Different Types of Books
I Want You to Find Your Format and Actually Start Reading
I believe books are essential to the learning process. And we are lucky to live in a time where knowledge is as available as possible - I think we often take that for granted, how easy it is now to have any kind of information shipped to us. And it gets even better - we have different kinds of books for different kinds of readers. And I’m not talking about soft cover vs hard cover (which camp are you in?).
Here’s the real reason I’m writing this: I want you to get excited about books again, and I don’t care which format you choose. I just want you to pick one and actually start consuming books.
The Already Usual Types of Books
Printed
for all the old-school-I-want-to-touch-it people. I love printed books. I think visual association helps recall information better. The touch, the smell, the cover image, the place the text was on the page - those are all “anchors” for us to associate information with and stick it to our memory. There’s something about physically flipping back to “that page with the weird diagram and the paragraph under it” that just works. If this is your thing, stop making excuses about not having time to go to the bookstore. Order it online. It’ll be at your door in two days.
Electronic
kindle <3 As much as I love printed books, I don’t go anywhere without my kindle. E-books are perfect for when you want to carry an entire library in your bag without destroying your back. Plus, you can highlight without guilt, search for that quote you vaguely remember, and read at 2am without waking up your partner. The convenience factor is unmatched. So if you’ve been saying “I don’t have room for more books,” well, now you have zero excuses. Download the app. Buy a book. Start tonight.
Audio
for everyone who says “I don’t have time to read.” Yes, you do. You have a commute. You have a grocery shopping trip. You have dishes to wash. Audiobooks let you consume stories and knowledge while your hands and eyes are busy elsewhere. Stop telling yourself you’re too busy to read and start telling yourself you’re too busy NOT to use audiobooks. Download one today. Listen while you do literally anything else.
To be honest I’m personally not a fan here. A lot of the comprehension depends on the reader and it’s a rare match. Also it makes me sleepy and unlike with written word the half-heard words before the dreamland are a soft anchor to come back to.
What I did enjoy were short sci-fi stories read by LeVar Burton in his podcasts (if you are a star trek nerd like me you’ll know him as Geordi.🖖)
Graphic Novels, Comics, Mangas
If you apprentiate visual beauty as much as you do text - this must be your thing. For all the Anime fans out there, I know you’re enjoying your mangas, before we see them on screen. And for those who say “anime are just cartoons” and “comics are not books” stop being a snob and appreciate some story telling with both visual and textual elements.
I can’t say I’m an expert here, but last time I went “oh” was when I got obsessed with Umbrella Academy and found the original comic book series by Gerard Way (by the way, in case you didn’t know he’s the lead vocalist and co-founder of the rock band My Chemical Romance). I’ll also add artbooks to this category - with my next recent obsession with Arcane. The Art and Making of Arcane is something to hold and admire. And by the way one of the creators of Arcane is a Musician Christian Linke (German rock band Panik)
BTW: isn’t it weird that two great visual stories are created by musicians?..
Now comes the part where I think you’ll find something new for yourself - and maybe, finally, something that makes you excited to read again. Books come in stranger, more experimental formats too - ones that feel less like reading and more like solving, playing, or discovering. If you’ve been waiting for something different, this is where it gets interesting.
The Formats You Might Not Know About
Ergodic
for the puzzle-solvers and adventure-seekers who want their reading to be work (in the best way). Ergodic literature demands more than just moving your eyes left to right. You flip pages backward, decode footnotes that lead to other footnotes, rotate the book upside down, follow multiple narrative threads simultaneously, or navigate choose-your-own-adventure style paths. Think House of Leaves with its maze-like page layouts, or S. by J.J. Abrams where you pull actual documents out of the book. This format turns reading into an active, physical experience - you’re not passively consuming a story, you’re solving it, building it, exploring it. If you’ve ever finished a book and thought “that was too easy,” or if you love escape rooms and puzzle games, this is your format. Fair warning: you can’t skim these. You can’t half-pay-attention. But that’s exactly the point. Pick one up and prepare to actually engage with a book in a way you haven’t since you were a kid.
Epistolary
these books are told entirely through letters, emails, text messages, diary entries, or documents. Think Dracula - yes, the whole thing is journal entries and letters. Modern versions like Where’d You Go, Bernadette do it through emails and documents, and honestly? It feels like you’re a detective piecing together a story from evidence. If you’re the type who gets weirdly invested in reading comment sections or following Twitter threads, this format might click for you. You’re not just reading a story - you’re uncovering it, like you found someone’s phone and you’re scrolling through their messages (but legally and ethically, obviously).
Not really my thing, although I enjoy reading letters of some famous writers like Pushkin, where I can see him for his “real person” side and connect his background to his works, but reading fictionary letters? That’s too much of suspension of disbelief for me. Like, I know YOU wrote both sides of this conversation, author. I can see through it. But hey, if voyeuristic reading is your jam, this format will make you feel like you’re discovering secrets. And that might be exactly what gets you turning pages again.
