Reading Quickly, Slowly, and/or at a Normal Pace

    Some people have a very definitive reading speed, the average rate of time it usually takes them to read something. One particular person I know needs to renew her library books over and over and over again to finish them, and another person I know can read a novel over 500 pages long in a single day.
    But between reading quickly, slowly, or at a moderate speed, there isn't one particular rate that's superior to the others. Each one has their own qualities and benefits.
    Reading quickly is helpful in saving time and in satisfying curiosity. When you read quickly, you get the plot and the facts quicker, going multiple chapters at a time before you have to move on to another activity (like sleeping). Reading quickly also avoids the dreaded moments where one is forced to put the book down and wait for as long as a day to learn the answers to pressing questions--not only is this uncomfortable, but it can be a serious distraction from other things that need attention, like a classroom discussion. Generally, people who can read quickly can finish novels in a day, and go through a whole series within a week or two.
    Reading at a moderate speed combines the best of both worlds. When you read at a normal pace, you get the plot, you get the details, and you don't have to feel pressured to speed up or worry about missing tiny but vital moments. You can re-read beautiful lines, you can progress through a novel at a steady pace. It's a pleasant way to experience the adventure of the story or the information of a non-fiction book in good time.
    Finally, reading slowly is great for noticing all the details, using one's imagination to visualize scenes, and being able to process the information of the text. It's also good for studying. Without much concern for time, you could read something, try to picture every moment, hear every character's voice, consider what the characters are thinking and feeling, and even consider what might come next in response to the actions. People who like to read slowly can re-read not only a sentence, but a paragraph, and they might even go back to a previous chapter to make comparisons, or to just re-live favorite moments. Soaking in the details (especially the small ones) immerses a person in the story, and makes the reading experience very in-depth .
    So what about you? :) Do you usually read quickly, at a moderate pace, or slowly?