How to Respond to Someone Who Doesn’t Like Reading
I regularly come into contact with people who, upon discovering I’m an author, proceed to tell me (almost apologetically) that they don’t like to read (or that they don’t have the time—which is equivalent to not liking it, in my opinion).
“I don’t like reading.” OR “Reading is boring.”
We’ve all heard someone make those declarations at one time or another. As an avid book lover, how do you respond? (Aside from throwing a tantrum and shouting, “Are you crazy?!”)
Last week on Facebook, I asked readers to share how they respond to people who tell them that they don’t like reading or that it’s boring. Here are a few of their answers:
“I find most people who dislike reading simply haven’t yet found the genre that suits their tastes. So I ask them a bunch of questions about what they find exciting, then find a book that fits their interests.”
“I’d help them find something that they are interested in, instead of something they are assigned to read!”
“I usually say (with a laugh), ‘Then you must not be doing it right!’ Then I talk to them about finding the right book(s), the right environment…”
“I tell them that they just haven’t found the right book yet! My youngest was an avowed hater of books until I found the right ones and now he always has a book in his hands!”
The common theme through most of the comments was finding the RIGHT books. Can someone who thinks reading is boring be won over with the RIGHT books?
As a church librarian, one of my missions is to match the RIGHT books with the RIGHT people. I’ve learned that most people who tell me they don’t like reading or find it boring don’t truly understand the scope of books and genres that are now available, especially in Christian fiction.
The truth is, the book market is overflowing with every conceivable kind of book for every conceivable kind of reader. And sometimes, I think people give up on the search for interesting books too soon.
One trick to finding the RIGHT books is to ask the person what kind of shows/movies she likes to watch. Usually by narrowing down tastes to rom-com, legal thrillers, medical dramas, dystopian, or whatever her favorite is, we can then point the person to novels that fall into those categories.
Another trick for finding the RIGHT books is to ask other avid readers for suggestions. I’m a part of several online reading communities through Facebook. One particularly helpful group is called: Avid Readers of Christian Fiction. Group members are SO knowledgeable about Christian fiction. Whenever a person asks for a specific recommendation (i.e. stories about marriages of convenience, summer beach reads, books for middle school boys, etc.), the members always have so many ideas. The group is an incredible place to “find” the RIGHT books.
Recently a mom shared with me that she’d struggled for years to get her daughter to read, but the daughter always resisted and said she didn’t like reading. This past summer that daughter happened to stumble upon one of my books, ended up reading it, and got sucked in. She went on to read my whole orphan trains series after that and told me that now one of her favorite things to do is to sit outside with a book and read.
The conversation reminded me never to give up promoting reading. We never know how or when we might make a difference and turn someone on to reading, one of the greatest and most beneficial activities that exists.
How about YOU? What do you tell someone when they say “I don’t like reading” or “Reading is boring”?
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I’m always sad for people who say they don’t like to read. And I understand the comment “I’m too busy to read.” I loved to read as a child. After college I didn’t read anything except my bible or bible study for most of next 20 years until my last child started school. Then I discovered Christian Fiction and fell in love with reading again. So I love to encourage people to give CF a try because there are genres that fit every person. And the benefits of reading are a plus!
I love this, because I work closely with our church library (acquiring books, facilitating a book club and special reading “events”, etc.) One of my very favorite things in the world is matching people with stories. And just like you suggest, I quiz them (without them realizing it, I hope) about favorite things, places, etc. in order to build my mental data base about their preferences.
Thank you for this! It was surprisingly helpful! I’m definitely the type of person that throws a tantrum and shouts, “Are you crazy?!” ^^
Yes, finding the right book can make a difference. My brother did not like to read until his 5th grade teacher introduced him to the Hardy Boys books. He ended up getting a master’s degree in English and has an amazing library.
As a 5th grade teacher myself for 23 years, I regularly saw students turned on to reading. In my first years, it was the Goosebumps books that were all the rage. In the more recent years it was the Percy Jackson books. One of my students introduced me to the Family Apart series about the orphan trains. I went on to use the first book as a class read aloud for several years, and my students couldn’t wait to read the following books, which they checked out from me. My principal bought several copies of the series for our school library, saying, “Anything that will get children to read, I will buy.”
I think asking questions about what interests they have is an excellent tool to narrow down the scope of what might appeal to that person. Whether it is by historical period or even a circumstance that they are going through. I personally like to read a variety of genres from Chronicles of Narnia to the latest Clive Cussler or John Gresham!!
I teach in schools and I have found children, teens, and adults who have always been poor readers or who have been told they were bad readers. There are also many diagnosed or not with learning disabilities. I encourage them to try again, to start slowly and try to think of something that really interests them. My husband reads schematics, repair manuals, etc. Reading includes cereal boxes, magazines, newspapers, online articles, and yes…even comic books. Just read something everyday.
I have always loved to read. It is so important. You can learn about different cultures,history and the love of our lord Jesus
I struggle w/ this response from my 9 year old grandson. His first response to ‘get a book’, is ‘I hate reading.’ I’ve tried a number of different genres for him but can’t get him to ‘love’ reading. He is highly intelligent and has a large vocabulary and can read well. It just does not interest him one bit. So sad for this Nana who has been an avid reader since early childhood. Any suggestions, people?
Growing up, my siblings said I always had my head in a book. Now my children say the same thing. They all say, that was my way of coping when things happened that I did not like. I am “buried in books”, literally. Can’t understand anyone not reading. So relaxing.
I (and my 2 daughters) am an avid reader! 🙌 One of my daughters has her Kindle library, which includes a lot of your books & other Christian authors. I tell people who aren’t readers that they can travel all over the world (for just the charge of a book) & see/do/go on all sorts of adventures. My grandson didn’t like to read (he’s 8) but he found books about graphic kid novels or super heroes (basically anything that interests him); now he loves to read. 🙌
I personally prefer reading books over listening to books, but if someone truly hates to read or finds it boring, audiobooks might be an alternative they’re willing to try. If they find the right story, it may get them hooked on reading more.
As a teacher, I’ve heard the “reading is boring” and “I don’t like to read” statements more often than I care to. I usually respond as your Facebook group did, saying they just haven’t found the right genre. I think part of the problem is that kids today actually read all the time on their phones, they just don’t realize it or consider it reading. I’m teaching a reading class this next year and I’m hoping to inspire a love of reading in some who previously thought it “boring.”
One of my daughters for years said she didn’t like to read. We realized much later she has a learning disability, and I felt sick about all the times I just thought she was being lazy about reading or hadn’t found the right genre. We got her going on audio books. What a life changer for her!