Just one more chapter, then I’ll put it down… the pull of a book can be quicksand on your mind. No, more pleasant than that - warm salt water in which you might float effortlessly for a time, free from distraction, immersed in the moment of another time and place. ‘Nutrimentum spiritus’, meaning ‘food for the soul’, is the inscription above the Berlin Royal Library.

This is an apt position for this Latin phrase, as it has been said that reading is to the mind what exercise is to the body. Sadly, in the busyness of our lives it is often the things that are best for us that we put off for when we ‘have more time’.

While I read something every day, I will admit that reading for pleasure is a holiday treat and I look forward to the escape that it affords me. It is hard to imagine a more powerful antidote to the high-speed, information-rich, technology-infused pressures of daily life than to lose yourself in a great story. And the beauty of reading is that there is something for everyone - classical literature, poetry, biographies, fashion magazines, DIY journals, popular dystopian novels and romance. There is material to capture anyone’s curiosity and imagination and never more so than now with the advent of digital resources. A laptop, tablet or phone is now easily transformed into a newspaper, magazine or novel. As Stephen King said, ‘Books are a uniquely portable magic’.

If you need convincing as to the benefits of regular reading, there is a plethora of research in support of this practice. The mental stimulation has been proven to slow (and possibly prevent) Alzheimer’s and dementia. Reading expands your knowledge and vocabulary and when we gain exposure to words used in context, even though is another language, it will ameliorate our own speaking and writing fluency. Careful attention to character development, sub-plots, or the thread of a written argument improves our memory, and with every new memory created, we forge new synapses in our brains and strengthen existing ones.

Perhaps most importantly, reading improves focus and concentration, forcing us to attend to one thing at a time. This is invaluable for our young people in particular who are constantly juggling the attention-hungry worlds of communication and social media. In our internet-crazed world, attention is drawn in a million different directions at once as we multitask through every day. Even 20 minutes of uninterrupted reading can quiet the mind and encourage greater productivity for hours thereafter.

So, as the summer break rolls on, may you and your girls enjoy plenty of ‘Nutrimentum spiritus’, and time to connect with family and friends.