‘Books give a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination and life to everything’, a very poetic way to look at books. But the reality of the matter is that in this digital age, there aren’t many people who believe that books are better than movies.
Reason number one, according to the film lovers, is that reading a book takes too long! What they don’t know about are the hidden gems, feelings, worlds, imagination and sensations that can only be felt, experienced and known while reading a good book. It’s worth it to take a deeper look into the matter and find some more reasons to prove just how books will remain the better option forever:
1. Provoke the Imagination
Books put the readers’ imagination into overdrive. When you sit down with a new book and start reading about the characters and scenes, your mind automatically fills in the gaps and starts to create those scenes and gives characters a life of their own in your thoughts. The real beauty of the whole experience is that we can shape all of it in whatever creative way we want.
2. Comprehensive Details
Though films can capture the attention with flashy visuals, they can never compete with books when it comes to the sheer amount of details about characters and stories. The writer breathes life into the character, one word, and back story at a time. The readers get to know them as a new acquaintance and as a result of this process, they forge a connection with each of the characters.
3. Extended Experience
Think about the best film you have ever seen, how long did it last? 2 hours at most. They mix stories, remove details, merge characters, and perform other unthinkable tasks to complete the film in an allotted time. The experience of reading a book can last for hours, if not days. There are no time constrictions or page limits. Writers can take as long as they want to bring their story to a conclusion and readers can go at their own pace to finish reading books.
4. Consider the Cost
Consider the cost of buying a book and compare it with the price of a movie ticket; they are about the same but the entertainment value is quite different. The film will be over in a few minutes’ time but the book’s impact will last for a longer period of time, as mentioned above. Also, you can read the book as many times as you want, without incurring any additional costs.
5. Mental Benefits
It is scientifically proven that reading offers many mental benefits, as well as some psychological ones. Vocabulary, memory, critical thinking, etc. all will see a boost when one reads regularly.