Examples of non fiction stories for kids

53 Nonfiction Picture Books for Kids of All Ages

We can all remember our teachers, parents, or our school librarians reading picture books to us as we all sat captivated, waiting to see what was on the next page. And while most of these books were fiction, there are many captivating non-fiction picture books as well. Continue reading to discover amazing non-fiction picture books!

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National Geographic has a wonderful series of board books, and this one does not disappoint! Children will delight in looking at and learning about these adorable baby animals and their moms.

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Through vivid illustrations, children can learn about shapes and their relationship to the world around us--like the relationships of hexagons to beehives and triangles to mountains!

3. If Animals Kissed Good Night 

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This cute bedtime book explores how animals and their parents say good night to one another. Like a wolf howling, every animal would has its unique way to show one another they are loved.

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Written by a planetary scientist, this book is full of amazing real-life images of planets and our solar system. Get any kid interested in the world beyond our planet with this book! Check out Dr. Bruce Betts on Amazon for additional resources!

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Delight in this book for kids about all the different heavy equipment--from bulldozers to dump trucks--used on construction sites.

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Equality for women doesn't start when they are adults--it starts by planting the seed in young girls' minds that they can be anything they want, and there is no better place to start this journey than in this picture book about all of the different occupations women can take part in.

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This engaging book with colorful illustrations introduces children to all different types of weather--from sunshine to snowstorms--and encourages them to explore the world around them.

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Children need to learn that our differences are what makes us all special, and this book does just that by discussing the ways in which we are all different and celebrating these differences.

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What better way to introduce the topics of engineering and construction to young children than through building a farm! This book details all of the steps needed to have a farm, from building a barn to plowing fields.

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From American woman Rosa Parks to French-born Coco Chanel, this book celebrates women who made a positive change in the world.

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How big is the world's biggest spider? Which animal has a tongue that's two feet long? Learn these neat facts and more in this cool book!

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Children can learn all about how Joan Procter's love of reptiles led to her having a career as a curator of reptiles and eventually designing the Reptile House at the London Zoo!

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Most of us cannot imagine running a marathon in our prime, let alone our later years. Students will delight in this story of the oldest man to complete a marathon when he was over 100 years old!

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Take children through every step of the moon landing, from designing the spacecraft to stepping foot onto the moon's surface!

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Eugenie Clark became known as the "Shark Lady" after earning multiple degrees and teaching people that sharks should be admired, not feared. Read this teacher's pick to your children!

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What child doesn't love crayons? Learn all about the Crayon Man, Edwin Binney, and his journey to creating the Crayola crayon.

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Skulls are often depicted as things to be feared, but in this delightfully illustrated picture book, students will learn about how cool these crucial parts of our bodies really are!

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This picture book biography tells the story of Elgin Baylor, one of the greatest basketball players of all time, who was often discriminated against off the court and thereby became a champion for civil rights. The bravery and determination of his one-man protest caught the attention of the world.

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Another of the most well-known African Americans of our time, Aretha Franklin touched the hearts and lives of many through both her music and her fight for civil rights. The amazing illustrations within this book are an artistic inspiration for any young budding artist!

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Telling true stories to children of individuals who persevered, regardless of obstacles they faced, is not only important--it is crucial to their successes later in life. And nowhere better can you find a story of triumph than in this story of illustrator Gyo Fujikawa, a woman who fought for racial diversity in children's books.

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This is the fascinating story of four black women who worked at NASA as "human computers" during the Space Race. This is an important book to read when discussing equality for women with children.

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This is the first picture book biography of George Washington Carver. It is written as a narrative from George's perspective and highlights his childhood, his later life at Tuskegee, Alabama, and his achievements through the years.

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Among many powerful biographical nonfiction picture books comes the story of Barbara Jordan--a girl born into poverty in rural Texas who not only conquered law school--she became a part of the United States Congress.

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It can sometimes be hard to get kids interested in nonfiction books, but that is not so of Bethany Barton's cute, entertaining books about the world around us. This endearing book about our eight-legged friends--spiders--will have children looking at these interesting creatures in a different, less scary, light.

25. Dinosaur Encyclopedia for Kids: The Big Book of Prehistoric Creature

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Learn about 90 different types of dinosaurs in this wonderfully illustrated book that teaches all about these prehistoric creatures!

