These days, fewer people turn to long books. Short videos and quick social posts have taken their place. The experiences are not the same: a book is like a long dinner, while a clip is more like a quick bite. Both can be satisfying in their own way – one offers depth, the other immediacy.
A book asks more of us. It trains the mind to carry complexity, calls on the imagination in full, and demands attention that cannot be faked. In contrast, short videos flow past with little resistance; concentration is optional, sometimes even unwelcome.
Reading also slows the rhythm of life. It asks us to pause and think. By comparison, reels and shorts push us along, one after another, often before we have even finished the last.
Short forms have their charm. But when everything we take in is digested in seconds, our thinking risks becoming just as brief. A book, by contrast, cultivates resistance—to haste, to surface impressions, to easy answers. Without that resistance, thought itself becomes shallow.
Alisher Faizullaev 