Never before have we had access to so many texts, images, videos, and sources of information. Yet one essential question remains: are we truly reading more, or merely skimming through an endless sea of stimuli?
Digital culture has placed a library in the
pocket of nearly every person on Earth. At the same time, it has filled every
minute of our day with distractions. The challenge of our era is not choosing
between books and screens, but recovering deep reading, creative imagination,
and the pleasure of thoughtful reflection.
Human beings learned
to read the world long before they learned to read words. They read the stars
to navigate, the winds to travel, animal tracks to survive, and human gestures
to understand love, fear, cooperation, and conflict. Then came symbols, clay
tablets, scrolls, codices, printed books, newspapers, magazines, novels, and
finally the glowing screens that now accompany us everywhere. Reading has never
been merely an academic skill; it has been one of humanity’s greatest
intellectual adventures. To read is to leave oneself without ever leaving one’s
body. It is to converse with the dead, disagree with sages, enter worlds that
do not exist, and return from them wiser than before. Therefore, when we ask
whether we are reading less, we may actually be asking a deeper question: are
we losing our capacity to imagine richly, wait patiently, and think
continuously?
For centuries, books
served as silent homes for the imagination. Readers were required to complete
what was not described, to give faces to characters, to construct landscapes,
to feel the rhythm of sentences, and to accompany ideas across long journeys.
Digital culture has altered this relationship. Today, a student can watch a
book summary in minutes, consume explanations instantly, and access information
with extraordinary speed. This is remarkable and should not be dismissed. The
internet has democratized knowledge in ways previous generations could scarcely
imagine. Yet convenience often comes with a price. When everything arrives
pre-packaged, accelerated, and visually ready-made, imagination may receive
less exercise. Like a muscle left unused, it can weaken. Screens provide
finished images; books invite us to create our own. Screens push stimuli toward
us; books invite us to linger. Screens ask, “What comes next?” Books whisper,
“Stay a little longer.”
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PRACTICAL TIP
Create a “sacred reading time” of twenty minutes each day without a phone
nearby. You do not need to begin with difficult books. Start with short
stories, essays, biographies, poetry, or brief chapters. Consistency matters
more than ambition.
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Of course, we should
not romanticize the past. Not everyone read more in earlier generations, and
not everyone had access to books. The crucial difference today is that the
competition for attention has become relentless. Books now compete with social
media, games, instant messaging, streaming platforms, online shopping,
notifications, and an endless flow of digital stimulation. The modern mind
lives under constant invitation to abandon concentration. We begin reading a
page and immediately feel compelled to check a message. We open a novel and
soon reach for a screen. We attempt to study and find ourselves pulled toward
countless distractions. This is not merely an issue of personal discipline.
Many digital platforms are intentionally designed to capture attention,
maximize engagement, and transform curiosity into consumption. As a result,
educating readers today requires more than recommending good books—it requires
teaching people how to protect their attention.
Neuroscience provides
valuable insight into this challenge. Deep reading requires concentration,
working memory, vocabulary, inference, emotional engagement, silence, and the
ability to build meaning progressively. When we read a novel, we do much more than
decode words. We follow intentions, detect irony, anticipate conflicts,
remember details, and interpret what remains unsaid. These processes strengthen
neural networks associated with language, empathy, abstract reasoning, and
imagination. Fragmented digital consumption, by contrast, often rewards speed,
novelty, and constant switching. This does not mean that digital reading is
inherently harmful. Excellent readers use screens, digital libraries provide
extraordinary opportunities, and accessibility tools have transformed education
for millions. The issue is not the medium itself but the habit it encourages. A
screen used for focused reading can be an ally; a screen used for endless
distraction can become an obstacle to concentration.
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FUN FACT
Recent studies suggest that the difference between reading on paper and reading
on screens depends on the type of text, the reader’s age, the purpose of
reading, and the level of distraction involved. Paper often favors long-form
concentration, while digital platforms excel in accessibility and information
retrieval.
