Are Novels A Waste Of Time?
“Novels are a waste of time. They teach us nothing about our heritage, our history, ourselves or about real life. Nothing can be gained or learned from reading a novel.” I do not agree with this statement at all because you can learn about people, heritage and real life history. You can go places easier with reading and when you find a book that is just right for you it is very enjoyable and you might want to read again. They also teach you life lessons like when I read Dog Runner by Bren Macdibble.
Firstly, you can learn about people, heritage or history when reading a book. There are many history books that you can read so you will very likely be able to find the best one for you. For example you could read about the Christchurch earthquake, the Dawn Raids, war and many more history topics, each in their own book. You can read about different cultures in a book which might include what people eat, what their religion is, what they do everyday and maybe the history of that culture. That can all be in one book. Autobiographies and biographies are common. You can learn about famous people or just everyday people who lived through wars or through lockdowns caused by CoronaVirus.
As well as learning about cultures you can also learn about life lessons. I learnt some from Dog Runner which included: Know how to survive, take risks, be careful who you trust, be ready for anything, and family first. These lessons could help you in a similar situation that happens to you such as those in a book and you could also tell other people about these life lessons. If you find a life lesson such as know how to survive, you could then practise surviving in the bush or outside your house to get you ready for a bad situation.
Lastly, books can help get you places and jobs easier. If you read a book about survival, you might get a job for taking people on hikes or walks through the bush. If you read about real estate, you could make a decision to get a house easier. For example, if you read about Fiji and you go there sometime, you could know the Fijian language and be able to talk to the people in Fiji easier.
In conclusion, I believe that reading books is not a waste of time! You can learn about culture, history and people. You can learn life lessons and you can also get your places and jobs easier. If you read a book that is just right for you, you might want to read one again!
