Have you read Ray Bradbury? Isaac Asimov? Mary Shelley? Tolkien? Gaiman? Sanderson? C.S. Lewis? I can keep going.

There are tons of scifi and fantasy authors who do, in fact, make you think.

Human inspiration, imagination, future visionaries (what to strive for and what not to) all in fictional stories! Imo the past is for non-fiction or fictional escapism.

But truly, beyond that even, fiction can show human, psyche, human nature, and sociology so much better that nonfiction can Imo.

• Teaches you better grammar, expands your vocabulary, gives inspiration;
• helps you learn foreign languages;
• Lots, if not most, fantasy books provide real world commentary through allegories and such;

These things come right off the top of my head. Other than these, I have to agree, sort of. Fantasy books are mainly there for escapism, just like movies, games, etc.

Just as the other user said, it has some basic benefits such as getting more contact with a rich vocabulary and the language in general.

But there's also a subjective benefit imo. For me at least reading is both fun, healthy and an active habit. When I spend some time reading I am able to push away depression and usually get more active overall, more well-disposed. It gives me a feeling that I have done something both enjoyable and productive.

I also, for whatever reason, get more thoughtful and able to articulate better during the periods I read. Even my dreams seem to become much more vivid in that period.

I think that being such an imaginative habit it might be good for the mind.

Also, good fiction tells the truth. As one commenter noted, often through allegory. It's often a way for people who can't talk about their situation to explore and discuss something adjacent in a healthy way. Fiction can teach about people and their motivations, and the things that unite and divide them. It can teach about politics in a non-partisan way. It can bring human rights issues into the forefront of our minds. It can depend on the skill of the writer, but also the engagement of the reader. At the end of the day, if you're happy with a story purely for entertainment, that's enough. But you can always ask yourself, what can I take from this story and apply to my life? How can the lessons the characters learn benefit me? Who can I relate to, why do I relate to them, and how do I feel about that?

Fiction is IMPORTANT. It gives us a chance to really think about what it means to be human.

I could literally write a book about all of the reasons that sci-fi and fantasy are just as important as literary fiction.

But I don't have the time right now.

I am always with my Kindle and almost exclusively read Fantasy and Science Fiction. I feel that reading fiction is a form of entertainment, nothing more, which I feel (strictly in my opinion) is a better form of entertainment than mindless scrolling through social media, YouTube and Tiktok.

>they don't necessarily teach you anything

It may not be immediately apparent but reading fiction helps us understand different characters and their thoughts. It helps build empathy and makes us look and feel through the eyes of people very different to us. It helps develop our imagination and creativity. It improves our emotional intelligence. Ofcourse, all this depends on the fictional books we read, some are masterpiece others utter trash. It boils down to how we choose to use the experience and information.

Reading exercises your mind and your brain.

I’d ask what the alternative is? Only thing to learn from non fiction is that everyone is a liar.

I don't think reading books is inherently "beneficial." You get out of books what you put into them. If you are reading with the purpose of improving your grammar or vocabulary, then any sort of novel can aid with this. If you are looking to expand your stylistic influences for your own writing, any works can help here if you are deliberately paying attention to the style of what is written. If you want to improve your critical and analytical skills, you can do so by evaluating what you have read against whatever critical framework you want to use, others' or your own.

I think there is a commonly held belief that just by reading you will become "smarter." I don't think this is true. I think you really have to work and read with intention to get any such benefits. School often directs this type of work by forcing you to do this to succeed in language and literature classes. E.g. you have to write book reports, take book tests, do vocab tests, take grammar tests. Reading books is part of these classes to help develop your skills and practice what you've learned.

But if you're an adult reader, I don't think you will get these benefits unless you are intentionally seeking them.

Also, I don't really understand why you would call out "web novels and cliche stuff" as being insufficient texts for any of this kind of learning. I think you can do the same sorts of extrapolation, evaluation and analysis with any text, no matter its intentions, format, or origins. Many people think sci-fi, fantasy, and genre fiction generally are not substantial enough to hold up to this type of reading either, and I think that's also misguided.

