Falling in love with reading again

September is National Literacy Month and if you know anything by now, it’s that the team are suckers for a good weekly or monthly calendar emphasis. These are often a great way to pump the brakes and spotlight something important. Sure, there are silly entries that earn a chuckle (“National Hop on One Foot Day”) – but there are also awareness campaigns/emphases on crucial medical research, abuse/violence prevention, cultural appreciation, military service … you get the idea.

Literacy is important, and we’re losing that fight as a country, in many ways. Data from 2024-2025 from the National Literacy Institute includes some interesting (and alarming) fast facts:

• On average, 79% of U.S. adults nationwide were literate in 2024, which meant 21% of adults were illiterate

• 54% of adults have a literacy below a sixth grade level (20% are below fifth grade level)

• Low levels of literacy cost the U.S. up to $2.2 trillion per year

• 34% of adults lacking literacy proficiency were born outside the U.S.

• Massachusetts was the state with the highest rate of child literacy; New Mexico was the state with the lowest child literacy rate

• New Hampshire was the state with the highest percentage of adults considered literate; the state with the lowest adult literacy rate was California The U.S. ranks 36th worldwide in literacy.

Now, there are entire dissertations to be written about the “Who, what, where and why?” behind these stats. The American education system and economic and sociological factors contribute. We will leave those questions to the experts in the field. But one way we can combat a lack of literacy? Read. Voraciously. For yourself and to others. I personally have lost a lot of my attention span.

When I was 10 to 15 years old, I hungrily consumed tomes like the original edition “Lord of the Rings” or “Jane Eyre” or Shakespeare. Now I find myself skimming the briefest of articles. Not to be all “it’s those dang phones,” but the digital infrastructure beaming into our brains 24/7 doesn’t help, and the kids do, in fact, need to go touch paper again (this author included).

Challenge Yourself

It feels aspirational to read those challenges online – especially right after New Year’s. “I’m going to read 50 books this year!” But then life gets in the way. That’s not realistic. Set a realistic bar for yourself: “I’m going to read two books each month.” “I’m going to get through one book every month.” You’re not meeting anyone else’s standard – you’re doing this for yourself.

Not sure where to start? There are a lot of recommended reading lists out there. Check with your local librarian. If not, there are booklists available online from folks like NPR, Goodreads, the Library of Congress – you name it.

Read What You Love

You don’t have anyone to impress here.

If rereading that battered YA novel you haven’t picked up since your freshman year of college is going to get those neurons firing, pick it up and dive in. If you gravitate towards romance versus thriller, non-fiction biography versus dramatic fiction – go for it! Like teasing your sweet tooth with delicious homemade brownies, part of falling in love with reading again is remembering the thrill as you dive into a new (or favorite) read and retraining your brain. “Oh, you like that? There’s more where that came from!”

You’re rebuilding habits. New territory comes later.

Enlist Some Friends

Start or join a book club. For locals looking for an established club, there’s the New York Ninnies, 92 members strong, according to bookclubs.com. They meet in Albany, which is a bit of a drive. There are some smaller, more informal groups that organize online: a few 518 and 315 area code Facebook groups and those that organize through some of the local libraries. You can also start your own. All you have to do is ask. “Hey! You like to read. We’ve read some of the same stuff. What do you say we read through this author’s newest release and meet up next week to talk about it and hang out? I’ll make cookies! Bring a friend!” And the rest is history.

The best thing about books is that they’re some of the most dependable friends, no matter how long you’ve been away. Pick up your favorite – or maybe a new volume with an intriguing title or eye-catching cover – and let’s fall in love with reading again this autumn.

These are a few of the books Editor Courtney recently finished and really enjoyed. She highly recommends visiting and supporting your local library to find them:

• “The Light Eaters: How the Unseen World of Plant Intelligence Offers a New Understanding of Life on Earth” by Zoë Schlanger

• “Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge & the Teachings of Plants” and “Gathering Moss: A Natural & Cultural History of Mosses” by Robin Wall Kimmerer

• “Pawpaw: In Search of America’s Forgotten Fruit” by Andrew Moore

• “The Third Plate: Field Notes on the Future of Food” by Dan Barber

• Any of Mary Roach’s funny deep dives into weird science: “Fuzz: When Nature Breaks the Law,” “Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers,” “Packing for Mars: The Curious Science of Life in the Void,” “Gulp: Adventures on the Alimentary Canal” and “Spook: Science Tackles the Afterlife”

by Andy Haman