Derval O'Rourke: Five great tips from our book club to help you read more books

Plus a recipe for crispy peanut butter squares

We recently started an online book club with bestselling authors Michelle McDonagh and Kate Durrant

Reading has been shown to offer a variety of benefits for people. From enhanced cognitive function to improved vocabulary, comprehension, and critical-thinking skills. It has been shown to reduce stress levels by giving us an escape from everyday life.

Some research suggests that reading fiction can increase empathy and understanding of diverse perspectives, helping with social intelligence. There is more than enough research to show that reading is a valuable activity for personal development. Plus let’s be honest, a good book is one of life’s simple pleasures.

I’m the co-founder of the workplace wellbeing platform, Saol. One of the key areas we work on is finding ways to help people feel engaged and connected with their fellow employees and their own wellbeing.

We recently started an online book club with bestselling authors Michelle McDonagh and Kate Durrant. The book club became an immediate hit with people. The five most helpful tips from our book club:

1. Start Small:

Setting yourself a goal of reading one chapter at a time is a great way to get back into reading and make it part of your routine.

2: Be selective:

Choosing books that you are almost certain to feel engaged by means you are almost guaranteed to keep reading. I own a kindle and like to do the ‘sample’ option where I can get the first few chapters for free and judge if they engage me or not. If they don’t, I move on. I never slog it out to the end of a book.

3: Author insights:

Our book club has interviewed authors of books that we have featured and that has really helped people engage with the book. I love hearing the background of the author and what made them want to tell the story.

Listening to authors can be a great way to spike your interest in books.

4: Audio option:

In recent years audio books have become far more popular. An app I love is ‘Borrow Box’ from the library, it is free with your library membership.

Publishers have invested lots of money in having books narrated by celebrities and authors which can really enhance the experience of listening to a book. I loved listening to Spare narrated by Prince Harry.

5: Find hidden minutes:

Most of us are time poor or believe we are time-poor. Yet we often scroll social media mindlessly, think about how much better you would feel if you spent some or all of that time reading. Where are your hidden minutes in the day?

Now that I’ve given you some tips to get reading again, let me share some of my favourite books. The two sports books that had the biggest impact on me were Open by Andre Agassi and Gold in The Water by PH Mullen.

I recently read The Psychology of Money by Morgan Housel and found it really thought-provoking.

A series that made me laugh were The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman.

Wellness Tip: Wherever you have physical books in your house, aim to move these around. Don’t keep the same books for years getting dusty, swap with friends.

Fitness Tip: If you’re stuck in a fitness rut consider investing in a personal trainer for a fixed period of time e.g. 6 weeks. That time will do a massive amount to help you get out of the rut!

Crispy Peanut Butter Squares

recipe by:Derval O'Rourke

Enjoy with tea and a good book.

Servings

10

Preparation Time

 30 mins

Total Time

 30 mins

Course

 Dessert

Ingredients

• For the base:

• 200g crunchy peanut butter

• 100g honey 25g coconut oil

• 50g peanuts, finely chopped

• 100g Rice Krispies

• For the topping:

• 100g dates, soaked in hot water for 2 hours

• 100g peanut butter

• 150g dark chocolate 80%

Method

1. Line an 8in square baking tin with parchment paper. In a pot gently heat the crunchy peanut butter, honey and coconut oil until they form runny syrup.

2. Do not boil or the mixture will burn. In a bowl, mix the Rice Krispies and chopped peanuts. Pour the heated syrup over the mix and stir until all the Rice Krispies are coated. Transfer the mix to the lined baking tin and press down well.

3. To make the topping, strain the dates and transfer to a blender together with the remaining peanut butter and blitz until they form a soft caramel-like texture.

4. To make it easier to blend, add a little water to soften the texture of the dates. With a spatula spread the caramel evenly over the top of the Rice Krispie base and top with a layerof melted dark chocolate. Allow to cool in the fridge for 20 minutes before cutting into squares.