TLDR: You can "benefit" from reading any books, but I don't think it's something that just happens passively from the simple act of reading.

Other benefits related to reading (including fantasy and sci-fi, for example):

• Exercises the brain since you need to remember characters, settings and other important details.
• Strengthens brain connections due to processing, analysing, etc. what you are reading. Even if you don't do deep-analysis, your brain is still constantly working to make sense of what you read.
• Scientists believe that reading can protect cognitive function as we age and can even lower risk of dementia.
• Improves focus and concentration.
• Improves empathy because you are constantly putting yourself in someone else's shoes.
• It reduces stress which in return affects heart, etc.

Reading comprehension for one. But just because something is fictional doesn’t mean there aren’t lessons to be had. Most books, even bad ones will make you think about. Politics and philosophy are not missing just because the world is fictional, it can even allow you to explore it in ways that you can’t if you are tied to reality. Putting yourself through someone else’s head can have a positive development on empathy. And this is without even mentioning imagination itself and having fun, which would be perfectly valid reasons on its own

Also, a lot of fantasy and sci-fi uses allegory as a way to criticize aspects of society without being obvious.

I don’t think anyone can answer the question of why fantasy matters better than Sir Terry Pratchett.

Reading (primarily fantasy/scifi) improved my vocabulary. It also can teach about other people's experiences and perspectives in an enjoyable way. Therefore can teach empathy and compassion. Yes, even fiction reading is beneficial.

Fantasy and Sci-fi can be very good for teaching critical thinking skills. The set up still exists to say something about our condition but it’s often occluded by the genre tropes forcing the reader to dig for meanings and interpretations.

You’ll see this done with Literary books all the time. People search through descriptions and bits looking for deeper meaning. But the same people often say it doesn’t exist in speculative fiction because they’re so used to looking at the small scale that they don’t know how to look at the large scale as well.

For instance my favorite book is a speculative fiction book about a species with sex differentiated brains and racial memory. Males can remember everything that their male ancestors knew up to the moment of their conception. Females can remember everything their female ancestors knew in the same way. So their culture is ancient and static. There are essentially no crossover skills between the sexes and they treat each other as fundamentally different because they are fundamentally different by accumulation. And then one human child is introduced who has no ancestral memories and doesn’t have a sex limitation on skills. The human child has to adapt to their alien ways in order to survive with them. These are the surface facts of the book.

Scratch under the surface and deny the metaphor that they are a different species from us and suddenly every choice in the story becomes a commentary about our own beliefs about gender, gender differences, and their naturalness. You can interrogate the author’s choices about what it means to a man or a woman and how they should relate to each other. You don’t have to agree. The author leans toward the idea that human nature isn’t confined that way since the identified human child is not confined in the way her people are. But the author still gives the little girl many strong desires that we would consider feminine, suggesting that those ARE natural. As she grows up she has problems adapting to the ways of her people which without the metaphor becomes an argument that most of how we treat gender is unnatural and has to be forced onto people which lets the reader in turn analyze how social forces are used to enforce gender compliance. It ends up getting as deep as dealing with the idea of individual choice itself vs. cultural demands and influences.

Back when I taught that book along with other speculative fiction texts in college, the first tip I gave my students was to “deny the metaphor.” The book will have magic or aliens or whatever but if you treat what does not exist as if it is a metaphor for something that does exist in our own world right now, what would it be a metaphor for? Now think about what the book is saying about that. And the book suddenly lends itself to all the tools of analysis and critical thought that you can use on every other text. Even relatively simple books become deeper narratives.

