Ways to get closer to books . . . a work found, appropriately, at my favorite go-to independent bookshop.
A friend I’ve known since grade school once asked how I read five books each month. My response was Ten tips for reading five books a month and I have referenced that post at the end of my monthly reading summaries ever since. Fours years in I thought it might be time for an update and, thankfully, I found the perfect book—written by an author from a younger generation—to provide a different perspective in answer to the question.
Not surprisingly, I discovered this work at my go-to local independent bookshop: People’s Book in Takoma Park. This post is the second installment recounting my 2026 quest to visit all the local independent bookstores in the DMV, and it involves what I would describe as my hometown shop. A quick one-stop ride on the metro and a short walk through Takoma’s Main Street district takes me to the welcoming confines of a store with helpful, friendly, book-loving staffers. You can easily find most major releases plus one can always order any book which isn’t in stock. More importantly, People’s reflects the progressive sensibilities of the Washington area’s only nuclear free zone, and that outlook on life is evident on the bookshelves. Truth-be-told, probably a third to a half of my reading selections this year will come to me via People’s Book.
Founded by a former educator who “always had a passion for finding the right book, for the right kid, at the right time,” People’s is an important part of my civic life, a place where I can hear interesting authors, meet fellow readers in book groups, and just browse with a cup of coffee to my heart’s content . . . knowing that 9 days out of 10 I’ll find something to pique my interest. Such as this new work by someone halfway around the world who shares a similar passion for reading and letting others know about the treasures we’ve uncovered.
For those keeping score, this is two bookshops down, twenty-three more to go! *
Every Day I Read: 53 Ways to Get Closer to Books (2025 for the first English translation) by Hwang Bo-Reum is a collection of short essays where the young South Korean author considers what living a life immersed in reading means. It is a book about books, but it is also much more than that. Bo-Reum is asking her readers to contemplate their lives, and how we should live in a world where we are bombarded by commercialism and the loss of community. She asks why we read, has thoughts on ways to read through a reading slump, and suggests we think more deeply about how we read.
Many of the chapter titles—the “headlines” for this book—are easily understood and are simple enough to help readers take steps to immerse themselves more fully in the reading life. Here are ten as examples. If some don’t resonate for you she has more to consider:
- Read on the train
- Read small books
- Always have a book with you
- Choose books, not the internet
- You don’t always have to finish it
- Read to seek answers
- Read widely, then deeply
- Keep a reading list
- Read to overcome despair
And my favorite:
- Read when you’re happy, when you’re anxious, and in the moments in between
Any bibliophile could come up with a similar list. But there were several things about this book that touched me. The first is the author’s age. This is a young woman who has thought deeply about the life she wants to live. So deeply, in fact, that she quit her job in a highly regimented society to pursue a life of reading and writing.
And then there are the quotes. Bo-Reum is a good writer and she’s drawn to good writing.
I was also taken by the cultural reminders found throughout Every Day I Read. Hwang Bo-Reum references a number of classics from the western canon, but she also makes numerous comments about Korean books. After about the tenth time I realized that I was being shown another whole existence outside my little literary cocoon. It was a good reminder. The world is a big place and we know so little of it. That’s another good reason to read.
Bo-Reum recommends you turn to a short read in those moments you find yourself getting discouraged when reading. They only take an hour or two and then you can bask in the satisfaction of having finished a book. I know the feeling. But she adds this additional reason for turning to the quick read: “Small books have become my go-to whenever my mind is cluttered or when I’m having a bad day.”
I’m going to try that approach.
One book she references is Patrick Süskind’s Three Stories and a Reflection. In the last story, “Amnesia in Litteris,” he describes how “despite reading voraciously for more than three decades, he barely remembers the details of any book.
“Süskind says: ‘If we don’t even retain a shadow of memory, despite having read it only recently, then why do we read?’ He mulls the question over and arrives at the conclusion that reading isn’t about remembrance but the change that can come from reading a book.
You can transform your life.“
Two suggestions Bo-Reum makes are ones I’m taking into the new year. First, she reminds us that you don’t always have to finish books you’ve started. She compares books with people. We connect more deeply with some people and some books. If we’re no longer curious about the book or what happens next, close the book. Don’t try and salvage a failed relationship.
Second, while she used to think that reading one book at a time was the way to go, “I’ve discovered a different way to love, and there’s no turning back. The question now isn’t one versus multiple, but how many I can read at once.” My limit is much lower than the author’s, but I’m going to employ this strategy to work through some of the big books I have in the TBR pile.
Each essay ranges from two to four pages, so they are easily read during a quick break. They cover how to read more widely, ways and opportunities to sneak in more reading time, reading based on emotion, and fun ways to read such as book bars. Getting a drink and a snack and then settling in among others to read without interruption sounds very alluring.
Late in the book Bo-Reum suggests we ask friends for suggestions. “The question ‘What have you been reading?’ seems to have the power to open a latch in our hearts.”
On days when you don’t know what to do, sit down and read. Annie Dillard in The Writing Life reminds us that our life is divided into days. We can always start afresh. Each day.
“How we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives.”
This work can help you discover that there is a joy in reading, a thrill in coming across a quote that resonates, a deep satisfaction in having found reflective moments taken with introspection.
Just do it.
More to come . . .
DJB
*See the first installment of my independent bookshop quest here.
Photo by Christin Hume on Unsplash
MORE TO COME... 