Before I say a few things that resonated with me, let me just applaud how this video was presented providing such a well spoken, sophisticated and informed perspective for new-ish readers like me. Personally, why I am reading a book is the most important decision I make. I want the book to educate and inform me as much as entertain. Secondly I totally agree with not looking at ratings or reviews, going into a read after seeing average ratings often has a negative effect on my enjoyment of the book!
I love how you are looking for all three things: education and entertainment. And I agree, I often found that reading book reviews altered my opinion. I try to make up my mind before I look into those! Thanks for watching.
Hello Emmelie! I hope you are doing well. This was a great video! I learned a lot from your thoughts. I also try (but not always) set a goal of trying to read 50 pages a day, especially with large books. I find that helps me a lot. For reading slumps, I don't have a "go to" method to get out of it. For me, I will just take a break and not read. I can do this b/c I am surrounded by books and my love/desire for books and reading is so great that I can ride that slump out and get back into reading eventually. Plus, I participate in 2 classic book clubs, so that usually prevents me from getting into a slump. I guess that would be my recommendation for reading slumps - join a book club or two. Keep up the great work and I look forward to your next video! Have a great day! 😀
Haha, that's great advice 🤭 I have never been in a reading slump - I feel the same way as you and I don't know if it's possible for me to ever suffer from it! Thanks for stopping by 🥰
I have only recently started using tabs and annotations and journaling with my reading so I'm still trying to figure out what actually works for me. I really like the author lists idea that you put together. Also, having multiple reading topics at a time works great. For enjoyment and learning, I have a few subjects I do for one or the other, but a majority of my reading is environmental or nature based and it's definitely a combination of both. Great vid!
I can't wait for you to find out what actually works! :) I'm glad you enjoyed the video. Thank you for stopping by 🥰 I can't tell what you mean by environmental/nature. Do you mean non-fiction books on the subject of nature? :)
@ProseAndPetticoats Yeah, that's what I mean, lol didn't word that very clearly. The majority of my reading is nonfiction but nature and biology related books are my favorite. I don't seem to mind just writing a paragraph or one page review and thoughts after I finish a book, but it's the tabbing or note taking during the read itself I find a bit awkward.
Hi Emmeline... I decided to slow down my reading because I found myself not remembering what I just recently read. By slowly down deliberately I find myself more absorbed into the story or information. I do have a daily goal for number of pages read, but so be it if I don't meet it all the time; it's only an internal pressure.@@ProseAndPetticoats
I used to have multiple reads going at the same time, but I've been taking a break from doing that for a while. I found that my focus is actually better if I am not bouncing around between different books. I feel if I am not in the mood anymore for my current read, it is probably symptomatic of something else; usually because I'm not really focusing on the book and so I become bored with it. The exception is that if I am reading a learning book, such as to learn a new language, or a book teaching me how to be a better writer, then I will of course have another book on the side that is for my pleasure and enrichment. P.S. I love discovering art, music, and other books through the book I am currently reading! I recently read Three O'Clock in the Morning by Gianrico Carofiglio, which mentioned a few books. But there was also a scene where the characters go into a jazz club, and the musicians are playing a piece by Miles Davis. I immediately got onto Spotify to play it while I continued to read that chapter. It was a beautiful experience.
I love how you can say that you tried reading multiple books, but that it just doesn't work. It's important to get to know yourself and what is best for you. Oh absolutely! I always look up such things, too. 🥰 Thanks for watching!
You gave us some great tips. Personally, I like to enhance my environment while reading by having music associated with the book in some way playing quietly in the background. For instance, I play early or Renaissance music if I am reading an historical novel set in that time or 1930s/1940s music if I am reading a classic detective novel. The music streaming services make it so easy to find just the right type to fit the book.
