Reading opens other worlds,says Jean Lambert, MEP

Reading is addictive and I started at the age of four, deeply frustrated that I could only borrow four library books a day. Reading opens other worlds, gives us glimpses of other lives and helps us understand other cultures as well as our own, says Ms Jean Lambert, Member of the European Parliament.

I find it totally absorbing: A good book makes a journey seem shorter, removes the problems of travel delays and has its own peace. My usual reading is crime fiction and I’m currently working my way through the wave of new English translations of Nordic writers, which are not entirely doom-and-gloom. We read a lot of official documents and reports in our working lives: Reading for sheer pleasure is part of our work-life balance, added Ms Lambert.