What happens when we give our full attention to a book?

At a time when information is increasingly consumed in fragments — through screens, social media and now artificial intelligence — the act of sustained reading can feel increasingly rare. Yet it may also be more important than ever.

In the 2026 St Edmund Campion Lecture, Campion College Distinguished Professor of Liberal Arts Simon Haines explored the enduring power of books and their capacity to shape not only what we know, but how we think.

Drawing on literature, philosophy and contemporary research, Professor Haines considers what happens when we read deeply: how reading exercises attention, expands our understanding of other people and introduces us to ideas and experiences far beyond our own.

His lecture also raises a timely question about our relationship with technology. As digital tools become increasingly capable of reading, summarising and even thinking on our behalf, what might be lost if we surrender too much of that work?

For Professor Haines, the answer points to something fundamental about education itself. Reading is not simply a means of gathering information. The encounter with a great book demands concentration, imagination, judgement and intellectual independence — habits that have lasting value well beyond the page.

A recording of Professor Simon Haines lecture is available to view the form below.