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Teach your children the values of determination, perseverance, kindness, and bravery as they learn about the real history of Juneteenth in this important nonfiction picture book.

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From stories about King Tut's tomb to grizzly bears hibernating, this interesting nonfiction picture book will capture any child's attention.

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Irena Sendler was a brave woman who saved many children from the Warsaw ghetto during the Holocaust. Teach your child about this amazing hero!

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Teach children about things that were invented by accident--from x-rays to sandwiches and everything in between!

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In this book full of wonderful illustrations, children can learn fun facts about every state, like where to find ghost towns to which state has the best bacon donuts!

31. World History for Kids: 500 Facts! (History Facts for Kids)

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Non-fiction books about history can sometimes be boring, but not this one! Children will learn 500 interesting facts from all over the world, starting in ancient Mesopotamia and ending in the modern-day!

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Students will delight in this story that follows the life of LeBron James and how he came "king of basketball" despite humble beginnings.

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Through beautiful reproductions of Kahlo's artwork, children will learn about the life of Frida Kahlo, important relationships within her life, and her passion for art.

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This picture book about plagues covers everything from the bubonic plague to COVID-19, all while busting myths and giving facts!

35. Superpuppy: How to Choose, Raise, and Train the Best Possible Dog for You (How to Choose, Raise, and Train the Best Possible Dog for You)

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Teach children how to train your new puppy with these book-filled ways to relate to your dog based on its personality!

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After the atomic bombing of Nagasaki, the only thing left intact of Sachiko Yasui's home was a green leaf-shaped bowl. Readers will learn about surviving the bombing and finding peace in this touching story.

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Controversy oftentimes surrounded Isaac Newton, as even though he made brilliant discoveries that forever changed the scientific community, he never felt the need to publish his findings. Read this interesting biography picture book to learn all about his life and discoveries.

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Follow 16-year old Hedy as she travels across Europe on her own, hoping to make it to the United States.

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All children will be brought into the world of riding on the transcontinental railroad in this beautifully illustrated book.

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Through haunting illustrations, students will learn the accounts of what six children went through during the Holocaust. This touching book also includes pictures and recent updates about the individuals included.

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In this graphic memoir, young readers will learn the story of Sophia, an American who doesn't feel like an American because she has lived in so many countries. When she learns her parents are working for the CIA, her whole world turns upside down.

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Another graphic memoir is the touching story of a young Jewish Hispanic boy while he tries to lose weight and focus on his health, all with the help of his imaginary friend.

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This teachers' pick follows the life of a young man growing up in Communist Russia who has won many, many awards.

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In 2005, Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans, killing one thousand eight hundred and thirty-three people. Read this riveting graphic novel to learn even more facts about Hurricane Katrina.

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This graphic memoir follows Jimmy through middle school as he struggles with missing school because he is very sick. But this unexpected time at home leads him to think of the dumbest idea ever, which turns out to be the best thing that's ever happened to him!

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Told from the point of view of Red Cloud, a powerful Lakota leader, young readers will learn many things, including how his people were the only ones to ever win a battle against American soldiers on American land and how he eventually surrendered to the white man.

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Along with Abel Meeropol, the son of Jewish immigrants, Billie Holiday creates a powerful song about injustice. Read this to find how this story helped paved the way for the Civil Rights movement.

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Join scientists as they search Brazil for the ever-elusive tapir!

49. Grand Canyon

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Learn how the terrain of the Grand Canyon changed over hundreds, even millions of years, in this beautifully illustrated picture book.

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Learn about the events that led to the Voting Rights Act of 1965 through poignant stories from black families who were forced to live in tents and were shunned by the white community in Tennessee.

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Learn how one brave girl forever changed the world in her fight for the right to an education.

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Follow beloved George Takei as he details his experiences of living in internment camps as a boy.

53. In the Shadow of the Fallen Towers

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Through individual stories of people who lived through the 9/11 attacks, this nonfiction picture book shows the way in which this tragic event shaped our country.

The 10 Best Non-Fiction Texts for Kids | GoStudent

Contents

1. What’s the difference between fiction and non-fiction texts?
2. Types of non-fiction texts
3. Reasons to get your kids reading non-fiction texts
4. Everyday examples of non-fiction texts
5. The 10 best non-fiction texts for kids

Non-fiction texts are just for adults, right? Wrong! From insightful science guides to inspirational tales about the most remarkable people – both historical figures and those alive today – our list of the 10 best non-fiction texts for kids is sure to provide hours of entertainment, wonderment, and awe for the whole family to enjoy. 👇

What’s the difference between fiction and non-fiction texts?

