Books and your personality

I had an interesting discussion with my colleagues during lunch today. I am not sure if I can call it a discussion. It was more like my colleagues schemed against me and it was me Vs them. The debate was around the learning from a book, and how it improves one as a person. I was against this idea and everyone else were for it.

I donot think there is much to learn from a book. It is purely an entertainment channel, and a matter of your habit. It is like having fishing as a habit. You donot improve as a person just because you fish when you have some free time. Before I proceed, let me make it clear that the discussion was about fictitious novels. I completely agree that one learns a lot from technical books. These books make you knowledgeable, improve your confidence and help in progessing in your career. One might also learn from self-help books and management books, although I never read them and have no taste for them.

So, what am I supposed to learn from these novels and how I will become a better person by reading them. I cannot comprehend this. My colleagues insist that I might face similar situations as mentioned in the book, and then I might react in ways mentioned there. This seems silly to me. The decision taken by a character in book is a figment of author's imagination. It is what the author would have done in that situation. Why should that be the correct decision? Why should I do what the author has suggested? I donot understand any of their arguments.

The discussion ended with them making a decision that I have agreed to their views (Don't know how). I asked a couple of them to give an example of the learning they had from a fiction. They did not manage to come up with an answer. I think that explains who had the right view in the discussion.