, there are greater chances that I will DNF the book. Memoirs, such as the Corfu Trilogy by Gerald Durell and the likes, grab about 3 hours while the remaining 2 hours are spent on investigative journalism and archaeological deduction (think Graham Hancock and books like The Lost City of Z). I prefer to read non-fiction while commuting to work (easy to leave it on the page I am when I reach my destination).
What do your reading habits tell you about yourself?
That's quite an insightful analysis, complete with distribution of reading hours between fiction and non-fiction. It is a testimony to your eclectic tastes that you have listed so many types of books, though I know that you would always have a preference for gothic fiction :) I think I have experienced the exact opposite reading cycle - I started years ago with non-fiction - spiritual and self-help books to help me navigate through my life, and then I slowly graduated to gothic and literary fiction. Can you believe that I was so into serious fiction that I had never even read a fantasy novel before 2016? So obviously, I'm discovering the wonders of fantasy for the first time and think reality is highly overrated! Who wants to read about a horse when one can have an unicorn? :)
ReplyDeleteYeah, I used to read fantasy a lot in my younger days.Then I realized that a horse 'exists' and a unicorn doesn't hehe. But I can understand your fascination since you have just started to read the genre. Like I have said earlier, fantasy has a way of making everything else seem boring. Now I read more of real-world fiction and am trying to build a stronger taste for non-fiction. Let's see how much am able to work toward integrating non-fiction into my reading list:)
DeleteBy the way, I love that graphic you have used! You always enliven your posts with the most apt graphics! :)
ReplyDeleteThanks! I thought I would save writing time, was feeling lazy. Ended up realizing I now have an increased respect for the work all graphic designers get done:)
Delete