As of 2010, the data fiends at Google calculated that there were just shy of 130 million unique books in our world. Twelve years on and who knows how many tombs, volumes, novels, and chronicles may populate our bookshelves, sit on our bedside tables, contribute to library collections and lie in wait in book stores – freshly lasered and etched – ready to be opened for the first time. 📚

So, of those millions upon millions of books, how many are fiction and how many are non-fiction texts? And what is the difference between the two? 

Generally speaking, fiction books and texts feature a plot, settings, and characters created from the author’s imagination, while nonfiction books and texts will feature factual stories focused on actual events and real people.

Seems simple enough, right? But it can get a little confusing when the two intersect – when characters in fiction are based on real-life people for example. 🤷

So, given that fiction refers to texts that have been entirely imagined or made up by the author, non-fiction is by far the larger group of texts and is made up all of the remaining non-fiction text types including histories, biographies, journalism – magazines, online articles, and blogs – essays, travel guides, philosophy, self-help and more. 

Types of non-fiction texts

So, what is a non-fiction text? And how do you spot one in the wild? One easy way to decipher if a book is fiction or nonfiction is to remember that ‘fiction is fabricated while non-fiction is factual’. Let's break the features of a non-fiction text down together with some fiction and non-fiction examples in the table below. 🤓

Reasons to get your kids reading non-fiction texts

Kids in the US have been consuming books in greater and greater numbers over the last few years. In 2019, the U.S. book publishing industry generated a revenue of 2.84 billion U.S. dollars in children's book publishing. 🤑

And it seems kids are already pretty into non-fiction texts. When researchers asked 84 elementary school children whether they preferred the storytelling style of narrative fiction and nonfiction, the factual style of expository writing, or both, 42 percent said they preferred expository writing.

Here are just some of the reasons it's important to get your kids reading non-fiction texts.

#1 Encourages independent interests 

Reading non-fiction texts can help your child to define their own identity and interests. If most adults are reading biographies, history books, and newspaper articles that reflect their interests, why can’t children do the same in an age-appropriate way? Reading non-fiction texts helps children to form their own tastes and opinions. 😃

#2 Broadens vocabulary and comprehension

One of the features of non-fiction text is its use of technical language as well as useful academic terms like ‘consistent’, ‘definition’, and ‘indicate’. Also, the structure of non-fiction texts offers a more interactive way to approach learning – instead of reading the entire book we might skim through, read just one section in-depth, use the glossary to look up a new word, or use the index to find a topic quickly. 📕

#3 Introduces different language patterns

Although creative storytelling is a great skill, being able to formulate and present an opinion with a more formal writing style will help your child at school and beyond. Unlike fiction texts, non-fiction texts tend to make greater use of the passive voice – ‘it is believed that…’, rather than ‘I believe that…’ – exposing your child to differing language patterns and a more academic, impartial tone of voice. ✍️

Everyday examples of non-fiction texts

There are plenty of English non-fiction texts and books for your little ones to get their teeth into. In fact, they are probably consuming and creating oodles of non-fiction already! Here are 5 examples of non-fiction texts that your kids are exposed to every day. 🚶

• Billboard advertisements
• Letters or postcards between family and penpals
• Their own or friends’ diary entries
• Information leaflets from attractions and days out
• Museum and gallery blurbs

The 10 best non-fiction texts for kids

As well as being entertaining, funny and often gorgeous to look at, non-fiction books can also teach your child about the world and difficult-to-grasp topics. Non-fiction can also appeal to reluctant readers in a way that fiction doesn’t.

Here are just a few of the best non-fiction texts for kids. We hope our favorites get you and your budding bookworms excited about non-fiction texts! 

#1

Molecular biologist and illustrator Sabina Radeva has recreated Darwin's most famous work as a beautifully illustrated book for children and adults alike. The stunning pictures bring the theory of evolution to life for young readers and anyone who wants to learn about evolution.

#2

Explaining the concept of DNA to young children sounds like an impossible task but by all accounts, this book succeeds beautifully. All living things grow - every plant and every animal, including human beings, and there's something about the way we grow that links us all together. With words from Nicola Davies and exquisite artwork by Emily Sutton, this groundbreaking book is enchanting and inspiring.

