READING books is a waste of time, especially fiction. If you want to find information it’s all online. So why bother with books? As for short stories and novels, they’re just stories and how could they even begin to help us? Such disingenuous thoughts, unfortunately, are to ours and our children’s detriment. There is, of course, unlimited information online. Studies, however, show that we only absorb a small percentage of what’s on screen. We don’t properly read the article but rather our eyes scan through the page, only seeking out the relevant information. That’s because when we’re online, we cannot fully concentrate. Our minds are too ready to be distracted by the next thing, whether it’s a message, a notification, social media or the latest news.