“I read” is “Я читаю” (“Ya chitau”) in Russian. “I read a lot” is “Я много читаю” (“Ya mnoga chitayu”). You can go into detail about what exactly you are reading and say, “I read newspapers” which means “Я читаю газеты” (“Ya chitayu gazeti”). “I read the news” is “Я читаю новости” (“Ya chitayu novasti”). “I read a book yesterday” is “Я прочитал книгу вчера” (“Ya prachital knigu vchera”). If a girl says it, she should use the verb “prochitala”. “I have read a book recently” is “Я прочитал книгу недавно” (“Ya prachital knigu nedavna”).