#3

With input from expert consultant Professor Graham Medley of the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, as well as advice from teachers and child psychologists, this approachable and timely book provides accessible explanations about the coronavirus and its effects – both from a health perspective and the impact it has on a family’s day-to-day life.

#4 

Just about everything in the universe is made from only 92 elements – and from aluminum to zinc, many of them are hiding in your very own home. Packed full of beautiful and quirky illustrations by Lauren Humphrey, this unique and novel introduction to elements in the periodic table and the mystery of how absolutely everything came to exist is sure to excite all young readers.

#5

Presenting the lives of pioneering figures for younger readers, the Little People, Big Dreams series is a marvel of clarity and color. From Jane Austen to Martin Luther King, each book provides an age-appropriate overview of an iconic life in simplified text and bold, captivating illustrations. Inspirational and enlightening, these volumes are an essential addition to any child’s bookshelves

#6 S

From ground-breaking scientific inventions to pleas for the environment, anti-war speeches to incredible testimony of lived experiences, the speeches collected in this book are testament to the hopefulness and spirit of the next generation. It delivers a powerful message with a positive belief that we can, and should, act to protect the things we love.

#7

Amphibians, birds, rocks, oceans, and clouds: they're all explored in this stylish guide to nature for children in cities and the countryside alike. Kids can become nature detectives and follow animal tracks, identify rocks, make a birdhouse and a swing that will reach the clouds. They can also become inspired by nature to make sculptures, write stories and draw animals.

#8

Written and illustrated by a direct descendant of suffragette Emmeline Pankhurst, this colorful picture book describes 13 inspirational women from history. Showcasing some of their great achievements across beautiful double-page spreads with additional 'Did you know?' facts, each woman is excitingly introduced, encouraging intrigue and wonderment in young minds.

#9

This fascinating picture book tells the true story of two dogs, Belka and Strelka, who became famous cosmonauts. From the moment Oleg, a scientist from Moscow’s Space Centre, found the two strays, he knew they were special – clever, calm, brave, and obedient. Their pioneering flight into outer space paved the way for human space travel and the little dogs became famous all over the world.

#10

Endorsed by the Mandela family, this uplifting tale, with distinctive mixed-media illustrations, introduces Nelson Mandela to a new generation, ensuring his legacy of justice, fairness, and equality lives on. Through the eyes of his great-grandchildren, Zazi and Ziwelene, young readers will learn how this key historical figure worked tirelessly with his opponents to help create a fairer society.

Would you like to boost your child’s learning and literacy? Our GoStudent tutors are passionate about working with young people to fuel their enthusiasm and support their academic achievements. Book a free trial lesson to see how it can work for you and your family today. 🎒

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  Your style of reading books says a lot about your intelligence - and here's why / Sudo Null IT News If you love to read as much as I do, then going to a bookstore is like going to a candy store for a child.

  

  The shelves are lined with treasures of human wisdom, revelations that each of the authors has been polishing for years. It's all here, right at your fingertips, concentrated in a format that makes you want to curl up and under the covers. nine0189

  Naturally, you pull out a credit card or press the "Buy" button.

  And the books are piling up. On your shelves. In the bedroom. In car. Maybe even in the bathroom.

  The most selfless bibliophiles are looking for a place where no one had ever guessed to put books before:

  
  Source: http://bit.ly/2JRrqbk

  And as books accumulate, so does your greed. No, not the desire to read all the books you buy. Thirst not to finish reading those books that you have started. nine0189

  If the following sentence is about you, then I have to please you.

  "Even if you don't have time to read them all, it's good for you to overfill your bookshelves or reader."
  — Jessica Stillman
  

  In this article, I will explain why for those who really take the time to read and learn to learn, unread books scattered around the house just indicate high intelligence, and not its absence. nine0189

  Transferred to Alconost
  
  Not only are heaps of unread books scattered everywhere - this is the handwriting of a smart guy; such a person will make you an excellent company. I finally came to terms with my own greed when I got to know the reading habits of brilliant entrepreneurs in detail and interviewed my most successful friends in my own way. Most of them read only 20-40 percent of the books they buy. Many of them can read 10 books at a time. nine0207 In fact, one of the most avid readers in the tech beau monde, a self-made billionaire entrepreneur, estimates that…

  of them. I end up reading 1-2 books a week.”
  — Patrick Collison
  

  What is going on?

