Book Tag: Reader Problems

As much as I love reading, I’m not going to lie– sometimes it can be frustrating. Whether it’s too many books and not enough time, or inconveniently getting the feels in public, read on to find out how I deal with the downside of bibliophilia…

(Tag originally found on A.M. Molvik’s Ramblings.)

You have 20,000 books on your TBR. How in the world do you decide what to read next?

Between my physical books and ebooks, my TBR is probably pretty close to that number! I have a haphazard system where I alternate between something random from the priority TBR pile on my nightstand and something off a list I’m trying to get through. Every so often I’ll also throw in a book that caught my attention and needs to be read immediately.

You’re halfway through a book and you’re just not loving it. Do you put it down or are you committed?

I used to always finish, no matter what, but I don’t have the patience for that anymore. There are too many good books out there to waste time on the ones you don’t enjoy.

The end of the year is coming and you’re behind on your reading challenge. Do you try to catch up? And if so, how?

I don’t do reading challenges– they seem like a great way to take the joy out of reading.

The covers of a series you love do not match. How do you cope?

If I really, really love the series I might try to find copies with matching covers to replace the odd ones; otherwise, I live with different covers (although it does annoy me).

Everyone and their mothers love a book that you do not. Who do you bond with over your shared feelings?

I suffer in silence (or write a post about it).

You’re reading a book in public and you’re about to start crying. How do you deal?

It’s rare* for a book to make me cry, and even rarer for me to cry in public, so I doubt this would ever be an issue. If it happened, though, I’d probably stop reading and go look for a bathroom.

(*The last time was a few months ago when I was reading Elizabeth, the Queen, a biography of Elizabeth I. Needless to say, I was not expecting that. At least I was home.)

The sequel to a book you loved just came out but you’ve forgotten a lot of what happens. Are you going to reread it?

Definitely! I might even reread if I haven’t forgotten anything.

You do not want anyone borrow your books. How do you politely say no when someone asks?

I let people know that they’re welcome to come over and read here, but the books don’t leave the house. My SO, meanwhile, has a long list of rules on how to handle his books, which seems to discourage would-be borrowers. But there’s also something to be said about supporting authors by borrowing from a library instead of a friend (and you help support the library too).

You have picked up and put down 5 books in the last month. How do you get over this reading slump?

I’ve actually never had that problem. I guess I’d try to figure out what was causing my lack of interest in the books and then do my best to solve that. Or I might read something different, like comic books, for a while. I’d also try not to stress about it– the need to read always returns.

There are so many books coming out that you are dying to read. How many do you end up buying?

I’ll put them all on my wishlist and get them eventually, although I might get the one I’m most excited about right away.

After you purchase all of these books that you’ve been dying to read, how long do they sit on your shelves before you get to them?

I admit it, they can wait for a while before I get to them (sometimes years), but I do get to them. I’m starting to think I’m the only person left who still finds value in old books.

So, what do you think? How do you cope with reader problems? Share in the comments…

Cheers,

Aspasía S. Bissas