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I think that a person's lack of interest in assigned reading has a little less to do with the content of the text than we might think. Personally there have been books that when assigned to me for a class I struggle to read and engage the text, but if I were to choose to read it independently, the process would become much easier and more enjoyable. Of course, there are times when assigned reading have been very interesting and engaging, but for the most part if you tell are person they have to do something, they're less likely to find it enjoyable than if they choose to do it independently. I think a possible remedy would be to have a selection of readings from which a student can choose. Although the students will then not have all read the same topics, they can share with each other what they read, and they will individually be more engaged with the reading of their choice. Additionally, when each student is sharing something that they were engaged in, they're likely to portray the reading as exceptionally interesting, perhaps leading the students who read another article to look at something new.