Reading the rainbow

The colorful reading personality quiz I can't stop talking about 🌈

Photo courtesy of Emily West via Dupe Photos.

Anyone who knows me knows I love a good personality test. I know my Myers Briggs (ENFJ), my Enneagram (2), my astrological sign (Scorpio), and even my Human Design (Manifesting Generator). Sure, a label can be limiting if taken too seriously, but if used as a mere piece of a puzzle — as information — it can also be clarifying. These assessments can be helpful tools for learning more about ourselves. (They also make for solid conversation starters.)

While scrolling on TikTok recently, as one does, I stumbled upon a new kind of personality test, one specifically for readers. Titled Read Your Color, it’s pretty much exactly what it sounds like: a reading personality test to help you determine what type of reader you are. There are six types, each represented by a color: Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, and Purple. A reading rainbow, if you will.

Image courtesy of Read Your Color.

Where most reading-related personality tests focus on genre, Read Your Color focuses more on the experience you as a reader want to have, specifically “how you think, feel, and approach stories.” The assessment asks twenty-four questions, combining reader psychology, narrative theory, and patterns to help you “find books you’ll actually finish — and love.”

The approach was immediately interesting to me. So often readers are lumped into genres, either by themselves or by others. And though some people may exclusively read romance or fantasy for example, many may dabble in different genres. The concept of determining how you want to feel during or after reading is intriguing. It honestly feels more human.

Each color type has a nickname that alludes to the reader’s general vibe. For example, a Blue Reader is “The Introspective Oracle.” They are readers who are “introspective and reflective, drawn to narratives that explore the deep, quiet complexities of the human soul,” while Orange Readers are “Curious Explorers” who thrive on “masterful world-building” and imagination.

Naturally, I had to know my type and took the test immediately.

I got my results, which both did and didn’t surprise me. I wasn’t surprised that Blue (The Introspective Oracle) and Yellow (The Emotional Catalyst) were tied. I was, however, relatively surprised that Purple (The Unbound Innovator) was my highest-scoring category, and therefore my reading type. I didn’t realize I am “a bold, unconventional thinker who thrives on experimental storytelling and genre-defying narratives.” Well, *flips hair* color me flattered.

Image courtesy of me and my iPhone.

As flattered as I was and as much as the Purple type resonated with me, I still felt drawn to the Blue and Yellow types. This, it turns out, is the beauty of this particular reading assessment: you can be more than one color. Like other personality tests, it’s less of a hard and fast rule and more of a method for self exploration and insight.

Steven Reese

, the creator of the quiz and fellow Substacker¹, said it himself that it “was never meant to sort people into boxes,” rather to be “a tool — a lens — for understanding your reading self.” He created a visual framework, a Compass, to show the overlap in types and illustrate why you might have an affinity for more than one — and better yet, where that affinity comes from. He says most people live on the diagonal, rather than within a specific quadrant. They may shift depending on their mood or what season of life they’re in.

Image courtesy of Stephen Reese and the Read Your Color Substack.

When I look at my annual reads² each year, I can see a similar trend that proves this to be true. Last year was a difficult one, and many of the books I read helped me navigate that time. This year, I’m feeling more creative and am reading works that reflect and stimulate that mindset.

At the end of the day, I’m blown away by the creativity and intellect behind the Read Your Color quiz (and am only a *little* bit jealous I didn’t think of it myself), which is why I’ve hardly been able to stop telling everyone I know about it. I find it helpful to know my friends’ reading types so we can refer books to each other and discuss our likes and dislikes on a deeper level, which in turn can help us learn even more about ourselves.

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Author’s Note: What’s your reading color type? If you take the assessment, let’s talk about it! 📚🤓

Also, it is not lost on me, an ally, that I’m writing about a rainbow reading quiz during Pride month. To commemorate, here are a few LGBTQ+ books I’ve read and enjoyed so far this year. I’d love to hear any you’ve read, as well. Happy Pride! 🏳️‍🌈

• The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller

• This is The Way It Always Is by Laurie Frankel

• Conversations with Friends by Sally Rooney

• Brokeback Mountain by Annie Proulx

1. Pro Tip: The

Read Your Color

Substack has book recommendations for every color every week. Even if your TBR is already miles long, it’s very much worth checking out.

2. This year, I’ve shifted over from Goodreads to Storygraph (thanks

Morganne Hatfield

and

Cassandra Bumpus 🇨🇦

for the recommendation!), which offers more insights around your reading habits. (It’s also founded and led by a woman of color and isn’t owned by an insatiable E-commerce behemoth, which we love to see.)