  Studying the reading habits of others, coupled with the tremendous changes in our knowledge-dominated society, I became convinced that our new times dictate new ways of searching, filtering, consuming and applying knowledge - the only way to change lives for the better. nine0189

  The explosion of information in different media and formats, new research tools to help us find the best information, and apps to help us absorb it not only encourage us to read more. They encourage us to read in a new way.

  A big part of my reading life is the old fashioned way of getting into art, but when I read to learn rather than to relax, I use a lot of tricks and strategies to figure out which books to buy and how to read them. nine0189

  Here are some of the smartest non-fiction reading hacks I've picked up from world-class entrepreneurs.

  Life hack one: Treating books as an experiment

  My friend Emerson Spartz, a successful serial entrepreneur and investor who has read thousands of books, convincingly demonstrates that buying a book is an experiment. The costs are small: you have to pay $ 15 and spend a little time. However, if you're lucky, the book can change your life. The rates are very good! nine0189

  It is known that the more "smart" experiments you perform, the higher your chances of finding a breakthrough experiment that will change everything. The most celebrated scientists and the most successful companies are usually the ones that experiment the most.

  My experience is that you need to study, buy and research 10 books before you find the one that, in my opinion, contains breakthrough knowledge.

  A good experimenter is inherently willing to take some losses. Thus: every time you get a book, and it turns out to be nonsense, you are still one step closer to the book that will change your life. nine0189

  Life hack two: Practice fractal reading

  We, as a knowledge society, have reached a tipping point. The metadata generated by books (ie, author's interviews, author's presentations, book abstracts, reviews, citations, first and last chapters, etc.) are often as valuable as the book itself.

  Why?

  • All this is free. This information allows you to try many more books before you buy. Consequently, in every "experiment" with the purchase of a book, our chances of success increase. nine0004
  • This is multimedia. All of this information is available in text, audio, and video format, making it a better fit for your daily routine (for example, you can read it while traveling back and forth or at work).
  • In this case, we have a high signal-to-noise ratio. In the abbreviated format, all the water is removed, the main ideas are presented immediately.

  Just as a book is the quintessence of an author's best ideas, metadata is the quintessence of a book. nine0189

  That's why I call this approach to reading "fractal"; because fractals are figures whose structure reveals identical patterns regardless of scale.

  We have reached the point where it may be more useful and convenient to read non-fiction in the "fractal" mode, rather than the entire book from cover to cover. For example, I can estimate that I spend 50% of the purposeful study time on fractal reading, and not on deep sequential reading. This makes it easier for me to choose books to dive into and also to recognize the most important and essential sections of the book so that I can jump directly to them. In most cases, a fractal reading of five books will be more valuable and exciting for me than studying one book from cover to cover. nine0189

  Here's how it's done:

  • Reading 2-3 book summaries (google search). For almost any book, you can find several annotations, which often contain the most sensible information from the book (20% of the ideas containing 80% of its value). Let me explain: here I mean only non-fiction books; This rule, of course, does not apply to fiction.
  • Listening to the author's interview (podcasts, Google). The interviews are engaging, and the facilitator takes over your job, asking the author the most essential and intriguing questions that emerge from the book. nine0004
  • Watching the author's presentation (TED, Google or university lecture). When an author is forced to pack a 200-page book into a 20-minute lecture, he shares his biggest ideas, merging them into an optimal story.
  • Read the most helpful 1-star, 2-star, 3-star, 4-star and 5-star reviews (Amazon). Amazon helps everyone quickly sort through their most thoughtful reviews, from readers who fell in love with it to those who hated it. nine0004
  • Reading the first and last chapters of the book. The first and last chapters of a book often contain the most valuable information (of course, this principle does not work if you want to plunge headlong into a novel). In addition, the first and last paragraphs of each chapter contain its most valuable ideas. Given that Google Books has free e-book samples and Amazon has a Look Inside feature, you can often get the first and last chapter of a book for free.
  nine0017
  

  Life hack three: Unread books should remind us how little we really know

  Intellectual humility is so valuable not only because it is a virtue. It is valuable because it allows us to more realistically conceptualize ourselves and our place in the world, and this helps us live more efficiently and harmoniously. For example, humility helps us make better decisions and inspires us to study and learn.

