I Used to Avoid Reading… Until this Happened
Let me be honest.
When I was younger, I hated reading.
To me, books were just boring blocks of text teachers forced us to suffer through. I never saw the point. The books felt slow. The words felt stiff. And the characters? I couldn’t relate to them.
But something shifted in Year 9. One lazy afternoon, I picked up The Giver by Lois Lowry mostly out of boredom. I didn’t expect much. But by the end of the first chapter, I was hooked. I didn’t just read that book, I experienced it. I was right there with Jonas, discovering what it meant to remember, to feel, and to challenge the rules.
That one story changed how I saw reading. It wasn't just about finishing a book. It was about feeling something, learning something, and sometimes even changing because of it.
And from that moment on, I realised: reading wasn’t just useful. It was powerful.
Reading isn’t just “good for you.” It’s one of the most impactful habits you can develop in high school.
It builds vocabulary naturally. The more you read, the more words you see in action and the easier it becomes for you to use them fluently in your essays and creative stories. Vocabulary stops feeling like memorisation and starts feeling like second nature.
It also makes you a better thinker and speaker, reading exposes you to different perspectives, arguments and ways of thinking. That’s why it's crucial for English, but also for life. From class debates to reflective writing, reading trains your brain to think deeply.
It also builds empathy. Stepping into someone else’s shoes, even fictional ones, helps you understand emotions, experiences and perspectives beyond your own.
Reading consistently will help you:
And it doesn’t just stop at English. In subjects like history, legal studies, even science – reading helps you decode complex information and express ideas clearly.
You don’t need to read everything. But you do need to read the right things. The more students read, the more they subconsciously internalise how good writing sounds and flows. These are the books that didn’t just help me write better, they made me feel, reflect and look at the world a little differently. The more I read, the more I picked up the rhythms of good writing without even realising it. These books gave me tools, voice and perspective and it could do the same for you.
For Years 7-8
This book cracked something open in me. It was the first time I finished a book and just sat there, stunned. It asks hard questions: What does it mean to be human? What if everything that makes life real such as pain, memory, choice was taken away for the sake of peace? I remember feeling disturbed but fascinated. This was the moment I realised books aren’t just stories. They’re warnings, lessons, mirrors. Perfect for readers who want to feel something real even in a fictional world.
Funny, clever, and surprisingly deep. On the surface, it’s a story about a boy digging holes in a desert camp. But what I loved most was how everything ties together so perfectly. It’s one of those rare books where the deeper you go, the more you realise how smart it is. I remember reaching the final chapters and getting chills when it all connected. It’s accessible, engaging, and honestly just fun to read, but it leaves you thinking about fate, friendship, and how the past shapes the present.
This book is strange in the best way. It's haunting, vivid, and at times made my skin crawl, but I loved it. Coraline’s bravery hit me hard. There’s something powerful about a character who fights fear alone, in the shadows. The “Other Mother” and the eerie setting taught me how fear can be metaphorical and how fantasy isn’t just escape, it’s empowerment. If you’ve ever felt small or overlooked, Coraline’s journey will light something inside you.
For Years 9-10
This book didn’t just make me think, it made me angry, inspired, and awake. Starr’s voice is unforgettable. Her struggle to navigate two worlds felt incredibly raw. I remember pausing mid-chapter because it was too real. It made me reflect on privilege, injustice, and what it really means to speak up. It’s the kind of book that doesn’t let you stay comfortable. And that’s exactly why it’s so important.
I didn’t expect this book to feel so emotional. It’s quiet, slow at times, but it builds into something powerful. What stayed with me was how Scout learns to see the world not just through her own eyes, but through others’. Atticus Finch’s calm strength. Boo Radley’s quiet kindness. The deep injustice of Tom Robinson’s trial. It’s not just about racism, it’s about empathy, courage, and how hard it is to do the right thing in a world that often rewards the opposite. It made me think about how we judge people, and what kind of person I want to be.
The adrenaline. The quiet emotional punches. The way Ellie’s voice matured as the story went on—I still think about it. This book made me ask: What would I do if everything normal disappeared? Even though it’s fast-paced, it never loses emotional weight. It’s about survival, yes, but also about growing up fast, about loyalty, fear, love, and the messy choices we make. If you want a book that moves and challenges you at the same time, start here.
For Years 11-12
Reading this felt like reading pages of my own thoughts, especially if you’ve ever felt torn between two cultures, two expectations, or two versions of yourself. Gogol’s quiet, lonely search for identity hit home. There’s no big action here, just a slow, aching honesty. It helped me realise that literature isn’t always loud; sometimes it whispers the things we feel but can’t articulate. I used this book in my Module C writing because it taught me how to write with heart.
To be honest, I wasn’t expecting to love this one. But it hit me harder than most “modern” texts ever did. I read it during exam season, and yet I couldn’t stop thinking about it. The way fear spreads like wildfire. The courage it takes to stand alone. The cost of silence. The Crucible taught me that power doesn’t always look evil and integrity isn’t always rewarded. It reads like a thriller, but it’s actually a reflection of every time we’ve let fear or conformity win. It changed how I see history, justice, and even social media.
Reading doesn’t need to feel like a huge task. Here’s what I found works best:
Reading is how we prepare to answer one of the most powerful questions in English:
What does this story say about being human?
Whether it’s grief, love, identity, belonging, or courage – great texts don’t just explore these themes. They make us feel them. That’s what elevates a response. You’re not just identifying a technique, you’re explaining why that technique matters and the purpose of it. Why it hurts. Why it inspires. And why it stays with us.
If you’ve ever felt like reading just isn’t “your thing”, trust me. I’ve been there too.
But the moment you find your book, everything changes. Reading isn’t just about marks. It won’t change them overnight. But it will change the way you think, feel and write over time. It’s like laying bricks: every story you read builds something stronger inside you. It’s about finding pieces of yourself in other people’s stories and using that to express your own. And once you do, reading will become just like a habit and you’ll actually find the fun in reading.
So start today. Pick a book that calls to you. Read a few pages. Reflect. Talk about it. Write about it.
And you might just find that the person who “doesn’t really like reading” was actually a reader after all, just waiting for the right story.
And don’t just do it for school. Do it because the best writers, the ones who write essays that move markers and stories that spark emotion are also the ones who read with purpose and passion.
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