Why Books Remain the Best Way to Learn

Greek philosophers dreamed of creating a library that housed all of the world’s books and encompassed all of the world’s knowledge. For hundreds of years, the project never took off until the building of the Library of Alexandria. The Library of Alexandria symbolized what Greek philosophers always dreamt of—a single location that served as the repository of universal knowledge. 

How times have changed. In 2024, that vision feels almost trivial. The Internet and smartphone have turned what once seemed impossible into an everyday reality. 

The Internet has organised and made the entirety of human knowledge searchable; the smartphone brought it to our fingertips. Today we can ask any question on any topic and get the most relevant answer in the most succinct form. Those who built the Library of Alexandria would barely believe what humanity has been able to achieve. 

For anyone curious and interested to learn new things, this is probably the greatest time to be alive. Nearly every piece of information you ever wanted is available for free. We can learn through podcasts, YouTube videos, online courses and audio books—everything accessible instantly on a 6 inch screen.   

But here’s the question: Have we actually become smarter? 

The internet and the smartphone are not designed for knowledge, they are designed for entertainment. I believe that despite the information explosion and availability of information on the internet—reading books is still important. In this world of endless distractions and pointless notifications, I make the case that books are still the best way to learn deeply about a subject. 

1. Books capture the best work of a person. An author spends years, often decades, distilling the best ideas and putting them into the book. On the other hand, a podcast probably takes an hour to record. It is so much more difficult to churn out a shallow book that it is to create a useless podcast. Books offer the best value for your money— 500 rupees for access to an author’s lifetime of insights.
2. In bringing out the best ideas and laying them out in an accessible language, the author does something incredible— to organise the subject sequentially, from the fundamental core to the external details, making it much easier for us to grasp and remember.  I remember when I chose Anthropology for my 5th attempt, I picked up the best text book on the subject, written by Ember and Ember. It was a wonderful book, written in the most organized and accessible manner that made sense to someone like me who had no idea about the subject prior. That’s what books do.
3. Reading a physical book is mental exercise for the brain. It trains your mind to focus, resist distractions and engages your attention. Active reading is work and is often like meditation. And as humans we are wired to work and engage in the analog world.
4. The hallmark of great art—and great books— is how they endure. Great books outlast generations and become more relevant as time passes. The best ideas transcend time. The Selfish Gene by Richard Dawkins will be relevant a hundred years from now, so will Meditations by Aurelius. Their insights continue to shape how we view the world, far outlasting any viral video or trending podcast. Great books change the way we think and see the world. How many Youtube videos or podcasts can you think of that changed the way you look at life?

I am not saying podcasts are pointless or that you shouldn’t use YouTube for learning. They are great at supplementing your understanding, clearing doubts about specific topics. But to build deep expertise on a topic from the ground up, and make sense of the world, books are still your best bet. 

Even in this era of information abundance, books remain the best way to learn.