Which Book of John Knowles is Your Favorite?

You don't have to spend a lot on books to find books you will enjoy reading.  In fact, one way to save money on books is to purchase soft cover editions rather than hard cover.  This can save approximately 50 percent on your book budget while still enabling you to purchase new releases.

Reading frequently is the single best way to sharpen and improve your reading skills.  Some people-including children and teenagers-say they don't enjoy reading, but the fact is, they simply haven't found the kinds of books they enjoy reading.  They may also be having some difficulty with reading and, therefore, find it challenging or frustrating.

The thing is, there are books available today about every topic under the sun!  And everyone is interested in something, so the first step to improving your reading skills is to find books about topics that interest you.  This could be gardening, woodworking, hunting, fishing, paranormal events, relationships, self-improvement, history, sports, entertainment, movie stars, or any of a million other subjects.  You might also enjoy reading fiction or made up stories rather than non-fiction books.  The important thing is to browse through lots of different books, flip through them, read the back or inside cover flaps, and select books on topics that interest you.

It's also important to select books that are written at your reading level.  You can get books on most subjects written in simple, easy-to-read language.  Likewise, you can probably find a book written in technical jargon or high-level language that makes it difficult to understand.  Don't be afraid to select books that are written in the simpler language and make them easier for you to understand, particularly if you are reading about a topic you are not very familiar with yet.  Reading is about understanding and comprehending, not showing off or pretending to be more sophisticated by selecting books that you think will impress someone.

With that being said, one critical way to sharpen your reading skills is to keep a dictionary handy when you are reading.  Before you actually look up a word that you do not understand or recognize, first read the rest of the sentence, skipping the word you do not know.  In fact, go ahead and read the rest of the paragraph.  Often the rest of the sentence or paragraph will give you clues about what the word means and you may be able to figure out the meaning on your own.  After you think you know what the word means-or if you can't figure it out from the context of the other text-look up the word in the dictionary.

Ask yourself if the word meant what you thought it meant.  If not, reread the sentence and the paragraph again now that you understand what it means.  This will ensure you comprehend what you are reading.

You don't want to read too far along in the text if you do not understand a word.  This can cause you to get confused about what you are reading or to lose interest in what you are reading.  Reading should be enjoyable.  The more you read, the better you will develop your reading skills, and the more you will read.  It's a win-win situation!