Chapter 1: The Gift of Reading

CHAPTER 1

The Gift of Reading

In my 10 years as an English teacher, the question I get asked most often by parents is: How do I get my child to read? And the word most commonly associated with this question is ‘battle’: ‘He used to read endlessly as a child; now it’s a battle,’ or ‘I try to encourage Ben to read, but it always turns into a battle.’ or ‘We really battle to get Charlotte to read.’

In these expressions of despair, I sense a feeling of powerlessness. For these concerned parents, the combative and repetitive nature of begging, pleading, forcing, bribing, convincing and cajoling their teenager to read has proved fruitless. And in a world in which they also have to worry about their teen’s social media use, a rise in teenage anxiety and other mental health conditions, never-ending domestic responsibilities, increasingly concerning financial pressures, not to mention their own careers and mental health, getting their teen to read all too often feels like another thing they’re failing at.

The idea for this book came about on a summer’s evening walk through Richmond Park. I was thinking about a student of mine, whose mum had emailed me at the start of the summer to ask for some suggestions on fun reading ideas. I was wondering how they were getting on with their summer reading project, and how wonderful it was to have a parent who understands the value of reading and who wanted to nurture that habit in her son, right at the age when reading begins to taper. She’d reached out to me for some ideas, and although I’d sent my standard copy/paste email with a few personalised tips, I felt somewhat frustrated at how much more I could have said on the matter. And that’s how the idea for this book was born.

If you’re reading this, I imagine you can relate all too well with the begging, pleading, forcing, bribing, convincing and cajoling mentioned above. I can imagine you too feel battle-worn and defeated, retreating from the front with a resigned consolation that at least they’re reading TikTok captions.

Hopefully the suggestions in this book can help to shift the reading landscape in your home from a battle to a dance; far less combative, and far more fun. But first, it’s worth exploring why reading still matters, perhaps more now than ever before.

Why Reading Matters

If you’re reading this book, you probably don’t need to be told why reading matters. I even wondered whether or not to include a section on the importance of reading, but ultimately decided it was worth the reminder because sharing these benefits with your child is, in itself, a tactic to promote more reading. Yes, you might be dismissed with an eye roll, but somewhere, hopefully, the seed will be planted.

Also, as an English teacher, it’s hard to resist the opportunity to write an impassioned celebration of reading. Reading matters now more than ever, for grades, yes, but also for your child’s brain, their heart, their quality of life and their future in a tech-heavy world. So, before we dive into the practical how-tos, let’s unravel why reading is still worth fighting for.

Academic Attainment and Analytical Aptitude

This is perhaps the most common reason parents want to encourage their teen to read – academics. After all, there is overwhelming evidence that shows that those who read regularly for pleasure have better vocabularies, stronger writing skills and consistently outperform their peers on tests.

This is because when your child gets lost in a good book, multiple areas of their brain are activated, resulting in better brain function, focus and analytical thinking, skills that carry over into every subject, from Maths to Science to Art. Regular readers are better at understanding complex texts, making connections between different sources of information, remembering information and thinking critically about what they’ve read.

This impact is so powerful that research by sociologist Mariah Evans from the University of Nevada-Reno found that simply the presence of books in the home results in higher educational attainment. This was found to be true in every single one of the 42 countries that were studied.

Anecdotally, I can usually tell fairly accurately which of my students read regularly or which of them were voracious readers as children, even if they have since stopped reading. These are the students who have richer imaginations, stronger grammatical and spelling accuracy and a wider vocabulary. They’re better able to think analytically about language than their non-reading peers and are better equipped to express themselves clearly, write persuasive essays and understand complex texts. They also often display far greater empathy with characters in the texts we come across, and a sensitivity to the nuanced and difficult themes that appear frequently in the English classroom. Which brings me to the next benefit offered by reading.

