How To Start Reading Again

[Glebe]

How long do you persist with a book that isn't working for you?

I'm reading Adam Ant's autobio at the moment - the facts and the period detail are all there, all the characters you'd expect but his writing style is just so clinical.

There's no joy in it at all, it's just taking the shine off things I want to know more about.

I've read that, it was interesting enough as I recall but yeah don't think it was exactly fun-packed.

[Pranet]

Every year I set myself a target to read more and every year it dies on its arse. So I did something different this year and it is working.

Firstly I love the Backlisted podcast (something for another thread). One of the people on there reads shitloads and has written this article about reading shitloads.

The way he describes his reading process changed things for me. When I want to read, I need to get myself in a mindset of 'ooh I'm sitting down to read'. Whereas he is finding pockets during the day to read a few pages here and there with it ending up adding up to 50 pages a day (I don't think 50 pages is realistic to most people).

So I've been doing that with a target of 10 then 20 pages a day. Doesn't always work but while I keep with the mindset of a few pages here and there, I'd say on average I'm not far off especially as I only buy picture books.

TLDR: as everyone else has said, try to read everyday.

It is interesting how much time he spends listening to audiobooks. If I did that instead of listening to podcasts I would get through a great many more books than I do. I've never really done audiobooks, apart from a few comedy ones eg the Alan Partridge books.

[sardines]

It is interesting how much time he spends listening to audiobooks. If I did that instead of listening to podcasts I would get through a great many more books than I do. I've never really done audiobooks, apart from a few comedy ones eg the Alan Partridge books.

I thought the same but each time I start an audiobook I fall asleep. It is then a pain in the arse to find back where you were

[Pranet]

I think my problem is that I don't always want to pay the attention and have the concentration required to listen to a book and would prefer to just to listen to someone prattling on about some shit. If you are doing I dunno War and Peace as an audiobook I assume you'd need to be on your game while listening to it. Get distracted picking out some bananas at the supermarket, or just feel a bit tired or depressed, and nothing would go in.

[wrec]

I did the "start reading again" thing, about 500 books over the last 5 years. Previously I would only read a few music biogs and maybe a couple of novels a year. Had the usual pile of unread enthusiastic purchases. When friends would talk about books it seemed like an area of life that was mostly closed off to me and I'd feel sad about it. Spending too much time online felt bad for my mental health and attention span and I felt I was getting more stupider.

A few things encouraged me. The library system in Ireland was joined up nationally so that you can easily request books from any branch in the country (and my partner is a librarian). Also friends started to post their monthly reading on Instagram which was a great source for recommendations and discussion also made it look doable.

I got into reading a lot of old sci fi and later some of the "canon" and newer fiction. I used to think fiction besides Beckett, Joyce, Burroughs was silly made up nonsense but now have all kinds of lofty notions about it, and got really into a lot of things I didn't expect to.

Like Andy Miller says in that article it's largely a matter of establishing a habit. People sometimes consider reading to be a chore, when you'd never think of TV or music like that. I'm lucky in that I have lots of free time and no pesky kids to attend to, and haven't had a telly the last few years. If you have family up in your grill 24/7 it's a problem but I'd bet most people have potential reading time every day but instead are flicking channels, sending online death threats to celebrities, commuting David Puddy style etc. Depends on the book of course but 50 pages a day is 50-90 mins and you wouldn't think twice about spending that time on the aforementioned activities. But of course it's only worthwhile if you enjoy it.

I hasten to add that I remain a flaky fucker and some other areas of my life are in disarray and covered in biscuit crumbs, but the reading is something consistent that's been good for my mood and mental health, and has definitely helped me through stressful times.

[Mister Six]

Something that might help if - like me - you're forever distracted by your phone is to download a library app like Libby. You can connect it to your library card (in the US, at least, although I'm sure there are foreign equivalents) and take out ebooks and audio books on it. Then whenever you find yourself poking around on Facebook on a commute, read a book instead.

If you don't mind piracy, you could also download ReadEra and google up Z-lib.

