Stuck on what to give someone who has everything? Consider this: a University of Sussex study found that just six minutes of reading can reduce stress by up to 68%—more than several other common relaxation activities, including music and walking. This holiday season, when you’re searching for that perfect gift, the answer might be simpler than you think. Give a book. Give an adventure. Give literacy.

The Science of Reading: Your Mind’s Best Friend

The holidays bring joy, but they also bring stress—family gatherings, year-end deadlines, and that endless to-do list. Here’s where books become your secret weapon. Reading doesn’t just distract you from stress; it actually lowers your heart rate, eases muscle tension, and creates a meditative state that measurably reduces stress in both body and mind.

But the benefits go far beyond the moment you close the cover. Research on adults over 55 reveals that regular readers experience a 32% slower rate of mental decline compared to non-readers. Reading keeps your brain sharp, your cognitive abilities intact, and even helps reduce the risk of dementia—maintaining mental fitness even when the brain shows physical signs of aging. Think of it as a gym membership for your mind, except it comes wrapped in adventure, mystery, and limitless imagination.

Adults who read regularly also report 20% higher life satisfaction and improved empathy. Yale researchers discovered that people who read books for more than 3.5 hours per week were 23% less likely to die over a 12-year period—essentially adding about two years to their lives. Books don’t just make life more enjoyable; studies suggest they actually make it longer!

Why the Holidays Are Perfect for the Gift of Reading

Here’s something special about the holiday season: people actually have time to read. Those precious days off during the holidays and New Year’s, the cozy evenings by the fire, the quiet mornings with coffee—these moments are tailor-made for getting lost in a great story. When you give someone a book during the holidays, you’re not just handing them a gift; you’re giving them permission to escape, to dream, and to finally recharge.

In Iceland, they have a beautiful tradition called Jólabókaflóð—the “Yule Book Flood”—where books are exchanged during the holidays and families spend the evening reading together with hot chocolate. There’s even an Icelandic proverb that captures the spirit perfectly: “It’s better to be without shoes than be without a book.”

The Perfect Gift for Science Fiction Enthusiasts

For the adventure-lovers and dreamers on your list, science fiction offers something truly special. It combines escapism with big ideas, transporting readers to distant worlds while exploring what it means to be human. L. Ron Hubbard’s fiction exemplifies this perfectly—stories that entertain while challenging readers to think differently about courage, justice, and hope.

Battlefield Earth delivers an epic tale of human resilience and the triumph of the spirit against impossible odds. It’s pure, adrenaline-fueled adventure wrapped around timeless themes of freedom and determination—exactly the kind of story that reminds us why humanity is worth fighting for.

To the Stars explores sacrifice and service through the haunting story of interstellar travelers who give up everything—including their place in time—to serve humanity’s greater good. These “soldiers of light” become wanderers across centuries, embodying the ultimate gift: selfless devotion to others’ well-being.

Both stories offer the kind of transformative reading experience that stays with you long after the final page—the kind that sparks conversations, inspires imagination, and reminds us that the best gifts aren’t things we consume, but experiences that change how we see the world.

Why We Read

What makes us reach for a book? The reasons are as diverse as readers themselves. Some of us read to relax after a demanding day, letting the outside world fade as we sink into a favorite chair. Others read to voyage beyond the boundaries of their everyday lives—to walk on distant planets, solve impossible mysteries, or live a thousand different adventures. We read to learn, to grow, to challenge our assumptions.

We read to feel less alone, discovering that someone else, somewhere, has felt exactly what we’re feeling. We read to laugh, to cry, to fall in love with characters who become as real as old friends. And sometimes, we read simply for the pure joy of a well-told story. Whatever your reason, reading transforms ordinary moments into something extraordinary.

Making a Difference, One Book at a Time

This holiday season, when you give a book, you’re giving more than entertainment. You’re giving stress relief, cognitive health, extended lifespan, and countless hours of joy. You’re giving someone the gift of—living multiple lives through stories, traveling through time and space without leaving their favorite chair, and experiencing the universe through different eyes.

As L. Ron Hubbard once wrote, adventure stories carry readers to places they may never go in life. He put it this way:

In writing an adventure story a writer has to know that he is adventuring for a lot of people who cannot. The writer has to take them here and there about the globe and show them excitement and love and realism.

The holidays remind us to think about what truly matters—connection, wonder, and the magic of shared stories. So this year, skip the gadget that’ll be forgotten by February. Give a book instead. Give adventure. Give transformation.

Give literacy this holiday season.