If you’ve spent any time in the world of self-improvement or wealth-building pages (I do, they motivate me to do better in business), you’ve probably seen posts like this one:
“Successful people read biographies. Unsuccessful people read fiction. Learn from those who’ve done what you want to do.”
On the surface, it sounds practical—even motivational. But dig a little deeper, and it reeks of a kind of narrow snobbery.
Because if you’ve ever lost yourself in a novel, traveled through a saga, or been changed by a work of fiction, you know how shallow this view is.
Tolkien Already Saw Through This
J.R.R. Tolkien, who gave us The Lord of the Rings, confronted this idea long ago. In his essay On Fairy-Stories, he pointed out that critics dismissed fantasy as childish or escapist because they “mistook the prison for the world.” He asked:
“Why should a man be scorned if, finding himself in prison, he tries to get out and go home?”
Fiction—whether myth, fantasy, or even light-hearted romance—doesn’t drag us away from reality. At its best, it restores our vision, reconnects us with truth, and reminds us of the transcendent.
Fiction vs. Biography: What We Learn
Biographies are valuable. They give us models, mistakes, timelines, and achievements to learn from. But they record what happened.
Fiction, on the other hand, reveals what it means. The Icelandic sagas, the Kalevala, the Poetic and Prose Eddas—these aren’t the works of “unsuccessful people.” They’re timeless repositories of wisdom, symbols, and meaning that reach deeper than any ledger of worldly success.
When we read Tolkien, Lewis, Morrison, Rushdie, Austen, or Márquez, we aren’t wasting time. We’re exercising empathy, exploring worlds, and deepening our humanity.
Reading Doesn’t Need a Purpose
Here’s where I differ even further from the “biographies-only” mindset: I don’t think reading always needs a purpose.
Why must everything in life be about productivity, strategy, and personal gain? Why do we treat every hour as if it has to give us a measurable ROI?
Sometimes, you just read because it feels good. Because you want to slow down. Because the world is heavy, and words are light.
When I curl up with a novel, I’m not chasing success. I’m reclaiming joy.
The Race to Nowhere
This idea that “everything must be useful” is exhausting. Not every walk has to be about hitting 10,000 steps. Not every painting has to be about improving creativity. Not every conversation has to be networking.
And not every book has to be a strategy for success.
The truth is, both biographies and fiction are valuable—but only if you love them. If you read biographies only because someone told you “that’s what successful people do,” then you’ve missed the point.
Reading is not a race. It’s a gift.
My Final Word
Read what you love. Read slowly. Read for escape, for growth, for empathy, for fun. Read because you can.
If a book changes you, wonderful. If it just makes you smile, that’s enough.
The idea that only “useful” books are worth reading is not wisdom. It’s short-sighted dullness.