Viewing a single comment thread. View all comments

dejabean t1_j28s0e3 wrote

Pick up the next book. Maybe you need some time away from the book you’re struggling with or now just isn’t your time to enjoy it. I usually have several books in rotation because of “next book syndrome”. I just avoid reading multiple books in the same genre or with similar plots/themes.

64

demilitarizdsm t1_j28v99u wrote

Yea I was hesitant to this but it turns out it's fine and have 3-4 book books going at one time and it's much more motivating to read.

22

SilverWord8909 t1_j29sng4 wrote

This is what I do too, usually in different formats. For example right now I've got a SF book in paperback (7th in a long series), a fantasy on my Kindle in airplane mode to read slowly, an Agatha Christie novel on my cell phone kindle app to read quickly, and an autobiography on my Libby app in audiobook format. Bonus listening to A Wrinkle in Time on my Libby App to see if it's age appropriate for my kids. It basically becomes setting specific what I read or listen to.

9

jphistory t1_j29yfs1 wrote

This is what I was going to suggest! I always have at minimum two books going because my spouse and I read together every night (so basically I have my book and our book) and when I am in the middle of reading but getting that feeling of wanting to move on, I just do it. Most of the time I go back, but sometimes the time away is enough to help me realize I am not feeling something. I read for fun, so why torture myself for fun?

Having said that, I should confess that my spouse and I just picked up Antkind to read together next year, so I guess I'm OK with a little torture in good company, haha.

6

ErisEpicene t1_j2a8y5g wrote

Antkind is actually tentatively the book I am feeling this over. Sewer, Gas, and Electric: The Public Works Trilogy isn't as weird and trippy as I had hoped. Its obvious nods and homages to Illuminatus! only emphasize how sane and low risk it actually is. Meanwhile people seem to struggle to describe Antkind the same way I do Illuminatus! and it has me riled up. But I'm gonna ignore the advice posted here by a few people and make myself finish SGE: TPWT. Seeing books through is an important part of my reclamation of reading from trauma. And I want to have as much context and detail as possible to work up a good analysis of the book's--thus far increasingly problematic--"electric negro problem" and other race issues.

1

DerekB52 t1_j2af4x6 wrote

I have bookmarks in like a dozen books right now. I can read parts of 8-10 books in a week. That's probably more than I should. But, I do it. I used to think I was crazy for doing this. But, I recently saw a youtuber say this is actually a good strategy to always be reading. If you stick to one book, you may have a day where you aren't in the mood for said book. We don't force ourselves to only watch one genre of TV, or only listen to one genre of music at a time.

Having several books going at once, means you should always have one you'll be in the mood to open at some point in the day.

1

BadAtNamesWasTaken t1_j2f1ley wrote

I came here to say the same ... OP, what's preventing you from picking up the next book?!

1