╚════════════════════════════════════╝
The story of Abraham
Lincoln offers a powerful reminder of the transformative power of reading. Born
into humble circumstances and with limited formal education, Lincoln turned
books into lifelong mentors. He read by firelight, traveled long distances to
borrow books, and treated written language as a tool of personal and political
development. His eloquence did not emerge from shortcuts but from sustained
engagement with ideas. The same could be said of Machado de Assis, who overcame
significant social and personal obstacles to become one of the greatest writers
in the Portuguese language. These stories do not exist to criticize modern
young people. Instead, they remind us that reading remains one of the most
powerful instruments of intellectual emancipation. Those who read well
understand the world more clearly, and those who understand the world more
clearly are less easily manipulated by it.
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INSPIRING STORY
Machado de Assis did not require wealth to achieve intellectual greatness. He
needed language, observation, discipline, and imagination. In an age of endless
stimulation, his life reminds us that depth matters more than noise.
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Digital culture has
also transformed our relationship with time. Many young people do not reject
books out of hostility; they reject them because sustained attention feels
increasingly unfamiliar. Accustomed to short videos and instant rewards, they
may perceive novels as slow, essays as demanding, and poetry as obscure. Yet
the very slowness of books is one of their greatest strengths. In a society
that moves at relentless speed, reading becomes an act of resistance. Books
teach patience, encourage reflection, and reward persistence. A student who
reads The Little Prince learns symbolic sensitivity; one who reads Child
of the Dark encounters dignity amid poverty; one who reads Dom Casmurro
discovers the complexities of memory; one who reads Shakespeare realizes that
ambition, jealousy, love, power, and guilt remain timeless aspects of the human
condition. Literature trains us to navigate complexity.
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MOTIVATIONAL QUOTATION
“Education is not preparation for life; education is life itself.”
— John Dewey
╚════════════════════════════════════╝
Within schools, the
question “Are we reading less?” should be accompanied by another: “Are we
creating conditions that allow reading to flourish?” Too often, reading is
treated as an obligation rather than an experience. Students receive
assignments, deadlines, and examinations, yet rarely participate in vibrant
discussions, dramatic interpretations, reading circles, creative projects, or
meaningful conversations about literature. Reading should not be a punishment;
it should be an encounter. A teacher who reads aloud with enthusiasm can open
doors that no assessment ever could. A parent who tells stories before bedtime
can plant memories that screens will never replace. A welcoming library can
become a refuge, a laboratory, and a stage. Readers are born when books cease
to be objects and become companions.
At this point, the
extensive literary work of Antônio Carlos dos Santos and his educational
methodologies offer particularly valuable insights. In an era marked by
distraction, his literary production reaffirms the importance of language,
memory, culture, ethics, and imagination. The MAT methodology (Mindset, Action,
and Theater) encourages readers to approach difficult texts with a growth
mindset, disciplined action, and creative engagement. The ThM methodology
(Theater Movement) reminds us that literature is not merely words on a page but
also voice, presence, interaction, and performance. TBMB (Mané Beiçudo Puppet
Theater) connects reading with playfulness, storytelling, and popular culture,
demonstrating how imagination thrives through movement and narrative.
Meanwhile, Quasar K+ Strategic Planning provides a framework for organizing
reading initiatives in schools, families, and communities, transforming reading
from an isolated activity into a collective cultural practice.
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PRACTICAL TIP — READING THROUGH THE MAT METHOD
Mindset: Choose a book that challenges you without overwhelming you.
Action: Read every day, even if only a few pages.
Theater: Share the most memorable scene with someone else as though you were
performing it on stage.
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Imagination is not an
escape from reality—it is preparation to transform reality. Before a bridge
exists, someone imagines it. Before a law changes, someone imagines justice.
Before a school is built, someone imagines children learning within it. Literature
strengthens this capacity because it allows us to rehearse lives other than our
own. Through reading, we become kings and beggars, children and elders,
travelers and prisoners, heroes and villains. Such experiences expand empathy
and deepen understanding. Digital culture, when used wisely, can also broaden
horizons through virtual libraries, audiobooks, interviews, literary
communities, and educational platforms. Yet when dominated by superficiality,
it may narrow imagination by trapping us in cycles of repetition and
distraction. The true conflict is not between books and screens but between
depth and fragmentation.
