Why You Should Include Reading on Your List of Things to do Together?

You know what they say, couples who read together, stay together.

And it’s true.

According to relationship experts, reading jolts your brain. And it has the power to bring couples closer together.

We grow closer to others by revealing and sharing new thoughts, ideas, and fantasies with each other. Hence, reading a book and then discussing it draws us closer to the one we love.

photo credit: Erin Kelly via Flickr CC

It never ceases to amaze me how we can bond over a book with our significant other. You don’t even have to like the same genre, but you can both enjoy some time together and separate interest.

But how is this making my relationship stronger, you’re wondering?

Years ago, during those first fresh newlywed years of marriage, my husband and I shared our interest in reading, and on many occasions, we would take turns reading aloud to each other. At times, you’d find two bookmarks in the same book. “His” and “Hers” where we both left off at different places in a story.

Even between jobs, laundry, and tending to babies, many hours were passed discussing the parts of the books we’d both read and hinting to each other and predicting what was to come next in the books we read.

And yes, after years of marriage there comes times where you may feel there is nothing left to discuss because you’ve already talked about it. Or you’ve become tired of talking about it. But a book, there’s always a new story to read and discover. Perhaps you read the same book and share the same interest in genre, but not have the same favorite authors. Or may you like different genres, but even so, you still ask and listen about what the other is reading.

It can freshen up your relationship. It helps release the stresses of a day’s work, family strains, and other worries we face for enough moments to remember we’re in this together. There is still adventure in our love life, evolving interests and new ideas and theories to talk about with the person we’re sharing life with. That’s what bonds us. Not only as couples, but as thrill-seekers, romantics, comedians, and mystery solvers.

When you get to that end of day period, and you just want to unwind, do it together. Read to each other, read side by side on your phones, nooks, or paperback books. There is something satisfying about curling up to a good book. Most likely, you’ll find it’s a whole lot cozier when you’ve got someone else curling up with you.

Image via Flickr CC by Joao Paulo de Vasconcelos

Don’t keep reading together exclusive to your nights. Grab a blanket and your partner and head to the nearest park. Pick a shady spot under a tree on a porch swing. Before you know it, you’ll look forward to spending more time together. You may even become inseparable, and I’m not implying from the book. (Disclaimer: books can also be hard to become inseparable from when you’re pulled into an irresistible story.)

You may find you are attracted to this new literary side you have discovered. It’s okay to get your ‘geek’ on together.

After all… couples who read together, stay together. Right?

I’ll be including printable HIS and HER Bookmarks in this month’s newsletter. Please be sure to sign up for my newsletter so you can receive them and other goodies I share throughout the year. 

What’s the last book you read together as a couple?