Tag Archives: bookworm

Revising Book Reviews for Re-Reads

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Have you ever re-read a book and thought twice about your initial review of it? I have.

Sometimes I come back to a book feeling that I liked it better the second time around. Does that mean I increase my rating?

Other times I realize I missed a lot of problematic aspects now that I’m more knowledgeable. Do I push the review and rating down?

Upon rereading a book, I have a better understanding of the nuances of the characters. I also have a better understanding of my social environment and how it relates to the book. I become a new reader each time I pick up the same book.

But does this mean I write a new review from this new perspective? Do I revise an old review with a note about the update?

It feels like a new review is in order if I’m coming at it from a different perspective than the original. However, what if I reread it again years later and notice more things I missed or feel differently once more? Do I create a series of book reviews as I change as a person and a reader?

These are just the musings of a bookworm. And I’m genuinely curious as to how other readers approach this conundrum. So, if you have a process for book reviews for rereads, I’d love to hear them.

TBR List Woes: It’s OK to Cut Ties With Books

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I browsed through my Goodreads TBR list a couple of months ago to see what I wanted to buy with my Barnes & Noble birthday coupon. I ended up deleting several books from my list.

Curate your TBR list

I’m not the same person I was when I added them to my TBR years ago. It doesn’t mean they’d necessarily be bad books. But my tastes have changed since then. My values have evolved. I’ve become more educated and therefore more discerning about the authors and books I pick.

A few years ago, parting with books from my TBR list would have induced major anxiety. Even with something so trivial as a digital list no one but me sees, I would have felt some sort of guilt. But what if that was an amazing book? What if I passed on my next new obsession? Does this make me a quitter to get rid of books to read?

It’s fine. Going back and looking at the books I once added that had piqued my curiosity showed me how much I’ve changed over the years. And being able to part ways with that virtual list also showed me how much I’ve grown. It sounds silly, but anxiety has a way of making mountains out of molehills.

There are so many stories to read out there, it would be impossible anyway to ever get through my TBR within my lifetime. So realistically, would I have ever gotten around to all those books I removed? Maybe I would have eventually picked a few of them up. But by now, if I were to read them, I would have done so already.

Going through those descriptions and realizing they no longer sparked an interest, I knew it was time to let them go. It’s best to make room for books and stories that speak to who I am now.

How do you curate your TBR list?

How to Read More Books

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Image by Eli Digital Creative from Pixabay

Gone are the days when I could settle down with one book in my lap, perhaps a snack or two and a hot beverage, and focus on one story line at a time. My attention span has been shot to death with the invention of the internet, and I freely admit that.

I still enjoy reading though (obviously). How to solve the problem though of a wandering mind? Over the last couple of months I think I found the solution.

I’ve allowed myself to pick up more than one book at a time, and switch between stories. When I feel like one isn’t captivating my attention at a certain time, even if I really like it, just switch it up. The real trick though is the medium by which I consume these reads.

For a lighter daily bag, I bring my Kindle with me to work and read an e-book during lunch. During the commute home, I listen to my audio book as I navigate Miami traffic. And at night, when I am comfy cozy in my pajamas, ready to settle in with the lamp alight on my nightstand, I read a physical hardcover or paperback.

Some nights I still can’t concentrate on a novel though, so I compromise with comic book reading. Short pages and mostly artwork does wonders for keeping the brain entertained.

My new strategy of reading multiple books and stories through different channels at different times has also expanded the amount of reading I get done in a month. The thing about trying to read one book when I wasn’t feeling it, is that I’d read the same sentence at least five times over and still not process what was happening.

Letting myself give in to the new millennial attention span and spreading my reading around through e-books, audio books, and physical books has increased my ability to multitask and enjoy a story even more than I already could.

For the first time in a long time, I look forward to taking a look at my TBR list and not feeling a dreadful pit in my stomach, making me feel guilty for adding, adding, adding and never making a dent. I’ve finally started to get some of those books off my list.

Should I even dare to dream that one day I can make it through the whole list? Alright, that’s probably farfetched, but a reader can dream.

What are your favorite ways to consume books? Let me know in the comments!

Audio Books! Can I Get An Amen?

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Image by Karolina Grabowska from Pixabay

I started listening to audio books a little over a year ago, hesitant to take on the endeavor because I thought, “I can’t possibly pay attention to a story if I’m listening to it.” Of course, that logic is flawed because that’s how I used to take in stories when I was a kid, before I knew how to read.

