You sway on a rocking chair on your porch, your eyes riveted on the crisp pages of paper bound together in the latest novel you are reading, the scent of grass and new paper wafting into your nose. For many people, reading serves as an inspiration to write, a window for new discovery. However, some people have labelled fiction as a waste of time, thrusting fiction into the same group as video games and gossip. Nevertheless, I believe that reading fiction is not a waste of time because it improves your English, teaches you invaluable life lessons, and stimulates your brains.

My English teacher often decrees that reading is the way to improve in the subject. Books introduce readers to new vocabulary and phrases that only pile upon each other as more books are read. Reading also improves readers’ grammar. As a person whose first language is not English, reading books gives me that ability to ‘listen’ for grammar mistakes while writing. Moreover, writers are professionals who have mastered the intricate art of combining words together to form sentences. By reading sentences crafted by experts, readers will be able to emulate their style and organization of writing. Non-fiction is written primarily with the purpose of educating, not mesmerizing the reader. Fiction is for entertaining readers, so fiction books allow readers to both be entertained and improve language at the same time, which leads to learning being more fun and natural.

Readers also learn many vital life lessons from different themes of novels. Many novels written are allegories that teach about the human condition. For instance, in the novella Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, readers learn how by acknowledging the importance of every member of society and accepting differences can people flourish and achieve their goals. In Antoine de Saint-Exupéry's The Little Prince, readers learn "It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye.” Furthermore, in E.B. White's Charlotte's Web, Charlotte tells Wilbur after saving his life “By helping you, perhaps I was trying to life up my life a trifle”. Thus, readers are taught that our lives have meaning only when we help others. These morals taught by fiction books not only teach readers lifelong lessons, they also make readers ponder about society and question the status quo.

“The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you'll go” Dr. Seuss once wrote. By reading fiction, you stimulate your brains in many ways. Firstly, reading fiction exercises your brain. Reading fiction makes you comprehend, think, and fantasize. Secondly, reading results in better concentration. Reading requires active engagement and concentration, as readers paint images in their head. Lastly, readers utilize their diverse imagination. Fiction makes you imagine details that the author does not explicitly tell you. Reading fiction also allows us to discover ideas and thoughts that originate from worlds galaxies away.

As seen from the aforementioned reasons, it is asinine to say that reading fiction is a waste of time. Reading fiction improves our English, teaches us invaluable life lessons, and stimulates our brains, which are things video games and gossip cannot do. As Confucius puts it best, "No matter how busy you may think you are, you must find time for reading, or surrender yourself to self-chosen ignorance."