I completely lost my ability to finish a book during the first year of the pandemic. As a lifelong (obsessive) reader I felt both grief and a little shame for having lost such a fundamental part of my personhood. In order to fill the hole, I turned to audiobooks. I listened to SO many audiobooks-- many of which were books I never would h…
I completely lost my ability to finish a book during the first year of the pandemic. As a lifelong (obsessive) reader I felt both grief and a little shame for having lost such a fundamental part of my personhood. In order to fill the hole, I turned to audiobooks. I listened to SO many audiobooks-- many of which were books I never would have bought or borrowed from the library. Some I listened to carefully and attentively, others I used to quiet the noise in my head. Then I started borrowing books in large quantities from my neighborhood "Little Free Libraries." Every day I walked different routes picking out books. I'd start one and see if I was hooked in the first 25 pages. If not, it was returned. This jump started my reading again. It was low pressure and low stakes and that worked for me. Now I am abroad and reading using a Kindle (my first). I borrow a bunch of books from the library at once, choosing a wide range that might work for my given mood or attention level. If a book doesn't pull me in, I return it and move to the next. I never used to read this way. I committed to books and finished them. Now I am a fickle reader and that's ok.
I saw something about this somewhere - after the pandemic people stopped reading things that don’t grab them. I think we all have a sense of urgency about living life now and on some fundamental level we don’t want to waste time. I love your LFL idea!
I certainly feel this. I used to be resolutely completionist about finishing any book I started, even if I wasn't enjoying it. I am no longer that way. Life is too short and there are too many other books out there.
For me it’s less about not wanting to waste time, and more that there are just SO many mental distractions that it takes an extra special book to suck me in. The world is on fire, it feels, and if the book isn’t especially gripping then my mind easily wanders to my worldly concerns.
I realize some neighborhoods' LFLs are brimming with books, while others languish. I approached my local library's Friends group, which gets donations and runs a couple big book sales every year. What happens to the books that don't sell? They didn't want to take them back to their warehouse, so I was allowed to come and fill up my car with a few boxes of unsold books after their October sale ended, and I've been distributing them to LFLs ever since on my daily walks. It's a way to share my love of reading AND get some exercise!
I'm a big magazine reader, practically it's own dinosaur category, as the ones I read keep shutting down! I keep a few that I've read in my car, and when I run errands I pull up the LFL app on my phone and try to hit a location I've not been to before and drop them off.
A few days ago, I found a 2007 copy of Martha Stewart Living in a LFL, and was shocked at how HUGE it was. Several hundred pages long. I miss big magazines!!
It honestly makes me sad that so many of the magazines I used to read recently (Oprah, Entertainment Weekly, now Allure) are gone. I tried so hard to get my kids into magazines, too, and once they grew out of Zoobooks and American Girl, that was it :(
Oh my gosh Belle - I subscribe by this rule too and it has TOTALLY transformed how I read. I used to feel weirdly obligated that I HAD to read what I started. But I now live by the 20 page rule. I start it, if by page 20 it hasn't captured my attention I return it to the library, or if I bought it I pass it on to a friend, neighbour or a little free library. Totally game changing.
Yes! Aside from the actual library, a LFL near the beach on vacation pulled me in with a wonderful YA book. I think it felt lower stakes since I was at the beach but reminded me it’s great to read for fun.
What a terrific strategy for Little Free Library books! My neighbourhood brims with LFLs and I am constantly bringing home more books to add to the TBR mountain. Twenty-five pages to get hooked or the book goes back. I will keep that in mind.
I completely lost my ability to finish a book during the first year of the pandemic. As a lifelong (obsessive) reader I felt both grief and a little shame for having lost such a fundamental part of my personhood. In order to fill the hole, I turned to audiobooks. I listened to SO many audiobooks-- many of which were books I never would have bought or borrowed from the library. Some I listened to carefully and attentively, others I used to quiet the noise in my head. Then I started borrowing books in large quantities from my neighborhood "Little Free Libraries." Every day I walked different routes picking out books. I'd start one and see if I was hooked in the first 25 pages. If not, it was returned. This jump started my reading again. It was low pressure and low stakes and that worked for me. Now I am abroad and reading using a Kindle (my first). I borrow a bunch of books from the library at once, choosing a wide range that might work for my given mood or attention level. If a book doesn't pull me in, I return it and move to the next. I never used to read this way. I committed to books and finished them. Now I am a fickle reader and that's ok.
I saw something about this somewhere - after the pandemic people stopped reading things that don’t grab them. I think we all have a sense of urgency about living life now and on some fundamental level we don’t want to waste time. I love your LFL idea!
I certainly feel this. I used to be resolutely completionist about finishing any book I started, even if I wasn't enjoying it. I am no longer that way. Life is too short and there are too many other books out there.
For me it’s less about not wanting to waste time, and more that there are just SO many mental distractions that it takes an extra special book to suck me in. The world is on fire, it feels, and if the book isn’t especially gripping then my mind easily wanders to my worldly concerns.
I realize some neighborhoods' LFLs are brimming with books, while others languish. I approached my local library's Friends group, which gets donations and runs a couple big book sales every year. What happens to the books that don't sell? They didn't want to take them back to their warehouse, so I was allowed to come and fill up my car with a few boxes of unsold books after their October sale ended, and I've been distributing them to LFLs ever since on my daily walks. It's a way to share my love of reading AND get some exercise!
I'm a big magazine reader, practically it's own dinosaur category, as the ones I read keep shutting down! I keep a few that I've read in my car, and when I run errands I pull up the LFL app on my phone and try to hit a location I've not been to before and drop them off.
A few days ago, I found a 2007 copy of Martha Stewart Living in a LFL, and was shocked at how HUGE it was. Several hundred pages long. I miss big magazines!!
It honestly makes me sad that so many of the magazines I used to read recently (Oprah, Entertainment Weekly, now Allure) are gone. I tried so hard to get my kids into magazines, too, and once they grew out of Zoobooks and American Girl, that was it :(
How fantastic!!
Oh my gosh Belle - I subscribe by this rule too and it has TOTALLY transformed how I read. I used to feel weirdly obligated that I HAD to read what I started. But I now live by the 20 page rule. I start it, if by page 20 it hasn't captured my attention I return it to the library, or if I bought it I pass it on to a friend, neighbour or a little free library. Totally game changing.
Yes! Aside from the actual library, a LFL near the beach on vacation pulled me in with a wonderful YA book. I think it felt lower stakes since I was at the beach but reminded me it’s great to read for fun.
What a terrific strategy for Little Free Library books! My neighbourhood brims with LFLs and I am constantly bringing home more books to add to the TBR mountain. Twenty-five pages to get hooked or the book goes back. I will keep that in mind.
That LFL idea is fantastic