Reading Fiction to Improve RC
by Dana Stepleton & Dave Goldstein
UPDATED FOR THE NEW GMAT IN 2024
(Editor’s note: Dave and Dana are both aspiring novelists, in addition to being amazing GMAT tutors and incredible GMAT explanation-writers. So now that they’re blushing, I’d recommend reading whichever novels they tell you to read. -- CB.)
Developing a daily reading habit to improve your GMAT reading comprehension ability is not a novel concept, but many students don’t know exactly what to read to maximize their GMAT scores.
Most of the time, GRE and GMAT test-takers automatically reach for the nonfiction shelf -- after all, you’re not going to see a short story on the GRE or GMAT, right? It makes sense to practice by reading informational articles on topics that you’re likely to encounter on test day.
While this is entirely logical, there are a few reasons to dust the cobwebs off of your fiction collection, too. First, regardless of whether you’re tackling fiction or nonfiction, reading tough material for 15-35 minutes a day can improve your reading comprehension skills (see our previous article for more information!). In addition, fiction provides unique benefits for improving your GMAT RC prowess.
See below for an explanation of the benefits of reading fiction to improve your GRE or GMAT verbal score, as well as a recommended reading list.
Reading fiction changes your brain in interesting ways
Researchers at UC Santa Barbara and the University of British Columbia determined that reading absurdist fiction improves students’ abilities to detect patterns in subsequent tests. They attribute this effect to something called “meaning threat”: when students got twisted around in a story that defied their expectations, they were more active in searching for cohesive meaning in the follow up test. Sounds pretty useful for verbal reasoning on the GMAT!
In addition, reading fiction improves connectivity in certain regions of the brain. In particular, the language and movement centers of the brain were positively impacted by reading novels. Researchers believe that these effects occur because stories “transport” the reader into the shoes of the protagonist. Because being engaged while reading through a tough GMAT RC passage is such a critical skill, it is absolutely worthwhile to strengthen those engagement muscles by reading a novel or two.
Fiction is just more fun
Okay, this one is more an opinion than a fact. But speaking as two tutors with 99th percentile verbal scores, we can say that we owe at least part of our verbal chops to a longstanding love of reading, writing, and language in general. This love has its roots in reading stories.
As discussed in our article on reading nonfiction to help your GMAT RC score, the positive effects of reading accumulate over time -- which means that you have to stick with it for a while before you’ll reap any benefits from the work you put in. In this way, picking up a reading habit is just like going to the gym, or changing your diet, or getting started with meditation. It’s going to take patience and perseverance and all sorts of other things that are sometimes in short supply.
So if it can be challenging to maintain a reading habit, why not make it enjoyable for yourself? Why not get lost in an awesome story that also happens to have tough vocabulary and a brain-stimulating structure? If you’re ready to take the plunge, see below for a suggested reading list.
Our favorite fiction books for GMAT test-takers
An Unnecessary Woman by Rabih Alameddine: Told from the perspective of an aging Lebanese woman, this book offers a generous appraisal of the relationship between memory and literature, all while offering a portrait of an unusually complex and sympathetic protagonist.
Catch-22 by Joseph Heller: In the running for the funniest book of the 20th century, Catch-22 is also riddled with the kinds of knotty logical paradoxes that will hone your GMAT CR skills as you laugh at the grotesquerie of human folly. (Did that last sentence sound like it came from a GMAT verbal question? Oh good.)
The Trial by Franz Kafka: In a study conducted at the University of British Columbia, participants who read Kafka performed significantly better on a subsequent logic test than a control group that read a more conventional linear narrative. We’ll interpret that as evidence of the brain-enhancing effects of reading truly inventive fiction.
The Dispossessed by Ursula K. LeGuin: A depiction of an anarchic society, stuffed with good words to stretch your GMAT vocabulary.
Beloved by Toni Morrison: A searing portrait of the evils of slavery and one of the essential books of the 20th century.
There, There by Tommy Orange: A powerful, kaleidoscopic novel about the consequences of prejudice and cultural dislocation in 21st century America. Because there are so many perspectives and so many disparate narrative threads, this book will require the kind of sustained attention and focus that only the most challenging GMAT RC passages would demand of you.
White Teeth by Zadie Smith: This novel captures the chaotic, hilarious, and unexpected ways in which cultures clash in late 20th-century London. A tough but entertaining read!
Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace: A massive brain-warping novel whose inventive language and formal ingenuity will challenge the savviest of GMAT readers.