Different Shades of Reading

I've always loved reading books. Reading is like meditation for me. 

Back in my school days, I was a sucker for fiction literature. They were my gateways to a virtual world, away from reality. But in recent years, when I started reading various types of books, I realised that there is a huge variation among them. Where a self-help book helps you in growing and improving yourself to shape a better version of yourself, a biography drowns you into a person's life story and their experiences.

A human mind is a very complex structure, and the more you expose it to books, the more it broadens. I've come to understand that reading different types of books unlocks different dimensions of one's mind, which in turn creates a butterfly effect in other aspects of our life.

For anyone who is new to the reading world or wants to switch to something different for a change, I have a created a list of some must-read book types everyone should read once in their lifetime.

Self-Help

Currently, this is my favourite genre. These books are pretty addicting and hard to put down. But these, sure as hell, can turn your life upside down, if used properly. Writers, under this category, prefer to talk on subjects like communication skills, habit formation, life skills and many more.

Few books of this genre - 

• Atomic Habits by James Clear
• The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey
• How to win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie
• Think and Grow Rich by Napolean Hill
• The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck by Mark Manson
• The Power of Your Subconscious Mind By Dr Joseph Murphy

Fiction

The best thing about reading fiction is that you get to see the world from someone else's eyes. You understand how the other person thinks and what causes people to do what they do. It not only makes you aware of the whole spectrum of human emotions but also creates a sense of empathy towards others.

Few books of this genre -  

• The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
• The Great Gatsby by F.Scott Fitzgerald
• The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
• To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee
• The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
• All The Bright Places by Jennifer Niven

History

I can hear people arguing, why should we read history when it is gone? When I was small, my grandmother used to narrate me stories of her time, which I would listen to very patiently. It was a fun process, but somewhere, it created a sense of belonging inside me. Like, that's where my roots are. We evolved from that, to who we are today, as humans. Somewhere when we study history, we study ourselves. How what started, or how that thing has an impact on our life now or how we can learn from a mistake committed in past, which can be avoided in future for the greater good.

Few books of this genre - 

• Glimpses of World History by Jawaharlal Nehru
• Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari
• The Silk Roads: A New History of the World by Peter Frankopan

Finance

This category comes under self-help, but I wanted to consider it separately since it teaches financial literacy. Financial literacy is to know how to manage your finances, which includes learning how to pay your bills, how to save or invest it. These skills are one of the most necessary skills and are never taught to us in schools or colleges. It enlightens us on how to manage money.

Few books of this genre - 

• Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki and Sharon Lechter
• The Millionaire Next Door: The Surprising Secrets of America's Wealthy by Thomas J. Stanley and William D. Danko
• I Will Teach You To Be Rich by Ramit Sethi
• Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman

Spiritual

This genre is kinda underestimated but has the potential to transform our lives. Spiritual power is all about connecting to oneself on the soul level. Trying to understand oneself, our pains, sorrows, weakness, strength, etc. Your connection with your spiritual self will help you when your life is covered by the smokes of negative emotions. It is not about believing in God, but having faith in the higher power which has connected all of us.

Few books of this genre - 

• The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle
• The Book of Not Knowing: Exploring the True Nature of Self, Mind, and Consciousness by Peter Ralston
• I Am That by Nisargadatta Maharaj

Biography/Autobiography/Memoirs

Every person on this planet has a story to tell. Each individual is like a book, which is a collection of their experience, mistakes, failure, success and choices. Someone can read about the lives of others just for the sake of knowing, but knowing about others life can be of great advantage to us. We can gain from their experiences and learn from their failures because life is not long enough to experience it all by yourself. 

Few books of this genre - 

• Wings of Fire by APJ Abdul Kalam and Arun Tiwari
• The Story of My Life by Helen Keller
• Becoming by Michelle Obama
• Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson
• The Man Who Knew Infinity by Kanigel Robert

These were my ideas and thoughts on some of the genres you should read. Some of you may prefer other genres, which is perfectly fine since reading is all about enjoying and you should read what you enjoy, as long as you are reading.

Thank you and keep reading!