[JaDanketies]

since this thread is bumped I will just repeat that the Autobiography of Malcolm X was the fucking tits, I could hardly believe how much I enjoyed it. It blew scrolling through Reddit out of the water. Gotta keep up the momentum. Going on a train to Brighton this weekend so I need to select something dynamite for the journey so I can spend the whole time wrangling a toddler and re-reading one paragraph

[Mobbd]

How can I train my brain to stop thinking and just process the words in front of my eyes?
Are there any hints and tips you big readers have that could help? 

How are you getting on?

I'd say start with a super-short mid-century novel. Especially one written in a fairly naturalistic way. Maybe Driver's Seat by Muriel Spark or The Lonely Londoners by Sam Selvon or Hangover Square by Patrick Hamilton.

This one's from way out of left field, but I'm currently reading Index Cards by Moyra Davie. It's one of those Fitzcaraldo Editions so you'll feel very clever/pretentious just holding it. It's all little short vignettes: very thoughtful and stimulating yet easy to read in a noncommittal way. Even when you don't know the references (films, writers, contemporary artists etc) she's talking about, there will just be some throwaway remark that makes you think "fuck me, that's interesting" and you'll feel really culturally switched-on with minimal investment of effort or time.

And then let things snowball, hopefully.

Also, I find I can concentrate better on the text if I'm not all hopped up on caffeine or adrenaline from a day of working hard. So I watch some YouTube or something to wind down before going into a book.

[Mobbd]

I read "A Confederate General From Big Sur" by Richard Brautigan as I thought it was a sort of memoir but realised halfway through that it wasn't and that I was a dickhead.

I found that to be the hardest Brautigan to get into, so you must be doing something right. Have you tried In Watermelon Sugar? It's lovely.

[Mobbd]

Many people in this thread have confessed to anxious/busy brains getting in the way of being able to read, usually as a new development. FWIW, I think this is something that has been done to us. Hell politics and social media etc.

[SteveDave]

How are you getting on?

I'd say start with a super-short mid-century novel. Especially one written in a fairly naturalistic way. Maybe Driver's Seat by Muriel Spark or The Lonely Londoners by Sam Selvon or Hangover Square by Patrick Hamilton.

This one's from way out of left field, but I'm currently reading Index Cards by Moyra Davie. It's one of those Fitzcaraldo Editions so you'll feel very clever/pretentious just holding it. It's all little short vignettes: very thoughtful and stimulating yet easy to read in a noncommittal way. Even when you don't know the references (films, writers, contemporary artists etc) she's talking about, there will just be some throwaway remark that makes you think "fuck me, that's interesting" and you'll feel really culturally switched-on with minimal investment of effort or time.

And then let things snowball, hopefully.

Also, I find I can concentrate better on the text if I'm not all hopped up on caffeine or adrenaline from a day of working hard. So I watch some YouTube or something to wind down before going into a book.

I've been reading a few pages a day of Rob Jovanovic's "God Save The Kinks" book. I don't think my mind can take fiction at the moment. I've gone all Noel Gallagher.

[Mobbd]

I've been reading a few pages a day of Rob Jovanovic's "God Save The Kinks" book. I don't think my mind can take fiction at the moment. I've gone all Noel Gallagher.

That sounds like a good read.

Does your reduced appetite for fiction run into other art forms? Like, are you more likely to watch a documentary or a talking heads show than a feature film?

[Famous Mortimer]

I'm going to give this a go:

[SteveDave]

Does your reduced appetite for fiction run into other art forms? Like, are you more likely to watch a documentary or a talking heads show than a feature film?

Strangely no. I'm still all in on made-up features. I suppose watching films is less work.

[Mobbd]

Strangely no. I'm still all in on made-up features. I suppose watching films is less work.

Maybe! I was asking because I'm less likely to watch a proper film these days (though I still manage some and we watched loads in October thanks to my partner's fondness for Halloween). Dunno if your reading thing is because of fragmentary reading on social media? I don't look at Twitter that much and my reading drive is intact but I do feel an analogous problem to yours in film, perhaps because I watch so much short stuff on YouTube.

[flotemysost]

I missed this thread when it first came up, but just adding that I sympathise hugely with anyone struggling to read. I used to be able to get completely, obsessively absorbed in books and could plough through them voraciously; but now, despite having studied them at uni and subsequently working in the bloody industry for a decade, I don't find it very easy to actually get stuck into a book at all.

