Book Chat #84
Are you in a reading slump?
Hello reading friends! I’m so happy you’re here. This newsletter comes out every two weeks and contains reading recommendations and simple recipes.
We also have an international book club! We are currently reading Oh, Sister by Jodie Chapman so if you’d like to join in, please hit reply or leave a message in the comments. You don’t need to do this if you are already a member (you know who you are).
What to do when reading feels like a chore
People often tell me they are experiencing a reading slump. This usually means that the books they’ve been reading have been disappointing for one reason or another. They often blame themselves for this, citing their lack of concentration, poor choices, or some other personal failing that results in a less than pleasurable reading life.
It’s worth remembering that if you’re having trouble concentrating or simply can’t get started on a new book, you might be tired or stressed. Someone once told me that a child’s reading age drops when they unwell, and I think this is true for adults as well. I injured my back recently, and could not get be bothered starting any of the books in my stack, even though I was excited about reading them. I spent a couple of days watching romcoms and thrillers on Netflix and told myself it was okay, the books will wait. And of course they did.
I’m currently reading a very light thriller, but looking forward to starting something meatier soon. Here’s my current stack…
So if you feel glum about your reading life, take a break and then ease yourself back into reading by choosing something in your favourite genre, or try listening to a funny audio book, or re-reading an old childhood favourite. I also recommend choosing something with a LOT of whitespace. The cognitive demand is lower which means you will find it easier to concentrate. Keep well away from books with tiny print, all crammed onto the page.
If none of these tactics work, and you’d like some like some personal recommendations, let me know. You can reply to this email or pop a note in the comments section. Just tell me three books you’ve enjoyed and one that wasn’t for you and I’ll think on it for a bit (usually a week or so) and then recommend some titles you might enjoy.
In the meantime, be kind to yourself. Reading should be a pleasure, not a chore.
What I’ve been reading lately
I sometimes pick up a stack of books from the library knowing I really don’t have time to read them all, but I like to have choices. I can’t stand having ‘nothing to read’ which is a ludicrous statement given I have a giant pile of books that people have lent me, but which I am yet to read.
Like many bookish people, I’m often drawn to the next shiny thing, the book that everyone’s talking about, and it’s easy to forget that there are many books on my TBR (to be read list) which were lauded as the next big thing, but may have been subsequently forgotten, or replaced by the next, ‘next big thing’.
One such book is In Memoriam by Alice Winn. When it came out last year it was all over social media so I quickly jotted it down in my list, but I was a bit doubtful about it for a couple of reasons. One is that I’m a bit squeamish about sex scenes and secondly, do I really want to read a book about English public schoolboys fighting in WWI?
As it turns out, yes I do!
Especially when it’s on audio, and a man with a lovely English accent is reading it to me. This allowed me to get hooked on the story and not be put off by it’s length. (400 pages).
I coped really well with the sex scenes and absolutely fell in love with the English schoolboys who went to war and became men. (I know this sounds like a cliché but it’s really well done). By the time I was halfway through the book I was heavily invested in the outcome. I have read other accounts of WWI, so the information wasn’t new, but it was unbelievably heartbreaking (in a good way). I will never think about war in the same way.
You may not think this book for you, but please give it a try. I loved it.
Author note: Alice Winn was born and raised in Paris. She is the daughter of American parents and is dyslexic, so didn’t learn to read until she was nine. She was educated at Oxford and has a degree in English literature.
In this short video, she says that young people crave glory and importance and this makes it easy for older people to manipulate them. True and sad.
What I’ve been (thinking about) baking
I’ll be honest and say that I haven’t been cooking anything lately, but my sister Bev sent me this simple recipe for moist lemon cake and I can’t wait to try it. I absolutely love anything lemony, so this is right up my alley.
Our lime tree is just coming into fruit, so I might swap out the lemons for limes (which I also love) or a combination of both. Do you love lemons?
International Book Club: a date for your diary
As mentioned previously, we have a book club meeting coming up in August. I’m thinking of moving it to the weekend (specifically 10am AEST on August 4th, which is a Sunday here in Oz but it would be a Saturday in the USA.) Is this a terrible idea? Let me know and I’ll move it back to the regular time which is Friday in Oz and Thursday afternoon/evening in the USA.
I appreciate that both times are inconvenient for people located in Europe, or the UK, so please let me know if this is you and I’ll see what I can do.
That’s all for this edition,
Until next time, keep well and happy reading,
Marg xxx
I filled out a form at my new library and am still waiting for their book recommendations. Either they are swamped or stumped by my list of well liked books which runs to the esoteric lol.