Meaghan Hunt
Contributing Writer
University students are often busy tackling multiple things in a day. Those things include attending regular scheduled classes, club meetings, their jobs, taking care of family, doing chores and, of course, homework.
Even with all of these things, some students still will find the time to read. Not just readings that they have to read for class, but personal readings. Not only is reading a relaxing habit, but it can be something that can engage your inner intellect.
According to a 2022 article published in Frontiers of Psychology, reading is important for college students to acquire new knowledge, expand their horizons and improve their skills.
A study was conducted on Google Forms on what students around campus are reading for pleasure this month. First, starting with four parts of the form: what year is that person in, what is the current book a person is reading and the author, the genre of that book and why would someone recommend that book to another?
There was a lot of great feedback and great literary works that students here on campus are reading. There were 17 students that responded to the form. There were mostly juniors that responded at 52.9%, then it was sophomores at 29.4%, then seniors at 17.6%.
The most common genre that ESU students read is fiction, and the second most popular was romance. Some other higher-ranking genres were nonfiction, fantasy and academic.
Some examples of these books that ESU students are reading are “Vesuvius,” by Cass Biehn, “Grit,” by Angela Duckworth, “The Book Thief,” written by Markus Zusak, “The Ragpicker King,” by Cassandra Clare, “To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before,” written by Jenny Han, “Profiles in Courage,” written by John F. Kennedy, “Iron Flame,” written by Rebecca Yarros, “Live, Ranch, Love,” by Emma Lucy and The Bible: New Testament and Old Testament.
In the study, there were two people who chose academic books, and it can be interesting to understand why someone would read academic books if they are currently in school. Reading academic books while still in school is not for everyone, but it can be valuable for some students.
“I’m a firm believer in reading books that benefit your mind and your life journey. It is beneficial for us as young adults to learn as much as we can in order to become successful,” said Adriana Capo, an ESU business student.
In the study, there were two students that were currently reading the same book, which was “Iron Flame,” written by Rebecca Yarros. “Iron Flame” is a romantic fantasy that is the second book of a five part series where a girl attends college, and she suddenly learns that her brother survived who is a leader of the resistance.
It is extremely fascinating to see the wide variety of texts students read while enrolled in a university. As a college student, I can understand the pressure of homework building up, but this study showed that students can take time out of their day to read what interests them.
Hopefully, this study can inspire other students on campus to begin their journey of reading and to take advantage of books that interest them.