In the generation of 3D gaming consoles, tablets and Wi-Fi, reading books is more like a fading hobby amongst the younger most generation.

Reading: a life skill to master.

As Margaret Fuller, an American Journalist and Critic, said “today a reader, tomorrow a leader”, reading is among the various major core skills we need to survive as a human in this day and age. This is a socio-cultural, cognitive and linguistic process through which readers use their speaking and writing skills simultaneously also taking in the topic and then using their culture to decipher the meaning of the subject. Learning how to read is a process which lasts an entire lifetime, we learn to read different things in different ways and manner. In the early days of a toddler, they learn to speak and read through their interaction with others. As children learn to read flowing texts through these presentations and demonstrations of knowledge and their own intuitive knowledge, they learn to read and interpret meaning from it and start to enjoy the pleasure and build an understanding of the print. Reading skills develop in various ways, through vocabulary skills; fluency in speaking, reading and writing; and Phonemic awareness, that is, the ability to hear, identify and decipher words and sounds

Reading opens up doors to the worlds and beyond, it opens up a gateway to adventure and curiosity, to feed that curiosity we keep on reading more and more. Reading boosts the awareness of our surroundings, our culture and society, ignites our imagination and provides us with an inexhaustible mine of knowledge. Reading to children and reading with them has a lasting effect on them and it also harbors a growing relationship between you both as well as helping in language development. In this age of rat race and IT, the habit of reading is lagging behind PS3s and XBOXs.

Measures that can be taken to rehabilitate the proclivity of reading among the younger generation

1. Limit your family’s screen time
2. Reading with your child
3. Visiting the nearby libraries and book fairs
4. Restricted/scheduled usage of smart gadgets

StarandRead, a solution to your kid’s reading woes

There is a ray of hope in this bleak situation, what we are looking for is something that higher than the already set benchmark for “interesting books”, something that is going to captivate these young minds and keep them coming back for more. A company/publishing house based in Kolkata, StarandRead provides you with customized and personalized story books staring your own children! They makes customized story books online that puts your child in the story and makes them a part of it, your child will be able to read themselves as a character interacting with all the other characters in the story in an immersive and fascinating illustration. Who doesn’t want to star in their own books, write themselves as a hero in their own story, as children we all dreamt of being the Mowgli, Chota Bheem of our own stories, imagine defeating the evil and ugly villain and rising to the top as the ultimate hero. Present your child the opportunity to create their own story book, and them being the ultimate hero, a truly customized and personalized story books with your child’s name or photo to establish the golden habit of reading into their daily lives.