Reading Without A Map 10 July, 2023 – Posted in: Articles, Books – Tags: Map, Reading

Have you ever left your home without a destination in mind? The best reading is the same way. You might have a vague idea of where you’d like to go, but the best reading takes you places you don’t expect. Like driving without a map, reading without a map gets you to the good stuff.

When we immerse ourselves in a book, the best ones twist and turn, infuriate and delight, and reveal things to us we might not otherwise have sought out. This is what makes reading such a great activity. The unknown coming to light in our minds.

Moreover, reading leads us into new avenues of thought. We become explorers of the new and the mysterious. Like Explorer Percy Fawcett, we trek bravely into dangerous areas in the expectation of success. And, like Fawcett, we follow our instincts that there is something great to find at almost every turn.

And what if you don’t feel like an explorer when you are reading? Perhaps that’s because you’ve allowed yourself to follow well worn paths that you’ve trod too many times. If you’re covering the same ground, even from slightly different angles, you will end up feeling penned in. Adding a little randomness to your reading will get you out of that rut and off the map in no time.

Once you get that feeling that you’re heading into uncharted waters, then reading becomes the adventure we need. It’s the thrills we don’t seek that make life interesting. Plans are great, but the unplanned offers priceless value to how we see ourselves and the world.

Picking up a new book should be electric. What does it contain? Where will it take you? What will it mean to you in the end? There is no other activity that offers so much for so little. So dust off your pith helmet and stride bravely into the unknown of a new book.