What I learnt from keeping a reading journal (and why you should too!)

Illustrations by Grace McKenna

Since last May, I’ve started keeping a reading journal. I’ve always been a keen user of book tracking apps (StoryGraph over Goodreads any day, by the way), but I didn’t use these to write reviews, rather just to track what I had read. Starting my reading journal, I vowed to write a review for every book I read from then on, and I’m pleased to report that I’ve stuck to that promise. This process has changed the way I engage with many books; it has led me to question a lot about what warrants a good book, and where to draw the line between a book being critically good or just a fun read.

The way we derive value from a book can be very personal, and therefore it is difficult to categorically say a certain book is better than another. Writing reviews inherently entails comparing and ranking books against each other, but in doing so it is important to remember that sometimes books are not directly comparable. For example, I find it very hard to compare a book that I enjoyed for its thought-provoking, educational capacity versus a book I enjoyed purely for its excitement and storytelling. In this sense, books can be vastly different but provide equally valuable reading experiences, making it hard to categorically rank either book as ‘better.’ I am certainly not trying to argue that all forms of ranking and comparison are arbitrary, just that critically comparing books may be more complex than it initially seems.

I would highly recommend starting a book journal to anyone, no matter how much you read. It’s a brilliant opportunity for reflection on both your reading and yourself. It has also forced me to confront the valuations I placed on certain books based on societal standards. I will openly admit that I had been influenced to value classics above contemporary romance, for example – but keeping a book journal has led me to reflect on where the value of books truly come from.

Just because a book might be perceived as less ‘high-brow’ or ‘intellectually challenging’ does not necessarily mean that it is of less value. All books and all reading experiences have a place, and creating these subjective valuations on books and genres often intimidates and disparages readers. In reality, these valuations are enforced and perpetuated by those chasing an ego boost from reading ‘hard’ books – a largely arbitrary concept existing to pamper self-image.  

Ultimately, keeping a reading journal has taught me to value the experience I get from reading a book over the book itself. Comparison can sometimes be unreasoned, and at the end of the day all reading is reading, and all books have a place.