  This is how I see it: there were billions of people in the world who accumulated knowledge and documented it for thousands of years. The knowledge of one person compared to the collective knowledge of all mankind is only a drop in the ocean. And this sea is expanding at an unfathomable rate. Most of the scientists who have ever lived in the world are our contemporaries! nine0189

  Moreover, if we talk about all the knowledge that mankind is able to obtain, and about what we have already managed to discover, then the first is like the whole Universe, and the second is like a grain of sand. So, here are three levels for cultivating our humility:

  1. Knowledge of the individual
  2. Modern knowledge of mankind
  3. All potential knowledge

  However, at the level of everyday tangible experience, it seems that we know much more than we really do. When all is well, it seems to many that they have comprehended the notorious "meaning of life." It's like we're at the end of a cycle instead of the beginning. It’s just that we are constantly reminded of the already known and rarely (if ever) of the unknown. nine0189

  Of course, conceptually we can realize that we know far from everything, but we don't feel it physically. I was reminded of this recently when I spent two hours touring two of Princeton's six libraries. I happened to pass a space the size of 10 football fields, filled with books and scientific journals. On the one hand, I was inspired by looking at all this and realizing that all this can be studied. On the other hand, he experienced extreme humility. Libraries have helped me to realize how little I currently know, and to understand that even if I spent my whole life only reading, I would learn a small fraction of what is collected in them. nine0189

  Collecting anti-library , that is, accumulating unread books at home, one can experience similar feelings. Nassim Taleb, a successful investor and best-selling author, brilliantly describes the value of an anti-library in his book Black Swan :

  “A personal library is not an image accessory, but a working tool. Read books are far less important than unread ones. The library should contain as much of the unknown as your finances, mortgages, and the current difficult real estate market will allow you to fit into it. As the years go by, your knowledge and your library will grow, and the growing ranks of unread books will begin to look at you menacingly. In fact, the wider your horizons, the more shelves you have of unread books. Let's call this collection of unread books the anti-library." nine0199

  Not only Taleb is of this opinion. The Italian writer and philosopher Umberto Eco collected over 30,000 books. Thomas Jefferson collected 6,000 books, thus, at that time, his library was the largest in the country. Jay Walker, the founder of Priceline. com, amassed such a huge library that he later built his house around it. Thomas Edison set up his desk in the center of his own three-story library. Bill Gates has many rooms in his house, but his favorite is his own colossal 2,100-square-foot library. nine0189

  
  Personal Library of Jay Waker, founder Priceline.com

  
  Tomas Edison library

  
  Personal library Gates 8

  Laifhak Genty Books, Read the Great Laifhacs. In one excellent podcast from the Knowledge Project, Patrick Collison, founder of the Stripe project, self-made billionaire, makes the following thesis:

  only known. However, as soon as you find another book that seems more interesting or more important, the current handbook should not hesitate to discard ... any other algorithm will cause your reading to get worse and worse over time. nine0199

  In other words, remember what you were taught and do exactly the opposite. Instead of trying hard to “finish off” any book you start, allow yourself to simply put this book aside - but only if you find a more valuable one. Life is too short and there are simply too many good books in the world. On the other hand, be careful and try not to go too far - that is, not to reject great books just because you got some new with a catchy title. nine0189

  How do you know if you're jumping randomly from book to book? This is where fractal reading comes in handy. If the book's meta-information didn't grab your attention, then it's unlikely that the whole book will be enough.

  Life hack five: Use the books you read to free up space in your head for great ideas to collide

  It is known that targeted advertising is effective. The recipient perceives it both consciously and subconsciously. The same applies to those books that we correctly place in the existing context. nine0189

  My mentor, business partner, and friend Eben Pagan compares a bookshelf to a playlist of timeless intellectual masterpieces:

  “The most important book on your shelf is the one you haven't read yet. If you have a promising book, it may not be time to read it yet. Maybe you will ripen to it in a year, or maybe in ten years. However, if you spot a book at the right moment, you will be interested in it and take it off the shelf.”
  

  Patrick Collison talks along the same lines:

  “Another skill that I find very valuable is simply putting a book down. When someone recommends a book to me, I can often get myself a copy... and put it down. So, the books are in my kitchen. They lie in the bedroom. They are just scattered all over the place.

