Reflecting on reading habits

Have a look at the images and think about your own reading habits. Have they changed?

My reading habits have changed considerably. First, when I was a child I used to read short books with lots of images. Then, as a teenager, I used to read paper-based books –mostly the ones I had to read for school–. I wasn’t a big reader back then, I’ll admit that. It wasn’t until I went to university when I developed a taste for reading. The majority of books I read were adventure, thrillers and detective novels. When I grew tired of carrying books from place to place and my back started to hurt I told myself it was high time I bought an e-reader.

1. What kind of books or texts are people reading? Did they chose the books themselves or did someone else choose for them?

In the first picture we can see people reading in a public library. It looks like they are reading paper-based books. They might be reading books for a university course and that’s why they are in the library –it’s the only place where they can borrow those books–, so I reckon someone chose it for them.

3. Describe how they might be feeling at the moment and give reasons.

It certainly doesn’t seem like they are reading for pleasure. They might be feeling stressed and overwhelmed because they have to submit assignments and they don’t have enough time to read their books since they have other courses at university.

4. Focus on one or two of the photos and say how they relate to your own experience as a reader in L1 (Spanish) and L2 (English or another foreign language). Think about the following things:

The second picture reminds me of my first steps as a young reader. Every time I went to my aunt’s house, she would give me a book, sit next to me and read with me for a while. Whereas, the first picture brings back some memories of my time as a university student. I would always go to the university library during exam periods to study with my classmates.

- What texts do you enjoy reading in each language that you speak?

In Spanish I enjoy reading psychology and history books, while in English I tend to read more thrillers and detective novels.

- Do you choose the same kind of texts or do you read very different things depending on the language? What factors determine your choice? 

I read very different types of texts depending on the language in which I choose to read. The complexity of the language is a major factor that determines my choice.

- In what format do you read (paper, e-reader, online, etc.)?

I usually read in my e-reader.

- When do you read?

My favourite moment for reading is before going to bed. However, most of the times I just doze off and I suddenly wake up with a startled expression when the e-reader hits my face.