{"id":1241,"date":"2019-02-05T16:51:25","date_gmt":"2019-02-05T16:51:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.thebodymatters.co.uk\/blog\/?p=1241"},"modified":"2021-12-08T13:56:19","modified_gmt":"2021-12-08T13:56:19","slug":"the-gift-of-reading","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thebodymatters.co.uk\/blog\/2019\/02\/the-gift-of-reading\/","title":{"rendered":"The Gift of Reading"},"content":{"rendered":"

In my December blog<\/a>, I detailed five simple strategies that research shows tackles loneliness \u2013 with the most effective being: doing activities that engage one or dedicate time to work, study or hobbies.<\/p>\n

What the specific activity is, is very much a point of personal choice \u2013 or, as therapists are fond of saying, is \u2018person-centred\u2019.<\/p>\n

However, one activity that should not be overlooked is reading. The book \u2018Mindfulness \u2013 a practical guide to finding peace in a frantic world\u2019 by Mark Williams and Danny Penman recommends reading \u201csomething that gives you pleasure (not \u2018serious\u2019 reading)\u201d. The value of reading books is also highlighted in \u2018The little book of Lykke\u2019 by Meik Wiking (\u2018Lykke\u2019 is the Danish word for \u2018Happiness\u2019). Here the value of establishing mini-libraries is described \u2013 where, using a take-one-leave-one principal, books can be kept in a coffee-shop or somewhere for neighbours to use, like in the stairway of a block of flats (in the UK, health and safety rules may prohibit this!).<\/p>\n

On Christmas day, Radio 4 had a \u2018People fixing the world\u2019 podcast titled \u2018The Little Libraries Bringing Books into People\u2019s Homes\u2019. A scheme running in Brighton involved a collection of books for children, basically in a box on a pole near a bus stop, which has been a great success. Reindeer-herders in Siberia have adopted book-sharing habits and similar schemes are apparently popular in Sudan.<\/p>\n

Iceland has a lovely tradition regarding books \u2013 that of Jolabokaflod, or, as it would be written in Iceland \u2018J\u00f3lab\u00f3kafl\u00f3\u00f0\u2019 (pronounced \u2018yo-la-bok-a-flot\u2019). In Iceland, the Christmas season starts with a delivery to every household of the \u2018Bokatindindi\u2019 (\u2018Book news\u2019) \u2013 a catalogue of every new book published in the country. Books are then bought for loved ones, wrapped up, and given to be read on Christmas Eve. It\u2019s perhaps no surprise that Iceland has more writers, more books published and more books read per capita than anywhere else in the world.<\/p>\n

In the UK, where screen-time and use of social media continue to be of concern, Jolabokaflod offers us a charming tradition of gift giving, which would certainly be good for the mental health of all of us, and aid overall happiness. \u2018The gifts of reading\u2019 by the way is the title of a lovely book on the gift of book-giving by Robert Macfarlane.<\/p>\n

To arrange a free 30-minute consultation to discuss how BWRT\u00ae<\/a>, hypnotherapy<\/a> or counselling<\/a> can help you to change your life for the better, contact Jonathan at The Body Matters on 01702 714968.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s perhaps no surprise that Iceland has more writers, more books published and more books read per capita than anywhere else in the world.<\/p>\n

Read more <\/em><\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":1262,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[264],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1241","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mindfulness"],"yoast_head":"\nThe Gift of Reading - The Body Matters<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"It\u2019s perhaps no surprise that Iceland has more writers, more books published and more books read per capita than anywhere else in the world.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.thebodymatters.co.uk\/blog\/2019\/02\/the-gift-of-reading\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Gift of Reading - 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