  Moreover, it is surprisingly common when someone else recommends you a book, or some aspect of it, and it is still at hand. In sight. And you'll think, "Oh, really, you need to get to know this thing." nine0189

  Or learn about the importance of the book in some other way. Read in the article. You will begin to realize its zest, or the question posed in it, or something else.

  So one of the reasons why I continue to appreciate paper books is that the book creates a kind of idea space for you, in which fruitful collisions occur between such ideas more often.
  

  
  

  Life hack six: read books like magazines

  "Journal" reading of a book is a powerful metaphor. Picking up a magazine, we do not feel embarrassed if we skip some pages in it, or scroll diagonally in 5 minutes. On the contrary, we will scan the magazine in such a way as to find the most interesting and important articles, and then, having found them, we will carefully and slowly read them. This approach is very powerful on several levels:

  • Helps you find the most important information to study in depth.
  • Helps slow down so we can get the most out of the information we decide to delve into.
  • Makes it easier to read, making it easier for us to stay consistent.

  Let's face it, it's not as easy to stay focused as it used to be. Yes, it would be great to sit and read for hours without distraction, but if this is not done properly, then the benefit is zero. nine0189

  Avid reader and celebrity technology investor and entrepreneur Naval Ravikant has pioneered a reading system that helps to put even shortened periods of acute attention to good use.

  Ravikant noticed that among the most valuable books there are a lot of old sources that form the basis for other books. He describes the value of these books in one of the Tim Ferriss podcast series:

  “The older the problem, the older the solution. When it comes to old topics such as how to maintain bodily health, stay calm and peaceful, what value systems are good, how to arrange a family ... for such problems, the old solutions are perhaps better than the new ones, as they have stood the test of time. Any book that has existed for 2,000 years is "filtered" by a lot of people." nine0199

  However, Ravikant notes the important challenge of reading this kind of book:

  “…but I knew it was a very difficult problem, because my brain is used to Facebook, Twitter and other sources where information is given by the teaspoon. So I used this tactic when I started thinking of books as one-off blog articles or miniature tweets or Facebook posts. I don't feel any obligation to finish the book. Now, when someone points me to a book, I buy it. At any given time, I read between 10 and 20 books. I flip through them, as soon as the book starts to get boring, I skip the uninteresting. Sometimes I start reading a book from the middle, because a paragraph caught my attention, and I continue from there. I don't feel the need to read at all. If at some point it seems to me that the book is boring due to clearly erroneous fragments (and I can no longer trust the rest of the information that is presented in it), I simply delete them and no longer remember them. Now I treat books like others - any other easy information that can be found on the Internet. All of a sudden, books are back in my circle of reading.” nine0199

  
  

  Finally, it's not about how many books you finish reading

  It is difficult to distinguish between just a book plush and a smart reader, if you just visit their homes. Both of them will have books all over the place. However, this similarity is superficial. In fact, there are three key differences between plushkin and a smart reader.

  • Smart readers have a well-established learning ritual. I recommend sticking to the 5-hour rule: spend about an hour a day reading, following the example of many leading entrepreneurs and leaders. Today I devote 4-5 hours a day to systematic learning, while at the same time managing my company and raising two children. nine0004
  • Smart reader learns to learn. In other words, he learns to make the best use of his reading time. I wrote a free email course to help you master mental models, one of the most important skills to help you learn faster and better. This course explains the models that billionaire investors use to make business and investment decisions. This is an arsenal that you can begin to apply in life and in business right now. You will also learn how to incorporate these patterns naturally into your daily life. nine0004
  • Smart readers continue to act until they achieve the desired result. The value of theoretical knowledge lies in the ability to apply it in practice.

  If you consistently adhere to these three principles, then the time will soon come to say goodbye to guilt. You don't have to read every book on your shelf. And when you take a book off the shelf, you don't have to read it to the end.

  Plyushkin is proud of how many books he has, and an intelligent reader is proud of how much he was able to extract from his books. nine0189

  About the translator

  The article was translated by Alconost.

  Alconost localizes games, applications and websites into 70 languages. Native translators, linguistic testing, cloud platform with API, continuous localization, project managers 24/7, any format of string resources.

  We also make promotional and educational videos - for websites, selling, image, advertising, training, teasers, explainers, trailers for Google Play and App Store.

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