ON READING WELL: finding the great life through great books

December 1, 2021

Have you ever struggled with how to communicate your conservative values? One of the big issues young women deal with today is the inability to lay out the very solid reasons to stay or become conservative. To help students understand how to do this, we have chosen a rather unique, but we believe, essential book for December book club. Our selection is On Reading Well: Finding the Great Life Through Great Books by Dr. Karen Swallow Prior. She is Research Professor of English and Christianity and Culture at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. Dr. Prior is the author of Booked: Literature in the Soul of Me, Fierce Convictions: The Extraordinary Life of Hannah More—Poet, Reformer, Abolitionist, and On Reading Well: Finding the Good Life through Great Books. She is also co-editor and contributor to multiple other books. Her writing has appeared in Christianity Today, The Atlantic, The Washington Post, First Things, Vox, among many other publications. She is a founding member of The Pelican Project, a Senior Fellow at the Trinity Forum, a Senior Fellow at the International Alliance for Christian Education, and a Senior Fellow at the L. Russ Bush Center for Faith and Culture. She and her husband live on a 100-year old homestead in central Virginia with sundry horses, dogs, and chickens. And lots of books.

About the book…

As a research professor, Dr. Prior advocates for reading a variety of books and texts. However, she wanted to focus this book on not just the importance of reading, but of reading wisely. She says: “Reading well adds to our life – not in the way a tool from the hardware store adds to our life, for a tool does us no good once lost or broken, but in the way a friendship adds to our life, altering us forever.” She focuses on the way that literature educates us on how to live virtuous lives. She highlights stories that impart the traditional virtues that have been discussed and debated since the days of ancient Greek philosophers. This book will convey big ideas on how to live, but also on how to take responsibility for your personal development. Books are a crucial part of how we learn and how we understand ideas. Dr. Prior argues for reading well, so that we can grow and improve our lives and therefore our nation. When we know more, we serve others and our communities better.

In this book, you will find:

  1. How to read and understand literature
  2. The importance of reading in your everyday life
  3. The 12 virtues – prudence, temperance, justice, courage, faith, hope, love, chastity, diligence, patience, kindness, and humility
  4. How to overcome the obstacles to reading well

The knowledge to learn and grow as a young woman is out there. You must find the inspiration to invest yourself in learning and growing. We cannot work for a better future for America if we do not understand the ideas that we are The knowledge to learn and grow as a young woman is out there. You must find the inspiration to invest yourself in learning and growing. We cannot work for a better future for America if we do not understand the ideas that we are pursuing. The Left is able to get away with trite talking points, because they control social media, Hollywood, and mainstream news platforms. As a young woman, you must be educated so that you can break through these barriers and connect our conservative ideas to people in ways they can receive them. Conservatives hold our views, because we know – and history proves to us – that they are the best policies for all Americans. But, we must be able to communicate this message. I encourage you to read Dr. Prior’s book with us, because we believe you will find the inspiration to live a conservative life. If you’d like to hear more from Dr. Prior herself, you can watch our recent webinar with her by clicking here.

Discussion Questions:

  1. In what ways is reading an activity that in itself cultivates virtue?
  2. What classic piece of literature are you most inspired to read?
  3. How can you use what you have learned to overcome your personal obstacles to reading well?
  4. How did the stories covered challenge you to live differently?