Recently I've found that I need some sort of background noise; sitting on public transport used to be a good opportunity (which I don't do all that regularly these days, as I either walk to work or wfh), or I've also got quite into just sitting in a pub/cafe and reading for a bit. Probably looks a bit pretentious but whatever, it sort of forces me to focus in a way that I can't from just sitting quietly at home.

I've also been reading a lot more nonfiction than fiction; given my shot-to-shit attention span it generally lends itself better to skim-reading, going back to re-read something a few pages back that I didn't take in properly, or occasionally skipping ahead and peeking at a chapter further on.

I've always liked short fiction (both reading and writing) so am trying to get back into that too; one that I read fairly recently and absolutely loved was Civilwarland in Bad Decline by George Saunders, a slim volume of very gallows Vonnegut-type stories. There's loads of amazing collections from lesser-known authors out there, I know, so definitely need to check some of those out.

Prose novels are something I'm interested to get more into, as well; I guess if you don't hit it off with the style straight away then it might be a bit grating (though I suppose you could say that of any form, really). Citizen: An American Lyric by Claudia Rankine was one I really liked (not sure enjoyed is the right word, it's pretty harrowing, but it uses the form to impressive effect).

But yeah, I frequently feel like a right thicko for seemingly having forgotten how to read properly/wondering where the hell everyone finds the time. 

[bgmnts]

I've hit the point now where I can concentrate for about 4 seconds before losing focus.

There is something really wrong there and it's made reading for study almost impossible, and I have almost no interest in reading fiction anymore because I won't take it in anyway. But to have to read the same sentences over and over and over again is rotten, and I have all the time in the world.

Probably due to the machines and mental illness and the like but I havent met any people that unable to focus.

[wrec]

I found that to be the hardest Brautigan to get into, so you must be doing something right. Have you tried In Watermelon Sugar? It's lovely.

Read that a few months ago, absolutely loved it. Really liked The Abortion and The Hawkline Monster too. Was very glad not to have read Trout Fishing in America first as I found that immensely irritating - the naivety of it was cloyingly whimsical whereas the same quality was haunting in In Watermelon Sugar.

[Mobbd]

Read that a few months ago, absolutely loved it. Really liked The Abortion and The Hawkline Monster too. Was very glad not to have read Trout Fishing in America first as I found that immensely irritating - the naivety of it was cloyingly whimsical whereas the same quality was haunting in In Watermelon Sugar.

The Abortion is one of my favourite books ever now you mention it. Some couples have "a song" but me and my missus have that book. We get some odd reactions when we tell people that (if all they know about is the title). Strong recommend, y'all!

[IsavedLatin]

Many people in this thread have confessed to anxious/busy brains getting in the way of being able to read, usually as a new development. FWIW, I think this is something that has been done to us. Hell politics and social media etc.

I strongly second this.

[Johnboy]

I've got into the habit of reading every evening now.

I simply cut out the TV shows and movies and do that maybe on a Fri or Sat

Definitely improving my mental health so far.

[touchingcloth]

It is interesting how much time he spends listening to audiobooks. If I did that instead of listening to podcasts I would get through a great many more books than I do. I've never really done audiobooks, apart from a few comedy ones eg the Alan Partridge books.

I can't switch between text and audio versions of the same book. It takes me out of the world and the character voices I've imagined while reading if it's fiction, and it doesn't let me easily skim forwards or go slowly back over a tricky section if it's nonfiction.

How do people deal with reading in distracting environments? I find I can only manage an hour or so of telly in the evening without wanting to start reading something, but my partner thinks differently and it's hard to zone out the telly. I still want to stay plonked on the sofa, though, and earplugs feels a bit rum.

[Mobbd]

How do people deal with reading in distracting environments? I find I can only manage an hour or so of telly in the evening without wanting to start reading something, but my partner thinks differently and it's hard to zone out the telly. I still want to stay plonked on the sofa, though, and earplugs feels a bit rum.

Can't do it at all. I'd have to go to a different room or convince partner to join me in a nice quiet read.

Always impressed by people reading in cafes and pubs. I can't manage that.

[flotemysost]

How do people deal with reading in distracting environments? I find I can only manage an hour or so of telly in the evening without wanting to start reading something, but my partner thinks differently and it's hard to zone out the telly. I still want to stay plonked on the sofa, though, and earplugs feels a bit rum.