What opened me up to the idea of audio books was actually podcasts. Once I started listening to things like Limetown, Welcome to Nightvale, Wolf 359, and a plethora more, I realized I did in fact have the capability to multitask when it comes to paying attention to stories audibly.

I started with re-reads, as I figured it’d be easier to listen to a story I was already familiar with, so if I miss a line or two, I wouldn’t be totally lost. Cassandra Clare’s The Mortal Instruments series is where I dove in to the audio book scene. While I recovered from my LASIK eye surgery a couple of months ago, I voraciously ate up Pride & Prejudice through Spotify and listened to Amy Poehler narrate her memoir Yes Please on Overdrive through my library.

Slowly I became more comfortable with listening to audio books and taking care of such tasks as scrolling through Twitter and catching up on emails. Long car rides are also an ideal setting for audio books.

I started a new job last month, and I can only listen to so many podcast episodes before I’m all caught up and have nothing left to listen to. I ventured into Playster and decided to give new books a try, now that I was a more skilled multitasker with enhanced listening abilities.

Once again, Cassandra Clare came to my rescue with Tales from the Shadowhunter Academy and The Bane Chronicles. Honestly, I marvel at my ability to write about traffic school and listen to the enthralling voices of Chris Wood and Keahu Kahuanui all at the same time. Also, hearing the chilling encounters in World War Z helped me get through the day writing about vital records (it’s a thing; go look it up).

Now as I work, I am finally getting into another classic that’s been on my TBR list since 10th grade: Jane Austen’s Emma. British narrators are possibly the best, in my opinion.

The wonderful thing about audio books, and I’ve saved this best part for last, is I can add them to my Goodreads count of books read! Why is this so exciting for me? Because on top of starting a new job last month, I also started grad school, which means I’ve had no time whatsoever to do leisure reading. Audio books have changed the game though.

I used to be one of those people who thought, “Audio books don’t really count,” because I had that notion that one can’t really pay attention to them. I have been proven wrong and seen the light. Listening to audio books is just an enhanced way of reading. It’s engaging, entertaining and it definitely counts. Audio books are a full-time worker grad student’s best friend. Hallelujah!

Do any of you listen to audiobooks? Which do you recommend? Let me know in the comments!

One Book At A Time

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I am drowning in a sea of things to read. My double-stacked book shelves taunt me with their tomes. My Goodreads TBR list laughs at my folly. My kindle glares at me as I time and time again pass it over for a physical text.

When did it get so hard to read? As a kid, I breezed through the Harry Potter series, finishing an entire book in two nights (would’ve been one if mom hadn’t insisted I sleep).

It wasn’t just Harry Potter. Anne of Green Gables was my go to for a while, and I stopped counting how many times I’d read it after reaching ten. Goosebumps was devoured book by book within a day.

My latest haul from Second Edition Book Shop

So, what happened? Well, I’m an adult now. I have a job that takes up eight hours of my day. I like to exercise and dedicate some time to catching up on television after work. Then there’s dinner. Then I need to set aside time for writing. What’s left for reading? A half hour before bed and weekends (when I’m not doing things).

Even when I have free weekends with 20-hour days to fill with reading, I don’t. I just can’t anymore. I used to sit in my bedroom for hours on end just reading, my eyes roving over the page like a typewriter set on high speed. Now, I read for an hour, maybe two tops, and I’ve gotta get up and do something else. There’s blogs to follow (thanks, Book Riot). More television to catch up on (listen I watch a lot of shows don’t judge me). Then, oh yeah, just getting out of the house and seeing sunlight while I can.

I haven’t even mentioned the distraction of social media. Between Instagram, Twitter and a constantly refreshing Facebook feed, it’s enough to drive someone insane. When did our lives become so cluttered? It’s great to have all this connection, but at the same time, it’s so overwhelming I eventually feel disconnected.

That’s when I return to reading. I try not to let my shelves and TBR list daunt me. I remind myself, “One book at a time.” Just take it one read at a time. Sure, I can’t possibly read every book in the world (challenge accepted!), but I can certainly try. What are we if we don’t have dreams?

How do you deal with an overwhelming TBR pile or overflowing bookshelf? Do you read one book at a time, or multiple? Let me know in the comments!