Interactive Fiction/Gamebooks
for the control freaks who hate when characters make stupid decisions. Remember choose-your-own-adventure books? This is that, but grown up. Modern interactive fiction can be apps or physical books where your choices genuinely matter and shape the entire story. You want the protagonist to investigate the creepy basement? Go ahead. Want them to run away like a sensible person? That’s an option too. You get to play god without the moral consequences. Some of these have multiple endings, branching storylines, different character perspectives based on your choices. Try something like 80 Days (the app based on Jules Verne’s novel) or Sorcery! by Steve Jackson if you want to see how deep this rabbit hole goes. If you’re the person who replays video games to see all the endings, this is your reading format. Finally, a book that doesn’t punish you for yelling “NO DON’T GO IN THERE” at the pages.
Verse Novels
for when your brain is too fried for dense paragraphs but you still want a real story. These are entire novels told in poetry. Sounds pretentious? It’s not. They’re fast-paced, emotionally punchy, and you can finish one in a single sitting because the white space on the page makes it feel less intimidating. Books like The Poet X, Brown Girl Dreaming, Out of the Dust - they hit you in the feelings faster than traditional prose ever could. Each word carries more weight because there are fewer of them. If you’ve been staring at that 400-page novel on your nightstand for three months, try a verse novel instead. You’ll actually finish it. Tonight, probably. And you’ll feel something. Isn’t that the whole point of reading anyway?
Serialized/Web Fiction
for the binge-watchers who need their next fix NOW. These are stories published chapter-by-chapter online on platforms like Wattpad, Royal Road, or as web serials. Authors post new chapters regularly - sometimes weekly, sometimes daily - and you get to follow along like you’re watching a TV series, except it’s reading. The best part? There’s a whole community in the comments theorizing, freaking out, predicting what happens next. It’s social reading. Plus, a ton of it is free. Yes, free. And if you find an author you love who’s still writing, you get the thrill of waiting for updates, discussing theories, being part of the story as it unfolds. It’s the closest reading gets to a live experience. Stop saying you can’t afford books - go find a web serial and start reading today.
Bonus Genre
If you remember in one of my previous posts I confessed there was a period I stopped reading and desperately wanted to get back but my brain capacity didn’t allow me - well, the next confession is, what brought me back. It’s a genre called LitRPG - if you love games, if you’ve ever lost hours to an RPG, if terms like “skill trees” and “experience points” and “loot drops” make sense to you - this is your gateway back to reading. These books literally read like someone is playing a video game: the protagonist gains levels, unlocks abilities, sees stat screens, and progresses through a game-like world. And maybe it’s far from “smart” literature, but it’s what got me involved again. Sometimes you don’t need Tolstoy. Sometimes you need a book that feels like comfort food, that speaks your language, that makes turning pages feel as natural as clicking “next quest.” The important thing isn’t literary prestige - it’s that you’re reading again. So if traditional fantasy feels too dense and literary fiction feels too pretentious, try a LitRPG. Let yourself enjoy a book that feels like playing your favorite game. Who cares if it’s not on some critic’s “best of” list? You’re reading. That’s what matters.
Here’s My Actual Point
I’m not here to debate which format is “best” or “most legitimate.” I don’t care if you think audiobooks aren’t “real reading” or if print snobs judge your Kindle.
Here’s what I care about: you’re not reading. You say you want to learn, you say you miss books, you say you wish you read more - but you don’t. And I think it’s because you’re stuck on one idea of what reading “should” look like.
Maybe you hate physical books because you move apartments too much and they’re heavy. Maybe you can’t focus on e-readers because the screen feels wrong. Maybe you zone out with audiobooks. Maybe traditional formats just don’t work for your brain.
Fine. Try something else.
The goal isn’t to become a “reader” in some specific, traditional sense. The goal is to actually consume knowledge and stories again. To learn things. To experience narratives. To grow.
So here’s what I want you to do: look at this list and pick the format that you’ve been most curious about. Not the one you “should” prefer. Not the one that seems most legitimate. The one that actually sounds interesting or exciting or different enough to make you want to try.
Then go consume one book in that format. This week. Not “someday.” Not “when you have time.” This week.
Stop optimizing for the perfect reading experience and start actually reading. Pick your format. Start today. That’s it.
If you’re an avid reader and you’re using Goodreads - let’s be friends there
Also, I’m absolutely obsessed with hoarding lists of recommendations - so please, tell me the book you think everyone absolutely has to read. The one that changed how you see the world, or the one you can’t stop talking about at parties, or just the one that made you remember why you love reading in the first place. Drop it in the comments. Send it to me. Shout it into the void. I want to know. Because here’s the thing - this whole article was about finding YOUR format, the one that gets you reading again. But the best recommendations? Those come from real people, not algorithms. So now it’s your turn. What book are you telling me to read?