A.When it comes to reading books, I could think of various benefits. One of the direct benefits of reading books is that people develop their literacy skills. Children and second-language learners often use books suitable for their levels to acquire a new language, because through reading books their lexical knowledge as well as grammatical knowledge develops. Some scholars argue that reading enhances children’s relational skills because they reflect themselves to the protagonists and re-experience what the character undergoes in the story.

A. Children and adults alike read comic books in Japan. The genre of those comic books could be adventures, mysteries, love stories, and friendships. Foreign visitors are quite surprised to see adults, even ones in their 50s, read comic books on the train. These comic books are even translated and exported to many Asian countries.

A.I cannot quite express it well, but generally speaking, I believe men tend to choose “manly books”, such as adventures, biographies, mysteries, and science fictions. On the other hand, women prefer to read romance, fantasies, and human dramas, something considered feminine. I think the covers of book play a crucial role in this, and not necessarily the content of the book.

A. Children like simple stories; there is a protagonist, either a hero, a heroine, or perhaps both, and there is an evil entity, and the protagonists fight against the evil and win in the end. My theory is that children like to read those simple books because they are utterly powerless in their own lives. There are always parents, teachers, or some other adults who have authority over them. In those simple stories, children reflect themselves on the powerful and free protagonists.

A. One benefit that came into my mind is that musicians learn how to coordinate and collaborate with one another by playing music with others. When playing a musical instrument, often times musicians play with other people, whether it be in orchestras, bands, quartets, or duets. When playing each note, they create harmonies with other instruments. In such circumstances, many people learn how to coordinate and harmonize with other people, which is applicable in non-musical contexts of their lives.

A.I think a lot of benefits exist when it comes to listening to music, but one in particular sticks out to me. I don’t really know the science behind it, but from what I’ve experienced, I know music can help me “de-stress”. Before taking an exam, I listen to my favourite song. I can feel my heart rate slow down, and I find myself breathing deeply, which help me do well on the exam. This must not just happen to me, because when I watch athletes on TV, I sometimes see them listening to music before their competition or race begins. These athletes include swimmers, skaters, boxers and any type of athlete, really. When listening to music, they seem to be in a trance, concentrating really hard. Then, when they’re ready, they turn off their music and put their “game face” on. If music didn’t help them concentrate and pull out their “game face”, I don’t know what did.