There are people who read to learn something. People who read to escape something. People who read because stories make them feel less alone. I suspect most readers are some combination of all three.

When I started creating The Intentional Reader Reset, the very first question I wrote down was:

Why do you read?

It sounds simple until you sit with it for more than thirty seconds. Ask “why” enough times, and eventually you uncover something uncomfortably honest.

This workbook is meant to be personal, so your answer will likely look nothing like mine. But I wanted to share my own reading “why” because I think context matters when someone asks you to trust their recommendations.

Book recommendations are strange little acts of intimacy. They say:

This moved me.

Maybe it will move you too.

And at its core, that’s what this blog is really about.

I read:

• to escape reality for a while
• to learn from perspectives unlike my own
• to satisfy curiosity
• to experience emotional connection
• to better understand people
• to create community through shared stories

Like many readers, I read to escape reality and avoid responsibilities. Life is hard and sometimes tedious. Who wouldn’t want to open a book and live some other life filled with adventure and the promise of a satisfying resolution?

I read because I’m curious. I like to hear new stories and understand experiences that are different from my own. Nothing opens your mind like a good book.

I read to learn. My core strength is “learner,” and I lean into it pretty hard. For many years I only read books obviously meant to teach (books on creativity, drawing, painting, self-help, design, etc).

Sometime back, a new friend insisted I read Outlander by Diana Gabaldon. This book and the subsequent conversations opened the door for my reignited passion for fiction. I have found a different kind of learning there, and I am so glad that I gave it a shot.

The more I reflected on my reading life, the more I realized many readers are quietly searching for the same thing: a more personal relationship with books.

Recommending books feels like sending someone a message that says:

“This made me think of you.”

I’m not naturally good at friendship.

I worry about bothering people. I overthink reaching out. I disappear into my own world for too long and then feel awkward resurfacing again.

But books give me a bridge.

Shared stories create openings for connection that otherwise feel difficult for me to initiate on my own.

That realization is part of why this blog exists.

I want to foster a community of people who share my love of books. To connect with people whom I don’t yet know to exchange ideas. To help people find books that resonate with them. Books are a gateway to actual friendship and connection–high hopes, I know.

So if you are reading this, or other parts of this blog, consider it an invitation to be my friend. Connect with me about books, and about life. The door is open.

If this resonated with you, you may enjoy The Intentional Reader Reset, my free 7-day guide for building a more meaningful reading life.

Let me know in the comments why reading matters to you.