A well known example (and my last one) is X-Men, who are knowingly used as a metaphor for marginalized groups. It’s just action superhero rock-em-sock-em but deny the metaphor and there are just as deep meanings to be mined. As just one example you have Scott Summers as Cyclops who has magical laser blast eyes which require special equipment to maintain so he never directly looks at something and destroys it. Deny the metaphor and his marginalized gaze is dangerous and destructive, for everyone’s safety he must never directly look at anything without careful controls. The metaphor is easily interpreted as a combination of uncontrollable rage and submission. And Scott is the teacher’s pet, he’s the most rules oriented person, so he must always follow the rules because he can’t contain himself if he looks past them. So the reader can question this in racially charged relations. How does he comment on the disrespectfulness of giving someone the eye? How does he comment on people who are tight laced and supportive of the system when they themselves are oppressed by it? And again, you don’t have to agree. You can assemble an author’s argument and then rebut it, teaching you to interrogate the messages that texts are trying to send you and have a different opinion instead.

In addition to literacy skills practice, I've seen some research suggesting fiction reading might also help with empathy, maybe prevent cognitive decline later in life, and reduce stress. I hedged a lot there because Psychology research can be hit or miss.

I'd also advocate for a slightly shifted perspective: compared to lots of other ways to spend your time for fun, especially tech, smart phone apps, etc, reading longer form content can help to build focus.

If you assume not all of your time is going to be used for bettering yourself, saving the world, exercising, getting a promotion, or solving world hunger, and that some of it might be used for less fruitful endeavors like, say scrolling Reddit...

The comparison starts to look a little better, surely? At least your building the mental skill of focusing on one person/idea/world for a prolonged period and engaging your mental faculties in a creative way.

Yep, every book. Because reading is awesome and doing awesome things makes your life not suck. Pretty self explanatory.

A lot of people I’ve talked to say that the beneficial part of traditional reading over other forms of media specifically is that you use more of your mind in that you have to interpret the symbols on the page, determine their meaning, and then connect them to form a mental image of the scene rather than just looking at the scene on a TV or comic. In this way, reading a books of any kind with complex ideas and scenery is beneficial; no matter it’s context or genre. Basically, the further from solely written words you get, the less your mind has to do to interpret the story, meaning your mind can be less active.

I think even if a story doesn’t teach you anything else, it still teaches you empathy. Even sci fi and fantasy can teach you about the world around you, and the people in it. By far my favorite part of reading is finding out about different ways of life, whether real or imagined, & all they entail.

Obviously there is also the way reading teaches you about storytelling, structure, grammar, vocab etc but I find that depends on how well you retain knowledge. As i get older I find its harder for me retain things lol. But i used to learn so much from books growing up and i think it really taught me some emotional intelligence.

Read Matterhorn by Karl Marlantes. Man lived through every single horror that was depicted in the book, only the names were changed. Took him 30 years to finish this work of "fiction". If this were an autobiography, you'd feel sympathy and move on. Because its fiction, you are right there in Vietnam next to Karl, with jungle rot in your feet and a leech crawling inside your penis.

The more you read things you enjoy, the more you’re engaging with the story and the better you become at understanding and processing what you’re reading. Reading comprehension, critical thinking, and analysis are skills that you can apply in every area of your life. I also think being exposed to different ways of thinking and writing styles helps you develop better communication skills. I find nonfiction books to be more for reference or introduction to an idea because I’m usually not going to remember most of the facts of what I’ve read down the road. However, the ways of thinking and understanding you develop from literature of any kind stays with you throughout your life.

For me, I’ve used those skills to get a full ride to law school, to go far in my career, and of course for greater enjoyment in my leisure reading.

Fantasy and science fiction increase creativity, open-mindedness, and imagination.

Fiction in general improves theory of the mind and empathy.

I do believe reading is beneficial whether or not the plot teaches you something because the simple act of reading gives you new vocabulary and grammar constructions that would help you in our future interactions. Reading also helps with comprehension, understanding and empathy.

Beside vocabulary and communication skills, reading fiction helps develop empathy.

