I used to be a compulsive reader when I was a kid.
Not just avid--compulsive.
I could sometimes read three books at a time and I was finishing a book everyday.
That was in addition to magazines, plays, and all sorts of other reading material.
Then last year I read a book.
That's right--one book.
Well, not really--I read a few others, but those were for Book Clubs. Not that I don't enjoy books for Book Clubs, but what I mean to say is, the number of times I just picked up a book and read it amounts to--
One time.
I'm ashamed of this.
No, really, I'm actually ashamed.
I work at a library, for crying out loud. I'm surrounded by books. I should be reading constantly.
The problem is, as I got older, I put value in things that could be done while doing other things. So I write, and usually while I write I watch tv or a movie. So I watch a lot of tv and see a lot of movies. The benefit to seeing movies is that while you're in a movie theater, you can't really be doing anything else or even thinking about anything else because there's a giant screen with a story on it being shoved right into your face.
When you're reading, your mind occasionally wanders and all of a sudden you think--you know, I really should do those dishes.
I also can't read if there's anything else going on around me, so reading ends up happening when everything else that can be accomplished by multi-tasking is finished first.
This year I was determined to break that pattern, but so far, I'm not doing so good.
For one thing, all these books are so big! Am I the only person who can only seem to read 50 pages in an hour? Are all of you reading at some accelerated pace? How else could you finish more than one book a week?
(Well, I guess you could read more than one hour a day but that just sounds like a luxury I could never even dream of.)
I actually downloaded a speed-reading app on my phone, but it seems like the goal of speed-reaing is to just get through as much text as possible and retain the basics of what's going on, but not to actually enjoy what you're reading.
Oh sure, I could start skimming more, but what's the point in that?
I haven't given up my quest to reclaim my love of reading, but now I just feel overwhelmed by how much stuff I've missed out on over the years.
Any suggestions on how to read fast and still enjoy what you're reading?
Not just avid--compulsive.
I could sometimes read three books at a time and I was finishing a book everyday.
That was in addition to magazines, plays, and all sorts of other reading material.
Then last year I read a book.
That's right--one book.
Well, not really--I read a few others, but those were for Book Clubs. Not that I don't enjoy books for Book Clubs, but what I mean to say is, the number of times I just picked up a book and read it amounts to--
One time.
I'm ashamed of this.
No, really, I'm actually ashamed.
I work at a library, for crying out loud. I'm surrounded by books. I should be reading constantly.
The problem is, as I got older, I put value in things that could be done while doing other things. So I write, and usually while I write I watch tv or a movie. So I watch a lot of tv and see a lot of movies. The benefit to seeing movies is that while you're in a movie theater, you can't really be doing anything else or even thinking about anything else because there's a giant screen with a story on it being shoved right into your face.
When you're reading, your mind occasionally wanders and all of a sudden you think--you know, I really should do those dishes.
I also can't read if there's anything else going on around me, so reading ends up happening when everything else that can be accomplished by multi-tasking is finished first.
This year I was determined to break that pattern, but so far, I'm not doing so good.
For one thing, all these books are so big! Am I the only person who can only seem to read 50 pages in an hour? Are all of you reading at some accelerated pace? How else could you finish more than one book a week?
(Well, I guess you could read more than one hour a day but that just sounds like a luxury I could never even dream of.)
I actually downloaded a speed-reading app on my phone, but it seems like the goal of speed-reaing is to just get through as much text as possible and retain the basics of what's going on, but not to actually enjoy what you're reading.
Oh sure, I could start skimming more, but what's the point in that?
I haven't given up my quest to reclaim my love of reading, but now I just feel overwhelmed by how much stuff I've missed out on over the years.
Any suggestions on how to read fast and still enjoy what you're reading?
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