The best way for you to read more is to think smaller.

Reading is great for you. It is like exercise for your brain. At the beginning of the year, people often make a commitment to read more. The percentage of people who want to read more is even higher among people who are inclined to read a blog post about reading more. And while I am no mind reader, I’m guessing you are among them.

We are now in the first week of April. And a check of my book log (which resembles a book a lot more than a log) reveals that I have completed 11 new books in 2023. At this pace, I will complete 40 new books this year. (Which means I am at least moderately proficient in both reading and math.)

At the beginning of the year, I set out to read 24 books. My literary diet is made up of 12 physical books and 12 audiobooks in 12 months. Or one of each every month. And I have done a good job of keeping pace.

But Wait. There’s More!

I have discovered a fun new way to pack at least one extra book into each month. In addition to my full-sized book each month of between 200 and 350 pages I am also adding a great shorter book. These short books range between 80 and 150 pages. While I use the term ‘short book’, the books are usually of average height. So I should probably call them thin books. But I won’t.

I have found there are a lot of great shorter books. They are quick reads packed with a lot of wisdom. And because of their length, they offer more enjoyment than work. I think of them as my monthly dessert books. Yet without the calories. Or chocolate sauce.

If you want to start reading, or read more and faster, look into adding great short books to your bookshelf, or audio queue.

Here are a few short books in my collection:

• The Old Man and the Sea By Earnest Hemingway
  • Letters From A Self-Made Merchant To His Son by George Horace Lorimer
• The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho 
• The Richest Man in Babylon by George S. Clason
• The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz 
• Guide Coaching by Stacy Sollenberger, Monique Honaman and Ellen Dotts
• The One Page Book. By I. Madethatup.
• The War of Art by Steven Pressfield
• Night by Elie Wiesel 

Key Takeaway

Short books are enjoyable to read. They make you feel productive. Fill a shelf at home with them and you will find yourself revisiting them frequently.

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+For more of the best life lessons I have learned check out my 290-page book, What Does Your Fortune Cookie Say? from Ripples Media.