As an aside most fantasy themes have folkloric or mythological roots, if you really feel like you have reached the boundaries of knowledge available in the novels you read you could lookup some of those themes in the world mythologies.

The Martian was originally a web novel.

Reading fiction is not a waste of time. I have a good vocabulary but I run into words I don't know. Can usually figure them out, but I always look them up to be sure.

One of the biggest advantages of reading is that it exercises your mind. Read fantasy or sci-fi and keep characters straight. Have you tried A Clockwork Orange or Lord of The Rings.

It allows your imagination to take you places you've never been. The Pern books are a whole world filled with interesting characters.

Science has shown that reading fiction increases empathy :)

Particularly during developmental stages of life, I hear a lot of argument for reading in general building vocabulary and reading comprehension, which definitely transfers beyond reading fiction.

But more broadly, beyond developmental stages, three things come to mind based on personal experience: critical thinking, imagination/creativity, and empathy.

As some have mentioned, many sci-fi and fantasy authors, despite the setting being in a fictional world, deal with very real issues (social, political, you name it) that can prompt you to think about the real world more deeply.

I know studies exist that communicate the benefit of creative outlets. I would argue that reading and placing yourself in the story of a fictional world is an exercise in creativity and imagination.

I believe in the power of a well-written character to help a reader build empathy. Often we find ways to relate to characters in the stories we love, but those characters are often very different from us in other ways. Connecting to a character who experiences something that we could only imagine might prompt us to think about the people in the world around us that relate to other aspects of that character.

Annnnnd now I really want to go find and read some research about the benefits of reading. 😃 The above is how it’s had a positive effect on me, though!

IMO the absolutely fantastic thing about fantasy and sci fi is that they can illustrate something, usually about human nature, but sometimes abstract concepts like justice, honor, etc - and you don’t have to carry the baggage of real life references: religions, countries, history, etc. Instead the author can craft precisely the components they need to make their point, emphasizing and deemphasizing as needed, without muddying it up with everything else that comes with it. You can also push concepts and situations to extremes without worrying about cross checking against existing social norms.

A sci fi world can put all readers on equal footing to begin with - again readers from different countries and backgrounds will usually have very different starting views, base assumptions, etc. about current and historical events, what was the TRUE cause of xyz, etc. Now, real people of different backgrounds will take it elsewhere, and quickly, but at least they start in a common spot.

I also believe a persons emotional core can be worked like a muscle - I DEFINITELY see the difference between someone who has wandered far afield, lived many lives, experienced many emotional highs and lows and has learned to look through eyes other than their own….. and someone who hasn’t (tends to gravitate towards meritocracy and extreme stoicism and Spartanism, worshipping logic and failing to value emotions properly, cleaving to principles even to the detriment of the well being of people around them). The great paradox to me is why so many young men (I among them, back in the day) can read so much of this, and yet not learn it well and DO act in that rigid way I described.

Reading teaches empathy. You see things from the lens of another person and while you might not always agree with their thoughts and actions, you start learning how people think.

The idea that fiction doesn't have as much value as non-fiction is so stupid and exhausting.

Science fiction, for example, is often invaluable for commentary on present and future issues. Climate change, politics, gender, artificial intelligence, etc. There is no limit to what science fiction can imagine, and that imagination can be used incredibly well for thought-provoking literature that helps people grow. A Clockwork Orange or a Canticle for Leibowitz are excellent examples.

Fantasy is similar in how it can use wildly imaginative situations to expand on interesting ideas. Terry Pratchett's Discworld does this CONSTANTLY. His book Small Gods is a hilarious critique/satire on religion and the various hypocrisies of religion. His work is even profound enough to be referenced as an economic theory of socioeconomic unfairness (Vimes Boot Theory).

That isn't to say that every work of fiction needs to be profound. There is value in a beautiful story. In a creative story. In a funny story. Art done well is worthwhile.

I already wrote a paragraph long explanation of the benefits of reading but decided that it'll just be pearls before swine even if I do explain it.

