A Little Less Scrolling, A Little More Reading

On putting down our phones, picking up a book and finding a little more pleasure in the everyday.

There's a particular kind of evening we're probably all familiar with.

You've finally sat down after a busy day. The house is reasonably quiet, the kettle's been on and you've got a whole evening ahead of you. You pick up your phone, just to have a quick look at something. And before you know it, forty-five minutes have disappeared.

You've watched someone renovate a house in France, discovered a restaurant you'll probably never visit, looked at a pair of shoes you don't need and somehow ended up watching a woman organise her fridge.

Sound familiar?

The funny thing is, we often put our phones down feeling as though we haven't really done anything. Because, well, we haven't. And yet, sitting down with a book for half an hour can feel like an indulgence. Something we should save for when everything else is finished.

Which, of course, it never is.

When did reading become something we have to make time for?

There was a time when reading was simply something we did.

On the bus, in bed, while waiting for an appointment. We'd carry a paperback around in our bags, occasionally losing our place because the bookmark had fallen out. Now, those little gaps in the day tend to belong to our phones. It's understandable. They're convenient, entertaining and always within reach. And there's nothing particularly wrong with enjoying a bit of social media. We certainly do.

But somewhere along the way, we've become accustomed to filling almost every spare moment with something on a screen. Waiting for the kettle to boil? Check Instagram.

Five minutes before leaving the house? A quick scroll.

Sitting in a café alone? Out comes the phone.

We've become so used to being entertained that doing nothing, even for a few minutes, can feel strangely uncomfortable. And perhaps that's something worth reconsidering.

The pleasure of getting lost in a good book

There's something wonderfully different about reading. You can't really rush it. Well, you can, but you'll probably miss half the story. A book asks you to settle in for a while. To follow someone else's thoughts, imagine a different place or consider an idea you might never have come across otherwise.

And unlike scrolling, where one thing leads immediately to another, reading gives you the chance to stay with something. We love that.

We love the feeling of finding a book so good that you start looking forward to getting back to it. The kind you take to bed with every intention of reading one chapter, only to look at the clock and realise it's much later than you thought. Or the books that make you stop halfway through a page because something you've read has really made you think.

Then there are the beautiful coffee-table books. The ones you leave out because you genuinely enjoy picking them up, flicking through the photographs and discovering something new. Travel, interiors, photography, food. Sometimes you don't even need to read very much to feel inspired.

Not every book has to change your life. Some are simply lovely to spend time with.

Making reading part of everyday life again

We don't think reading needs to become another self-improvement project. There's enough pressure to be productive without turning something enjoyable into another target. You don't need to read fifty books a year, finish a chapter every morning or keep a detailed record of everything you've read.

Unless you enjoy doing those things, of course.

Perhaps it's simply about making a book a little easier to reach than your phone. Leaving one on your bedside table instead of your charger. Taking a paperback when you go out for coffee. Reading a few pages while dinner is in the oven. Or making a small ritual of it.

A quiet Sunday morning, a proper coffee and a book you've been meaning to start for ages.

A warm evening outside when the weather allows. Twenty minutes before bed, with your phone somewhere you can't absent-mindedly pick it up. Nothing complicated.

And if you only manage a few pages? That's perfectly fine too.

A bookshelf full of possibilities

One of the things we enjoy most about books is how easily they can take us somewhere else.

You can spend an afternoon wandering through the streets of a city you've never visited, learn about a completely different way of living or discover the story behind a beautiful home. Lately, we've found ourselves particularly drawn to books that encourage a more considered approach to everyday life.

Books like Four Thousand Weeks by Oliver Burkeman, which challenges our obsession with productivity and reminds us that time is something to be experienced rather than constantly managed.

Or Kinfolk Travel, with its beautiful photography and appreciation for discovering places at a slower pace.

There's also Minimalista by Shira Gill, which makes you want to finally sort out that cupboard you've been avoiding, and Zen: The Art of Simple Living, a gentle reminder to appreciate the smaller moments that make up our days.

They're all quite different, but there's a common thread running through them.

The idea that perhaps we don't always need more. More plans, more possessions, more things competing for our attention.

Sometimes, what we already have is enough to be getting on with.

The little things we're missing while we scroll

Of course, there's a certain irony in writing an article about spending less time online when you're probably reading it on your phone. We're not suggesting everyone should abandon social media, delete their apps and disappear into a world of paperback novels.

We love the internet. It's introduced us to wonderful independent brands, interesting people, beautiful places and ideas we might never have discovered otherwise.

It's also a big part of what we do here at Maison Kasbah. But we do think there's something to be said for being a little more intentional about how we spend our time. Because it's easy to spend an evening looking at photographs of beautiful places when we could be out enjoying our own surroundings.

To save endless recipes without ever making one. To watch other people enjoy their hobbies while the things we'd quite like to do ourselves keep getting pushed to another day.

And sometimes, we don't even realise we're doing it. Perhaps that's the real appeal of picking up a book again. It gives us a reason to put everything else down for a while.

A little more of what we enjoy

As much as we love the idea of slowing down, real life doesn't always make it easy.

There are busy weeks, tired evenings and days when all you want to do is sit on the sofa and watch something completely ridiculous. And that's fine.

We don't believe every spare moment needs to be meaningful or carefully planned. But we do like the idea of making a little more room for the things we genuinely enjoy.

A good conversation that lasts longer than expected. An afternoon spent wandering around a bookshop. A coffee that doesn't come with a side of emails. And, of course, a really good book.

So perhaps the next time you find yourself reaching for your phone without quite knowing why, you might pick up something to read instead. Just for ten minutes.

You might find yourself still there an hour later.

And wouldn't that be a rather lovely way to lose track of time?

Explore more in The Book Edit our curated selection of books, home finds and little things we love.