Lecture a child about morality, and watch their eyes glaze over. But wrap those same lessons in a captivating tale, and they'll absorb every word without realizing they're learning.
My own love affair with books began in childhood, sitting beside my father as he opened worlds through stories. Though I initially crafted novels for adults, alternate histories and magical realism, everything changed when a friend lamented the scarcity of children's books that both entertained and inspired.
That conversation sparked my journey into children's literature, creating tales where friendship, acceptance, and compassion bloom naturally through adventures with characters who face bullies, embrace differences, and discover the danger of hasty judgments.
Reading is like a full-body workout for your brain, except instead of lifting weights, you're lifting ideas, emotions, and entire worlds. Here's how it transforms your mind:
The audience for traditional storytelling has undeniably shifted. My social media analytics tell a sobering tale—where once my posts attracted readers spanning from twenty-somethings to retirees, now the engagement comes primarily from those in their fifties and beyond. The younger generations, it seems, have redirected their leisure hours elsewhere, leaving novels to gather digital dust while their parents and grandparents remain the faithful guardians of the written word.
I asked AI why people don't read anymore, and got a sobering answer:
Book reading has declined in many
parts of the world, and the reasons are layered and fascinating. Here’s a
breakdown of some of the biggest factors:
Digital Distraction
Smartphones
and social media offer constant stimulation, making long-form reading
feel slow by comparison.
Short-form
content like TikToks, memes, and reels cater to quick dopamine hits,
reshaping attention spans.
Many
people feel mentally exhausted from work, news, and digital noise, leaving
less bandwidth for immersive reading.
The
rise of multitasking culture means fewer people carve out quiet,
uninterrupted time for books.
Economic and Lifestyle Shifts
Longer
work hours, gig economy pressures, and commuting cut into leisure time.
Streaming
services and podcasts offer passive entertainment that fits into busy
lives more easily than active reading.
Changing Media Habits
Audiobooks
and eBooks have grown, but they often compete with other media rather than
replace traditional reading.
Algorithmic
feeds personalize content so effectively that people rarely seek out
books for discovery anymore.
Generational Trends
Younger
generations often associate reading with schoolwork rather than pleasure.
There's
also a shift toward interactive storytelling—like video games or
fan fiction communities—that offer narrative engagement without
traditional books.
Cultural Shifts in Value
In
some circles, reading is no longer seen as a status symbol or intellectual
pursuit—it’s been replaced by other markers of cultural capital like tech
fluency or social media savvy.
But here's the twist: while fewer people may be reading
books, storytelling itself is thriving. People still crave narrative, meaning,
and emotional depth—they just find it in new formats.
Yet the well of tales within me remains deep and undepleted; perhaps it's time to pour these narratives into vessels better suited for today's thirsting minds to reach those who have abandoned the printed page.
During a visit with my friend and her eight-year-old daughter, I had an idea. Her mother mentioned that she had a Kindle app, so I decided to gift one of my bilingual children's books to her. The little girl glanced up from playing a game on her iPad when I told her about the book but then went back to scrolling through the screen. She politely said thank you as she opened her Kindle app and skimmed through the digital pages. However, when I handed her the same book in paperback form, her face lit up with excitement. She quickly flipped through the pages, admiring the colorful illustrations, and then put her iPad aside to fully focus on reading the paperback book.
The number of children reading physical books has decreased in recent years. What impact does this trend have?
Many students think they are better readers when using screens. Their belief is rooted in the fact that they can read faster on a screen. However, this speed is achieved through scrolling, word spotting, skimming, and scanning, rather than deep reading. This means it is essential to develop strong print reading skills and then adapt them for digital screens.
The journey toward reading begins long before formal instruction. Physical books are the most beneficial for young children, followed by audio resources, with digital reading coming in last. This is because of a complex balance at play here. On one hand, tablets and other devices may be more enticing to young readers, but on the other hand, they promote passive engagement. It's like a double-edged sword: while technology taps into our innate novelty reflex as humans, this can be detrimental to a child's development as it hinders their ability to focus. Instead of fostering concentration and learning, they become accustomed to distractions and fleeting novelty.
