What sparked the idea was an experience I had recently. I sped through reading a book in just a couple hours. A few days later I sat down to write a review and I could not remember what happened in the book! I believe that I read the book too quickly and did not take the time that I personally require for a story to stick with me. So when I say quality reading, I do not mean the quality of the book, but rather the quality of the reading experience. Is it better to take your time with a novel and really absorb it, or is it better to read quickly so you can read more books? I am sure there are a lot of people out there who can read fast and absorb the story, but I have come to realize I am just not one of those people.
These are the steps that I plan to take in order to improve the quality of my reading experience. If you have an other ideas I would love to hear about them!
Goodbye Goodreads challenge
This year I set my goodreads goal to 75, and I think that I am putting too much pressure on myself to achieve that goal. I still want to keep track of how many books I read, for my own personal knowledge, but I no longer want to make it in to a competition with myself. I increase my goal every year, and every year I believe that my quality of reading declines.
Stop picking up a new book as soon as I finish one
This is a bad habit that I have picked up! I will finish a book then immediately go to my shelves and pick up another and start reading! I haven’t even let myself reflect or think about the book I just finished! I have now decided that when I finish I book I am not reading any more that day. I want to “live” in the story that I just read for awhile.
Only read one book at a time
When I read more than one book at a time it can be confusing for me, especially if the books are the same genre. I want to fully immerse myself in one story at a time.
Start rereading books
I have never been one of those people who rereads books. My thought process has always been ‘I have already read that book, why waste time rereading it when I could read a new one?’ I am now realizing this is not the right way to think! If I enjoyed a story so much why wouldn’t I want to reread it and find things I missed the first time?
So that is it! What do you think about quality vs quantity reading? Have you found a balance between the two? I would love to hear your tips!