Almost all science fiction takes something we know about the universe and then expands or extends it down a ‘logical’ path - like nanobots, space travel, robotics and AI. A lot of the time they will start with a general premise, like telekinesis or other psychic abilities and go ‘but what if that were real… or could be developed’.

It’s pretty much all about mankind using our imagination to expand our understanding of the universe, and how that might shape our thinking and behavior.

Fantasy tends to be similar, except the ‘what if’s’ are about how the world might be different if some form of magic was real, whether it be creatures, supernatural forces, or different realities where the laws of physics are more guidelines than laws.

Both types of literature ask us to suspend our disbelief and consider the world from a different perspective. I think both have a lot of value in that they help us to look at things with fresh eyes, and in a lot of cases, realize that we may have more in common with the rest of humanity and nature than there are differences.

As an example, I know for me personally, it’s always helped me to see how ridiculous the idea that people are different ‘races’ and how to isolate and overcome any personal bias or prejudices I might have otherwise had.

yes, every book. It expands your vocabulary, grammar and written/comprehension skills...not to mention works your imagination and creativity! my kids have been reading since they were little and read above their age level. Now in their teens, their essays are top notch and I really do think that it's because of how much they read.

Any form of reading requires you to exercise your imagination and use your brain, which is beneficial.

Reading improves your proficiency at reading, which is a useful skill in and of itself. However, I don’t think you should read books just to “improve yourself”; I think you should do it because it’s fun and it’s something you enjoy doing.

Reading improved my spelling, grammar and my lexicon. So yeah, even if the content isn’t overtly educational you get benefits.

That being said, Sci-Fi and fantasy often deal with social subjects that writers would be criticized for if their book was was set in our world.

On of my favorite books is called Johnathan Seagull, no idea if it’s technically fantasy or philosophy but it blew my tiny mind in high school. Highly recommend.

All fiction, including genre fiction like sci fi/fantasy, can be used to explore themes. That's where the value is, I think - they force you to engage with potentially new ways of thinking and seeing things.

One of the worst things we can do to ourselves is become too serious. There is this Calvinist hangover in Europe and North America that if it is fun it can't be good for you. But all the Science shows that learning through play, through music, through group interaction and through movement is far more effective than miserable rote learning sat at a desk. Which goes quadruple if you are neurodivergent in some way. Reading is a way to learn through play. Not just filling our head with facts (although that can happen too) it is about building a brain architecture, linking neural pathways, and exercising those neurons.

I think reading expands our ability to empathise with people, because we literally step into a characters shoes and see things from their perspective. Which makes it easier to do with real people. It can also show us perspectives of people from different races, physical abilities, gender, cultures.

But I think we need a balance of a lot of different experiences to really build a whole brain. Gaming, art, sports*, music, socialising with friends, all of it builds brains.

*Sports is another area which people get annoyingly serious about. Casual fun games for the non athlete start to disappear as kids get older.

This is not my list but I feel it fits the question well.

1. Reading Exercises the Brain

While reading, we have to remember different characters and settings that belong to a given story. Even if you enjoy reading a book in one sitting, you have to remember the details throughout the time you take to read the book. Therefore, reading is a workout for your brain that improves memory function.

2. Reading is a Form of (free) Entertainment

Did you know that most of the popular TV shows and movies are based on books? So why not indulge in the original form of entertainment by immersing yourself in reading. Most importantly, it’s free with your

Public Library card.

3. Reading Improves Concentration and the Ability to Focus

We can all agree that reading cannot happen without focus and in order to fully understand the story, we have to concentrate on each page that we read. In a world where gadgets are only getting faster and shortening our attention span, we need to constantly practice concentration and focus. Reading is one of the few activities that requires your undivided attention, therefore, improving your ability to concentrate.

4. Reading Improves Literacy

Have you ever read a book where you came across an unfamiliar word? Books have the power to improve your vocabulary by introducing you to new words. The more you read, the more your vocabulary grows, along with your ability to effectively communicate. Additionally, reading improves writing skills by helping the reader understand and learn different writing styles.

