Love of reading is the passion for reading, the enjoyment one derives from reading literary or other books. For adults, the concept of love of reading takes on special significance, as it is related to personal cultivation, self-awareness, critical thinking, entertainment, engagement with culture and history, and the development of empathy. In particular, lifelong learning is a key component of continuous education and self-improvement, especially in a world that is constantly changing.

At the Library of the Orthodox Academy of Crete “The Light,” a Reading Club for adults is operating for the sixth year. The OAC, recognizing the importance of the book, hosts this gathering, which is open to the public. Our reading group meets once a month to discuss “Face to Face” the book that has been jointly selected to read. The Club focuses on specific themes, such as “Greek prose writers with a background in Crete,” “Greek Writers of the Generation of the ’30s,” and next year, with a new theme focusing on “Nobel Literature Laureates of the last decade.” The coordinators of the Club are Ioannis Mountogiannakis, Librarian of the OAC, and Andromachi Chourdaki, Educator–Philologist–Author. Ms. Chourdaki also coordinates, for the tenth year, the Reading Club at the Kissamos Department of the Second Chance School of Chania, and last month she was awarded for her activities promoting love of reading by the Circle of the Greek Children’s Book – the Greek Section of IBBY, with the “Vasilis Anagnostopoulos” Award for 2025, which is addressed to active secondary education teachers.

The Academy has opened up to the local community through yet another important initiative, utilizing the book in the era of the Technological Revolution and Artificial Intelligence, which serves as an intellectual defense in the modern age of New Technologies. The e-book has deprived us of deep thinking, yet the book offers an opportunity to discover our true selves and become active citizens in the Society of Citizens. In a world full of information but poor in knowledge, the need for meaningful reading becomes more urgent than ever. In recent years, the way we communicate, stay informed, and entertain ourselves has radically transformed. Nevertheless, the printed book has not disappeared but now coexists with the electronic one. Many readers report that they find it difficult to feel the same “connection” with an e-book as with a printed book, but Technology can also serve as a bridge to Love of Reading: reading apps, online Reading Clubs, e-book lending platforms, and even social networks promoting book-loving content all contribute to cultivating interest in reading.

The essence is that love of reading in the age of New Technologies is not threatened. What truly matters is the experience of reading and the connection with ourselves and the world. Study transcends every limit of human egoism and builds relationships. A person becomes better with respect for fellow human beings and the world around them

Let us start reading a book—it is never too late, and the results of reading are immediate, beneficial, and meaningful for the future of our society

“Books give soul to the universe, wings to the mind, ‘food’ to the imagination, and life to everything…” — Plato