Increased Empathy and Improved Mental Health

Books allow us to see the world through different eyes, and feel empathy for people whose lives are nothing like our own. People who read regularly are better at recognising emotions in themselves and others, and more likely to show kindness and understanding in real life. Imagine what that could mean in adolescence, when peer relationships are at the centre of their world: reading could help them connect with each other and navigate the complex social and emotional terrain of being a teenager.

And let’s not forget reading’s impact on mental health. You might be surprised to learn that reading can reduce stress, even more so than listening to music, going for a walk, or having a cup of tea. For teens who struggle with sleep, swapping screens for a book before bed can make a real difference, helping them to quiet their minds and drift off more easily; quality sleep is essential for our mental health.

Quality of Life

The biggest benefit of reading is by far the richness and depth it will add to your teen’s life. Allow me, if you will, a moment on my soapbox.

I credit my dad for my love of reading, and am eternally grateful to him for the countless nights he spent reading my beloved favourites to me over and over again. Of all my hobbies, reading is by far the most precious. In fact, the word ‘hobby’ doesn’t do justice to the profound impact it’s had on me.

In some of the darkest times of my life, reading has offered me comfort, context and companionship. Through books, I have met characters who have felt so real they became my temporary on-page friends, been offered escapes from the tedium of life’s monotonies, been able to travel to faraway, exotic lands, both real and imaginary. I have been able to better understand myself and my emotional responses to the world. I have been totally engrossed in another person’s unique experiences, opening my eyes to the sheer depth of human experience.

How remarkable then, to be able to gift all this to your child?

Reading has enriched my life in a way that nothing else quite has, and I suppose there is a part of me that really does want to sing from the rooftops how precious the simple act of reading actually is. Perhaps this book is an extension of that – a tangible way for me to pass on the depth of gratitude I have for reading.

So, take heart. Battle it may be, but if your teen gets even a fraction of the joy reading has offered me, it will be worth the fight.

The Case for Reading in the Age of AI

Ai yai yai, AI. No consumer technology in my memory has spread as quickly or with as much immediate impact as generative AI. I remember when I was first introduced to it in 2023 by a student who was pontificating on its essay writing abilities. Intrigued, I created a ChatGPT account, and had to agree – this was particularly remarkable technology.

Still, back then, I naively didn’t predict just how rapidly it would infiltrate our everyday lives. In the past year alone, AI tools have exploded into classrooms, workplaces and homes. One day, AI was nothing more than a dinner-party topic for alarmist naysayers, next, it’s taken over every corner of the internet, from our Google searches to our WhatsApp messaging.

Of course, English teachers have had extensive discussions about its rampant rise. It’s hard not to, when all of a sudden our students are turning out work that has clearly been at best, AI-assisted, at worst, entirely written by AI. Not to mention, in a subject that aims to promote a reverence and respect for the craft that is writing, it’s easy to feel that these language learning models are somewhat devaluing the field that we all love so much.

But, I have also seen AI really support my students. Brendan was a recent student of mine. His grades were fine, usually about a 6, and he would do his work obligingly, but without too much effort. Teachers may have used the word ‘coasting’ to describe Brendan – capable of more, but not really bothered to do any more. However, when it came to preparing for the end of year descriptive writing exam, Brendan spent hours using AI to give him vocabulary and imagery examples. He wrote and rewrote his practice description, using AI's ideas, in a renewed effort I’d never seen from him before.

When it came to his exam, he’d gone from a B in descriptive writing to an A*. And honestly, I was so proud of him, and he was proud of himself. AI had offered him the resources he’d needed in order to submit work that he was really proud of. And his resulting confidence in turn meant he enjoyed English more.

Does his use of AI devalue his effort or his improved grade? I’m inclined to say no. And is AI going to devalue English as a subject, and result in our teenagers reading less? I don’t know. In a world that values speed and efficiency over sustained effort, it is all too easy to turn to AI to outsource our thinking.

How do we convince our teenagers that we write essays because it’s hard to write an essay? That the difficulty of crafting an argument and learning to articulate it in the best way possible, even if that means writing and rewriting and rewriting every single sentence, is the point. That we read, because it forces – allows – us the opportunity to slow down and take a break from the incessant digital noise.

