Learning to read at age 32 – with Oliver James, author of Unread

Oliver James is a California-based personal trainer, motivational speaker, literacy activist, and influencer. He has been featured by Today, NPR, the Jennifer Hudson Show, the Los Angeles Times, Newsweek, Rachael Ray, and ABC News, among many others. Additionally, he received the Barbara Bush National Literacy Award in 2023.

Oliver is the author of "Unread: A Memoir of Learning (and Loving) to Read on TikTok." His book is about teaching himself to read starting at the age of 32, and his experience with childhood learning disabilities and educational neglect. In just 365 days, he went from barely being able to read a restaurant menu, to closing in on his goal of finishing 100 books in a year.

Oliver has become a TikTok/BookTok sensation for the way he's documented his decision to learn to read as an adult, and his struggles and triumphs along the way.

During this episode, you will hear Oliver talk about:

Why he describes himself as being "functionally illiterate" and how his experience with literacy "started wrong" What inspired him to share his journey to learn how to read on social media, at the age of 32 How reading has profoundly changed his perspective on life What it was like writing a book about his experience Buy Oliver's book "Unread": hachettebookgroup.com/titles/oliver-james/unread/9781454959403/

Follow Oliver at oliverspeaks1 on Instagram, TikTok, Threads and YouTube.

Email Oliver at OliverSpeaks1 [at] gmail.com.

Learn more about the Nardagani app that has helped Oliver learn how to read: nardagani.com

Support or sponsor this podcast: BuyMeACoffee.com/Beyond6Seconds

Watch the video of this interview on YouTube: youtube.com/watch?v=xWGXsqQaloQ

Read the episode transcript: carolynkiel.com/podcast/oliver-james-unread

Follow the Beyond 6 Seconds podcast in your favorite podcast player: pod.link/1336740192