╔════════════════════════════════════╗
FUN FACT
Audiobooks can also cultivate readers. For children, older adults, visually
impaired individuals, and busy professionals, listening to literature can serve
as a meaningful gateway into the world of books.
╚════════════════════════════════════╝
Nelson Mandela
understood the power of words perhaps better than most. During his years of
imprisonment, reading, studying, and intellectual discussion became means of
preserving dignity and hope. The prison cell could not completely confine a
mind nourished by ideas. This image remains profoundly relevant today. In an
age of digital excess, many people may enjoy physical freedom while remaining
imprisoned by distraction. Reading restores inner freedom. To read is to choose
where the mind will dwell. It is to refuse to let algorithms alone determine
our desires. Every page read attentively is a small victory against
fragmentation.
╔════════════════════════════════════╗
MOTIVATIONAL QUOTATION
“Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.”
— Nelson Mandela
╚════════════════════════════════════╝
For families, the
formation of readers begins long before formal literacy. Children who see
adults reading are more likely to perceive books as natural companions. It is
not enough to instruct children to read; adults must model the behavior. Books
within reach, storytelling traditions, visits to libraries, literary
conversations, and shared reading experiences create an environment in which
reading can thrive. Example often teaches more effectively than instruction.
The future of reading
will depend on collective choices. We need vibrant libraries, passionate
teachers, engaged families, public policies that support access to books,
valued authors, reading clubs, literary festivals, theaters, storytellers, and
welcoming cultural spaces. We also need digital literacy capable of teaching
children and adults how to manage notifications, resist manipulation, alternate
between media, protect sleep, and preserve time for focused thought. Reading
less is not an inevitable destiny. Humanity has survived many technological
revolutions, and each time it has learned how to think anew. We now face that
challenge once again.
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INSPIRING STORY
Malala Yousafzai became a global symbol of educational freedom because she
understood that access to knowledge changes destinies. In the digital era, her
message remains as relevant as ever: learning is both a right and a
responsibility.
╚════════════════════════════════════╝
Are we reading less?
Perhaps we are reading more fragments and fewer complete works; more messages
and fewer chapters; more headlines and fewer arguments; more comments and less
literature. Yet this need not be our final conclusion. Books are not dead. Imagination
has not disappeared. Deep reading simply needs to be defended, taught,
celebrated, and reinvented. Every student who discovers a novel, every teacher
who reads aloud, every family that reserves time for stories, every school that
transforms its library into a cultural center, every community that values its
writers, and every methodology that unites language, theater, action, and
imagination helps rebuild the path. Digital culture can scatter our attention,
but it can also reconnect us with books. Everything depends on how we choose to
use it.
╔════════════════════════════════════╗
MOTIVATIONAL QUOTATION
“The child is not a vessel to be filled but a source to be allowed to flow.”
— Maria Montessori
╚════════════════════════════════════╝
In conclusion
The great challenge
of the twenty-first century is not abandoning screens, but ensuring that they
do not impoverish our inner lives. Reading remains one of humanity’s most
beautiful forms of freedom: the freedom to imagine, understand, question,
dream, and help rebuild the world through words.
In the age of digital
acceleration, deep reading has become an act of resistance, cultural
preservation, and hope.
Access the books by Antônio Carlos dos Santos on amazon.com or amazon.com.br
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The author's other titles
The author's works can be found in bookstores such as amazon.com:
A – CHILDREN'S AND YOUNG PEOPLE'S BOOKS:
Book 1. The day children decided to fight breast câncer
Book 2. Grandpa goes to the doctor
Book 3. The bunny who learned to say things
Book 4. Ui Ghur: the teddy bear that released books
Book 5. Happy Pets: climate changes
Book 6. Screens only with health : Computers: between freedom and slavery
Book 7. The little dinosaur on a quest for joy
I – The Thousand Faces Little Witch collection teaches you to live better
Book 1. Plan
Book 2. Organize
Book 3. Study
Book 4. Exercise
Book 5. Reading
Book 6. Culture
Book 7. Meditate
Book 8. Interact
Book 9. Make friends
Book 10. Respect and motivation.
