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Reading Resolutions
Reading Resolutions
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by James Patterson
New Year’s resolutions are hard, no doubt about it. Every year, we force ourselves to create resolutions that dictate how we’ll live our lives in the upcoming year. Workout more, eat less sweets, learn a new language, write 100 bestsellers—well, maybe that one’s just for me. But despite all of our best intentions, most resolutions are destined to fail—approximately 80 percent of our resolutions fail by the second week of February. We can’t even make it through two months! The odds are certainly stacked against us, especially when we live in such distracting times.
And I’m not immune to the difficulties of keeping a resolution. By the time February rolls around, like clockwork, I suddenly remember why it’s so hard to keep a resolution: Because it’s a lot easier to stick to one when you have help—when you’re not just doing it for yourself, but for someone else, especially someone you love.
Think about our kids. If you have children, most of your life, whether you want to admit it or not, revolves around making sure your children are safe, healthy, and happy. I certainly spend enough time thinking about our son, Jack. And to be honest, most of the time when I make New Year’s resolutions, I’m thinking about my future, for my kid.
Children are the greatest hope we have for the future. This is why I believe so firmly in the power of education. And to that point—what if we made New Year’s resolutions for our kids? It’s no secret that I think one of the more important things we can do for our children is to instill a lifelong love of books and reading. Reading, simply put, is the best way for a child to learn.
And that’s why I’ve pledged to make a very important New Year’s promise every year since I started my children’s book imprint, JIMMY Patterson Books: A resolution to get our kids reading. As parents, I think this is one of the most vital promises we can make to ourselves. What’s the quickest route to a good education? Books that not only engage readers, but teach them. Books that allow them to access perspectives they’ve never encountered before. Books that give them the confidence to think for themselves, to see the truth in knowledge.
But like I mentioned before—it’s pretty easy to make a resolution, but not so easy to keep it. This resolution is no exception. If your child is a reluctant reader, the very prospect of sticking a book in front of them and telling them they’ll enjoy it can sound like pure torture to them. Teaching my son how to love books was a daunting enough prospect. So how do you get a kid to do something they don’t naturally want to do?
Here are my tips: Make a trip to the local library a weekly habit. Surround your kids with books from an early age. Make sure your kids see you reading—for fun. Every time you buy them a toy, buy them a book, too. And eventually, we’ll be able to mold their minds into thinking that reading is a reward, not a chore.
Teaching our children to love books is a resolution that I think—I hope—we can all keep. And though change is always hard at first, just remember how important this promise is—not just for the sake of your child or for the sake of your family, but for the sake of the future. In trying times, we all have to remind ourselves that we have the power to change the world. We just have to start small—as small as teaching one child to love books. •