5. Reading Improves Sleep

By creating a bedtime routine that includes reading, you can signal to your body that it is time to sleep. Now, more than ever, we rely on increased screen time to get through the day. Therefore, by setting your phone aside and picking up a book, you are telling your brain that it is time to quiet down. Moreover, since reading helps you de-stress, doing so right before bed helps calm your mind and anxiety and improve the quality of sleep.

6. Reading Increases General Knowledge

Books are always filled with fun and interesting facts. Whether you read fiction or non-fictions, books have the ability to provide us with information we would’ve otherwise not known. Reading a variety of topics can make you a more knowledgeable person, in turn improving your conversation skills.

7. Reading is Motivational

By reading books about protagonists who have overcome challenges, we are oftentimes encouraged to do the same. The right book can motivate you to never give up and stay positive, regardless of whether it’s a romance novel or a self-help book.

8. Reading Reduces Stress

Reading has the power to transport you to another world and away from the monotonous daily routine. By doing so, reading can decrease stress, lower heart rate and reduce blood pressure.

9. Reading Sets a Positive Example

Reading is a key component of early literacy development and you can set an example of just how crucial this is by modeling the behaviour yourself. Children are excellent at mimicking the adults around them which means that if you regularly set aside some "me time" for reading, your children will learn to do the same.

10. Reading Teaches Empathy

Books allow us to experience realities outside of our lives. They teach us to relate to others by often putting us in the shoes of the narrator. This simple technique is called empathy. Empathy is defined as the ability to understand and share the feelings of another. Reading builds on empathy by constantly presenting us with thoughts and scenarios outside of our perspective.

Many sci fi books are based on real life political issues and are actually a commentary on our times. It's also ok to just read for fun:)

It still exposes you to new ideas and points of view. Even if the world isn’t real, the problems the characters face can still be applied to real world issues.

You’re still exposed to new ideas. A lot of fantasy and sci fi authors explore concepts such as bigotry or inequality, and having the separation of looking at these ideas through an alien or fantasy race gives people a new lens to examine their own beliefs.

Authors also examine things like: what would an ‘ideal’ society look like and what would the trade offs be? What happens in a post-scarcity world? How would society grapple with over or under population?

Almost every book has something to teach you, even if it’s just how other people think.

Lots of fantasy and scifi have social commentary, 1984 being the one which sticks out the most to me. And by reading about people in similar circumstances to what you might read about in the news, you can learn to emphasize with them.

If you’re just reading essentially the same book(s) with minor variations, you’re being mildly mentally active but if there is no challenge and nothing that makes you reframe experiences or think in general, it might be good to branch out.

It depends on the fantasy or sci fi. Good fiction is good fiction in any setting. And good fiction can provide insights into the hear and now now matter the setting. Sometimes a removed or artificial setting can allow an author more freedom to explore the big questions of this world or to explore what it means to be human.

Read something like The Three Body Problem and it will definitely make you think and ponder some larger questions.

I've always thought that I got through school with fairly okay grades not because I have some innate talent but because I've always love to read, and I've always been partial to fantasy and science fiction as well as horror, even through this day. Reading, in my opinion, is very good for comprehension.

I don't read, fiction anyway, to be taught. I read to be entertained, and that's what matters to me.

It’s better than rotting in front of the television or on social media.

Yes, every book can be beneficial to read. As long as you have the ability to read beyond the words.

For example; I only used to read non-fiction. I thought fiction was just as worthless as prime time sitcoms. A mindless escape from the world. But my wife finally convinced me to read some fiction. After I began reading fiction, it helped me connect lots of the things I’ve been reading about to actual human beings. It definitely helped me become more empathetic to others. It also helped me integrate the information from non-fiction books into my daily life.

Most of the fiction I read is fantasy, sci-fi, and whodunits.