II – Citizenship Collection for Children
Children's Rights
Book 1: Gratitude, the law of the universe
Book 2: Honesty is worth it
Book 3: The litte angel who sowed tolerance
Book 4: The boy who said no to bullying
Book 5: Every child has rights
Book 6: Against racism: we want to breathe
Book 7: Lélis, the cheese-tuning mouse
Book 8: Quality education is the right of children
Book 9: Respecting traffic laws the city is cool
Book 10:Unity is strenght
Environmental Sustainability
Book 11: Garbage, selective collection and recycling
Book 12: Preserving the environment
Book 13: The 5R, the right way to say 'good morning' to the environment
Book 14: The difficult quarentine times
Book 15: One of the greaters treasures on earth
Book 16:The day the white-spotted owl and boiled potatoes defeated pollution
Book 17: With basic sanitation the environment is happy
Book 18: The tree makes the environment smille
Book 19: Garbage, The supervillain of the environment
Book 20: Ten ways to help preserve the environment
Democracy, freedoms and constitution
The little mouse Lélis explains:
Book 21: Censorship X Freedom of expression
Book 22: Dictorship X Individual freedoms
Book 23: What is politics?
Book 24: Social networks and democracy?
Book 25: Minorities and Democracy?
Book 26: What is abuse of economic power
Book 27: What is demagogy?
Book 28: What are elections?
Book 29: What is ethics?
Book 30: What is democracy?
Book 31: What are Political Parties
III – Contemporary World Collection
Book 1: The Krock frog in the fight against the pandemic
Book 2: The jaguar faces burning in the Amazon and the Pantanal
Book 3: The otter fights poverty and inequality
Book 4: Harpy confronts racism
Book 5: The dolphin demands democracy and citizenship
Book 6: The alligator debates education and opportunities
Book 7: The cougar explains work and income
Book 8: The tapir fights global warming
Book 9: The toucan denounces corruption and narcoterrorists
Book 10: The sloth and migration
IV –Collection The most beautiful legends of the Amazon Indians
Book 1. Boitatá
Book 2. The Boto
Book 3. The Caipora
Book 4. Cairara
Book 5. The enchanted city
Book 6. Curupira
Book 7. The Big Chicken
Book 8. Guarana
Book 9. Iara, the mother of water
Book 10. The Werewolf
Book 11. The legends of cassava and anaconda
Book 12. The Princess of the Lake
Book 13. Saci Pererê
Book 14. The Uirapuru
Book 15. The old man from the beach
Book 16. The Old Man and the bacurau
Book 17. The Victoria Regia
Book 18. The Açaí
Book 19. The Amazons
Book 20. Mapinguari
Book 21. Matinta Perera
Book 22. Muiraquitã
Book 23. The Amazon River
Book 24. Anhangá
V – Philosophy collection for children
Book 1: What is philosophy
Book 2: The encounter with Pythagoras
Book 3: The philosophy of love
Book 4: The happy lttle train
Book 5: The little caterpillar happy
Book 6: The happy little plane
Book 7: The happy little butterfly
Book 8: Kindness the honey of life
Book 9: The little blue dot
Book 10: Life in one water penguin
VI – Science and spirituality collection for children
Book 1: Zen Panda and the Sour Girl
Book 2: Zen Panda and True Value
Book 3: Zen Panda and Changes
Book 4: Zen Panda and Maria Goes with the Others
Book 5: Zen Panda and the Twinkling Star
Book 6: Zen Panda and Absolute Truth
Book 7: Zen Panda and the Three Sieves Test
Book 8: Zen Panda and Grandma's Teachings
Book 9: Zen Panda and Combed Hair
Book 10: Zen Panda and the Magic of Happy Life
Book 11: Zen Panda and Deceptive Passions
Book 12: Zen Panda Between Reflection and Action
Book 13: Zen Panda and the Most Important Thing