Can't do it at all. I'd have to go to a different room or convince partner to join me in a nice quiet read.

Always impressed by people reading in cafes and pubs. I can't manage that.

I'm the opposite - I need some sort of background buzz or my mind starts to wander a bit. I remember when I was at my mum and dad's for Christmas a few years back, I was reading on the sofa while the TV was blaring and they were all watching something, and they kept asking if I wanted to go and sit somewhere else but it was fine.

Obviously there's a limit, I'm not gonna go to a warehouse rave with a bundle of classics under my arm, but there's something about having an optimal level of soft background activity that just seems to sharpen concentration. Maybe I need to get into the habit of blaring out brown noise when trying to read at home (though I find being in a different environment - like a pub, cafe or on transport - helps too, plus if you're on your own and surrounded by strangers that removes the potentially antisocial element).

[Pink Gregory]

Somehow, I used to read for 20-40 minutes a day in a fairly chatty breakroom with a TV above my head; not especially breezy books either.

I've completely lost that ability now, might be more to do with the difference between a melange of sounds and something from one source.

[SteveDave]

Thanks to the CBT I'm having for my general awfulness, I've finished a book I started in August. I've been diarising my time and including an hour for a bath with a book, leaving my mobile telephone in another room which has meant I've had approx 45 minutes of reading 3 times a week (I shower on the other days don't worry) for the last 2 weeks. It's been amazing.

I'm onto "Christie Malry's Own Double Entry" now having bought it in 2016 and taken it to Italy twice without cracking the spine.

[JaDanketies]

I think 'buying books you fancy reading' is better than 'hoping something on the bookshelf inspires you'.  After reading Malcolm X I got a chapter into a Burroughs book I bought a while back, and stopped.

Just bought myself Maus, read about a third of it in one sitting. The first time I put it down was because I had to stop reading cos I was crying so much. In fairness Maus is very easy to read; I also bought 'Manufacturing Consent' and it looks a lot more intimidating than Maus, I suspect it might not grip me in the same way as Maus and Malcolm X's autobiography. But it might do.

Kinda feel like nowadays I really want to read "stories that had to be told." And perhaps whatever fiction Burroughs imagined up this time doesn't feel like a story that had to be told, in fact you've got to squint to find the story.  This also might have grievously wounded my desire to write fiction; I don't feel like any of the stories I have actually have to be told, especially when compared with Maus and Malcolm X

[Harry Badger]

I'm onto "Christie Malry's Own Double Entry" now having bought it in 2016 and taken it to Italy twice without cracking the spine.

You should knock that off in an afternoon - it's a slim enough volume anyway even allowing for all the ledger entries :)

Fun fact - in the little-seen film adaptation, one of the credit entries he puts in his ledger is 'Chris Morris'

[Mobbd]

I'm onto "Christie Malry's Own Double Entry" now having bought it in 2016 and taken it to Italy twice without cracking the spine.

Love that book. His Trawl is good too but Christie Malry is the most delicious. Hope you enjoy it too. I remember Malry's mum being a particularly funny character.

This also might have grievously wounded my desire to write fiction; I don't feel like any of the stories I have actually have to be told, especially when compared with Maus and Malcolm X

Those are probably the most important/harrowing stories of all time, so no shade on your experiences! I don't know what you have or haven't been through but that's quite the comparison. Take it easy on yourself.

My partner makes the point that people going through bad shit (she works in death-related care) often don't want to read heavy stuff and gravitate towards romances and westerns. Or just light things anyway. As a former librarian I can weakly second this. She also mentioned that a lot of people who lived through deeply harrowing 20th-century political shit ended up writing humour.

[Jack Shaftoe]

I know a lot of it is to do with time but I work from 8 til 4:30 and have a 5 year old who I'm in charge of due to my wife being a pub manager so I'm struggling to find time where I'm not either working, cooking, cleaning up or collapsing.

Are there any hints and tips you big readers have that could help? 

I don't think I started reading properly again until my youngest kid reached 7 and suddenly could amuse himself a bit without my having to watch over him the whole time, if that's any help. Suddenly I could go to bed and rather than passing out instantly with exhaustion, think 'ooh, maybe I could read a bit of that new Neal Stephenson I got last year'.