Ambassador Stefano Pontecorvo urges Pakistanis to develop reading habit

Islamabad: Italy’s ambassador to Pakistan Stefano Pontecorvo on Sunday urged Pakistanis to develop the habit of reading books.

“Money that goes in books is invested, not spent… the return is manifold in enjoyment, knowledge, openness,” he said.

The envoy added: “And if you think about it, from the financial point of view, when you pass your time reading you don’t spend money going shopping.”

Ambassador Pontecorvo said he had just bought a couple of books from a book store in Islamabad. “Saeed Book Bank is always a fantastic bookstore,” he remarked.

Pakistanis are among the low book reading nations. One of the biggest reasons why we read books is to gain knowledge.

Books are a rich source of information. Reading books on varied subjects imparts information and increases the depth about the subject as well. Whenever you read a book, you learn a new information that otherwise would not have known.

Studies have shown that reading has strong positive effects on the brain. By staying mentally stimulated, you can prevent dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.

This is because, keeping your brain active prevents it from losing power. The brain is a muscle and like other muscles in the body, exercise keeps it strong and healthy. Similar to solving puzzles, reading books is a great way to exercise your brain and keep it healthy.

Reading has a positive effect on the body as well. Reading a book can relieve stress better than taking a walk or listening to music. According to studies who read more tend to have lower stress levels.

Every time you read a book, you have to remember the setting of the book, the characters, their backgrounds, their history, their personalities, the sub-plots and so much more. As your brain learns to remember all this, your memory becomes better. What’s more, with every new memory you create, you create new pathways and this strengthens the existing ones.

The more you read, the more imaginative you become. Whenever you read a fiction book, it takes you another world. In the new world, your imagination works at its best as you try to see things in your own mind.