And, how do we adequately prepare our teenagers for the fact that AI is going to irrevocably change the job market in ways we’re not entirely sure of just yet? It must be daunting for our young folks who’ll be seeking employment in extreme uncertainty, fluffy canary fledglings in the depths of the hazy AI coalmine. The thing is, we adults don’t even know how to prepare for this, and our flailing and flapping uncertainty is likely glaringly obvious to this clued-up generation. English-related jobs seem to be the first on AI’s job-chopping block, and without a job, we can’t survive. So why shouldn’t our teens prioritise those subjects and skills that promise them greater chances of career success?

And yet, I think it is because of this madness that English is so valuable. If we want to be so crass as to reduce it down to the job market, well, in an increasingly technological world, being human is our most marketable skill. And, accuse me of hyperbole or cheesiness if you want, but literature – reading – is key to being human. AI can spit out information at lightning speed, but it can’t think deeply, feel empathy or create meaning from chaos. Those are human skills and they can be built partly through reading. Real, raw, vulnerable, genuine human experiences matter now more than ever before.

Aside from developing core empathy skills, there are additional benefits to reading that are particularly important in a post-AI world. First, there’s critical thinking and comprehension. The internet is flooded with information (and misinformation), much of it generated or amplified by AI. Teens who read regularly are better at evaluating sources, spotting bias, and asking tough questions. They’re less likely to fall for fake news or viral hoaxes, because they’ve practiced thinking for themselves. In a world of endless scrolling and surface-level skimming, the ability to focus, understand, and remember what you’ve read is becoming rarer and possibly more valuable in the job market.

Then, there’s the ability to develop original ideas and a personal voice. AI can remix what’s already out there, but it can’t tell your child’s unique story or dream up something truly new. Books help teens discover who they are, what they believe and how to express themselves in ways that can’t be automated.

And, perhaps most importantly, stories connect us. They remind us that we’re not alone, that our struggles and hopes are shared by others. Reading together as a family, or even just talking about books, can strengthen bonds and spark conversations that last a lifetime.

We’ll have to learn how to find a comfortable balance: the genie is out of the bottle, and it’s not going away. It is tough to convince today’s teens that Shakespeare is worth the effort, that poetry has purpose, that reading is valuable. But it was tough before AI entered our classrooms. Used correctly, maybe AI can actually encourage children to read more and make English a more accessible, enjoyable subject.

Will any of this get your teen to read?

Most teenagers know they should be reading rather than scrolling. They’re usually aware that it's beneficial for them, even if these benefits often seem abstract or unimportant. Even those who are most adamant that they will never pick up a book know that reading is good for them.

Sadly, on its own, this knowledge might not be enough to get your teen to read: we all know exercise is good for us, but that doesn’t always result in us going for a run. However, one has to hope that by building a culture of reading in the home, enough of this messaging will sink in.

As a teacher, I’m lucky enough to talk to dozens of teenagers every day. So when I started writing this book, I went straight to the source – my students. They enthusiastically (I bribed them with sweets) shared their ideas: why they don’t read, what they wish their parents knew about reading and what their parents could do to actually get them to read. They even shared the books that had them hooked. The information in this book is a combination of their answers, alongside plenty of research and my own anecdotal experience as a teacher who has spoken to many, many parents about how worried they are about their teen’s reading.

The chapters that follow will help you to understand what makes reading feel impossible for your teen right now, and then guide you to gently steer them back towards reading. You'll discover practical strategies that you can implement immediately as well as more in-depth strategies that will help you build a reading culture in your home. I’ll give you advice on how to choose good books for your teen, or you can just skip straight ahead to the end of this book for over 140 books that were recommended by reluctant readers themselves. And in Chapter 9, you’ll find a trouble-shooting guide for when nothing seems to work. The world might have changed enormously, but thankfully, so have the tools we can use to unlock the magic of reading for our teens. Let’s begin.