After the child closes the screen, the most frequently uttered words are "I'm bored." Why is that? Because they have been overly stimulated. Up until age five, excessive screen time can actually hinder a child's ability to focus their attention on tasks. It has become evident that technology use during these formative years can lead to the opposite outcome of what we desire for children in terms of attention and concentration.
Let children use their imagination
Allow children to be children, to play, read, and use their creativity, while teaching them important morals. Do not expect them to act like mini-adults who can make life-changing choices at such a young age. Let them have fun pretending to be superheroes, mermaids, or animals, but remind them that it is all make-believe. They will outgrow this phase soon enough. Until then, let them believe in Santa and enjoy their childhood innocence.
My children's stories are about acceptance, friendship, family, and moral values such as accepting people with disabilities, dealing with bullies, and not judging others before getting to know them.
Erika loves to dance to her own tunes and follow her dreams, introducing her story-writing skills and her books that are based on creative imagination with themes such as magical realism, alternate history, urban fantasy, cozy mystery, sweet romance, and supernatural stories. Her children’s stories are informative and educational and deliver moral values in a non-preachy way.
Hi there, Toi here. I’m back to share another new release with you today. This is one for the teen and adult book lovers of the world. It’s an opinion piece I’ve written to shed some light on book reviewing culture.
Have you ever wondered why it seems authors are often whining about book reviews? What's the big deal anyway? How much of a difference could your one book review really make? In this opinion piece, ten-time self-published author and blogger, Toi Thomas, discusses candidly why book reviewing culture isn't what it should be.
This is not a book about how to write book reviews and it is not a how-to book for authors to gain book reviews. This is a book about reevaluating your thought-process and opinions about book reviewing culture.
Toi Thomas clearly understands that "Ain't nobody got time for book reviews" when there are so many more important things for a book lover to do. Right? Plus, you can read this book from cover to cover in less than two hours. 100% of proceeds go to support Lit Carnivale, a book fair in the making.
Check out these two, variant mock-up covers that didn’t make the cut as you enjoy this excerpt.
“I have this theory that if people treated book reviews like food reviews, we’d have more of them. Of course, I do understand that while everyone eats, not everyone reads. I also recognize that eating is a basic human need, and that reading is a form of entertainment, a tool of education and development, and a method of rehashing or discovering history. However, for those who love to read, books are usually a high priority. My question is, why not write book reviews?
When someone walks into a restaurant, they do so with the intention of spending money. In fact, I’d say it’s more than an intention. People go to restaurants to pay for a meal, just as people go to theaters to pay to watch movies. After paying for their meal, people often feel compelled to let other people know that the food was good or bad, that the service was good or bad, and that the price and ambiance were balanced or unbalanced.
This is not the case with books. For people who actually buy books, not just the people who only download free ebooks (This book probably isn’t for them anyway, but I’ll touch on this later.), but the people who pay money for ebooks, print books, and dare I say it, audiobooks- there is no guarantee that these paid for items will ever get read; a library patron will pretty much always read the books they obtain. Still, if by some chance a book is read, a small act of God or, whatever you believe in, may have to occur before the average reader will share their experience. They’ll keep it to themselves whether the plot was good, the characters were likable, and the setting was believable or realistic. No, no, no, a book lover will not go out of their way to write a review for a book they liked and will only write a review for a book they don’t like if they feel a need to warn people against it….”
Toi Thomas presents a thoughtful book on why we don't make time to review books, and ways to overcome your hesitation in writing reviews. #OurAuthorGang
This post reminded me I need to leave a review for your book! Ain't Nobody Got Time for Book Reviews is a thoughtful, well-reasoned book about book reviews and book review culture. I think you touch on some points in your book that would surprise the "average" reader. I definitely recommend this book to both authors and readers!