Book 14: Zen Panda, the Drop and the Ocean
Book 15: Zen Panda and Indecision
Book 16: Zen Panda and the Firefly
Book 17: Panda Zen and the Search for Identity
Book 18: Panda Zen Between Free Will and Omission
Book 19: Panda Zen and Work
Book 20: Panda Zen and False Reality
VII – Collection Teaching Children and Their Parents to Think
Book 1: The Secret of Happiness
Book 2: Kindness Can Do Anything
Book 3: The Beautiful Rich Woman and Her Poor Ugly Sister
Book 4: The Little Zen Dog
Book 5: The Little Zen Cat
Book 6: The Little Zen Panda
Book 7: The Little Zen Frog
Book 8: It's Better to Think Before You Speak
Book 9: Challenges Are Necessary
Book 10: Peace Is the Foundation of Everything
VIII – Amazon collection: the green paradise
Book 1 - The amazon rainforest
Book 2 - The jaguar (A onça pintada)
Book 3 - Macaw (Arara-canindé)
Book 4 - Golden Lion Tamarin
Book 5 - The button (O boto)
Book 6 - Frogs
Book 7 - Heron (Garça-real)
Book 8 - Swallowtail (Saí-andorinha)
Book 9 - Jacaretinga
Book 10 - Harpy
Book 11 - Tapir (Anta)
Book 12 - Snakes
Book 13 - Puma
Book 14 - Sloth (Bicho Preguiça)
Book 15 - Toucan (Tucano-toco)
Book 16 - Amazonian Caburé
Book 17 - Pisces
Book 18 - White-faced spider monkey
Book 19 - Irara
Book 20 - Red macaw
Book 21 - Otter (Ariranha)
IX – The cutest pets on the planet collection
Book 1 - Black Eyes, the panda bear
Book 2 - The happy kitten
Book 3 - The aquarium fish
Book 4 - Doggy, man's best friend
Book 5 - The feneco
Book 6 - The rabbit
Book 7 - The chinchilla
Book 8 - The Greenland Seal
Book 9 - The dolphin
Book 10 - The owl
X – Collection “Folk legends play with numbers”
Book 1: Saci plays with numbers
Book 2: The Werewolf plays with decimal numbers
Book 3: The Headless Mule plays with addition Book 4: Yara plays with subtraction
Book 5: Cobra Honorato plays with additions of tens
Book 6 : Cuca plays with subtractions from tens
Book 7: O Negrinho shepherd plays with multiplication
Book 8: Romãozinho plays with division
Book 9: Caipora plays with geometry
Book 10: Cairara plays with measurements
XI – Planet Child Collection
Book 1 – My Planet
Book 2 – My Oceans
Book 3 – My Forest
B - THEATRE THEORY, DRAMATURGY AND OTHERS
XVII – ThM-Theater Movement:
Book 1. The ThM popular puppet theater: 1,385 theater exercises and workshops
Book 2. 555 exercises, games and laboratories to improve the writing of the theater play: the art of dramaturgy.
Book 3: Love and hate: let's not forget Aylan Kurdi
Book 4: Mindset, Action and Theater - MAT: the new strategy for professional success: theory and 370 exercises, games and theater laboratories.
Book 5: The crown of a thousand thorns - the migration
About the author
Antônio Carlos dos Santos is a writer and creator of the following methodologies:
©Planejamento Estratégico Quasar K+;
©ThM – Theater Movement;
©Teatro popular de bonecos Mané Beiçudo;
©MAT - Mindset, Action and Theater
©Moving letters
Follow the author on Facebook and blogs:
1. Culture and education (Portuguese): https://www.culturaeducacao.blogspot.com/
2. Popular theater (Portuguese): https://www.teatromanebeicudo.blogspot.com/
3. Planning (Portuguese): https://planejamentoestrategicoquasark.blogspot.com/
4. Early childhood education (Portuguese):
https://letrinhasgigantes.blogspot.com/
5. Cultural magazine (english): https://thenewyorkculture.blogspot.com/
Loja na Amazon (english):
https://www.amazon.com/author/antoniosantos
Loja na Amazon (portuguese):
https://www.amazon.com.br/stores/author/B0165VO6JS
E-mail:
antoniocarlosescritor1@gmail.com
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