"There is no such thing as a good influence. Because to influence a person is to give him one's own soul. He does not think his natural thoughts, or burn with his natural passions." This quote really stuck with me, especially because I had been studying Emerson before I came across it, who is all about pretty much the same thing. But for the life of me, I couldn't recall where it is from. It turns out it's simply from Dorian Gray, which makes sense. I'm too lazy to journal about books, so I usually just mark my favorite passages, and sometimes I even forget to do it. However, this comes with the downside of not remembering where I read certain things. I feel like I shouldn't read so much. I feel like I should pick my 20 favorite books and just know them inside-out, that way my personal growth might actually ... happen. xD
First of all, I am obsessed with everything that Oscar Wilde has written. Good quote. Marking your favourite quotes is lovely - you can just pick a book from your shelf and browse through them from time to time. Eventually, you'll know them by heart! I know it's quite some work, but you could also type them out every time you finish a book. I get what you're saying about reading so many books without getting to know your favourite books inside out. It might be something you want to focus on. It's a beautiful thing indeed. ☺️
As someone who gets wondering brain more often than i care to admit, a trick i have to use to focus more while reading is to start reading before you watch TV or doom scroll on your phone. Ideally, the morning. Or it least after you’ve had a bit of a stimulant detox. I managed to get through about 50 pages ofWar and Peace in one sitting with this method.
That is great advice! You have to finish your reading before you grab your phone! ;) Did you enjoy War & Peace? (Or are you still reading it at the moment?)
@ProseAndPetticoats I enjoyed a lot more than I thought I would. Enjoyed the mini series as well If I can finish that bad boy, maybe I can finish Lovecrafts Necronomicon
Wow!!! I wondered if we would overlap a bunch, but you managed to have such insightful and fresh points throughout! So interesting and practical through and through. Thank you for these great ideas (and I love that we both appreciate the value of conversation regarding what we read)!
I have always had a hard time reading, loved it but it was always hard for me. Ended up getting diagnosed combined add/adhd and on top of that recieved some traumatic brain injuries due to work. So everything has always worked against me. But this past year I tried listening to an audio version while reading the physical book and its helped me tremendously. This isnt ideal for most people but I am fine with it. 😁 Great video as always!
I love marginalia and annotations, partly for later analysis but mostly because those actions help me stay focused due to my ADHD. Even simply highlighting key phrases or passages helps to an extent when reading purely for entertainment.
Great advice. I’m currently reading Ulysses. So much content and depth in that novel . Thanks for the tag. It will fit nicely with my attempts to read Ulysses. I’m not sure if you would be interested in, but I have a weekly livestream on Monday where I invite other booktubers to talk about books and stuff. Not everyone is comfortable with live shows but I think you would be a great guest host. The show is book through June and most of July. Please let me know if you would like to join.
Hi Greg! I'm so glad to hear that. Ulysses sounds extremely difficult to read... That is such a kind offer, thank you! I don't know if I would have something useful to add to the conversation. Do you have any idea what the topic would be? I would love to hear more. Feel free to send me an e-mail.
@@ProseAndPetticoats The show is informal. There isn’t any real fix topic except we talk about books and other topics that might come up. Occasionally guests do have topics to talk about but that only part of the show. I call it my Pub Night because it’s people gathering together and talking.
Great video! Reading outside your area of interest is a useful tool. I read a great book on abstract art and ended up with fifty pages of notes and a long list of further reading to do. Not what I was expecting in a very good way!
Using reading/anti-blue light glasses have helped me immensely, plus I read-a-long with audiobook versions of books I have in my kindle library. Whenever I can't read in silence on my Kindle, or listen to fitting music, read-a-longs are a huge help for me.
Thank you for this Emmelie! As I was watching this struck me that you must be a very organized person. Between working, music, writing, reading and just living life you clearly have a great ability to structure your life to be able to achieve your goals. This is a great skill in itself! When reading for educational purposes I find it best to read books that come from different perspectives on a topic so as to gain a more rounded and nuanced appreciation. I think this helps to broaden your thinking and helps you to draw your own conclusions about a topic. When reading for pleasure I find that if I not getting into a book after a few chapters then I think that this isn't the right book for at this time. I'm not saying anything very profound here (ha! ha!) but these are things that tend to work for me. 🙂
Thank you for taking the time to write this out. If I'm being honest, I must admit I have a hard time letting books go (especially when I bought them). I always think to myself: 'but maybe it will get better' 😉 and then I end up finishing a book I did not really like!
This comes at literally the perfect time as I am currently reading the first fairly challenging nonfiction book I’ve read since grad school and I’ve been having to figure out how to engage with it differently than I usually do with fiction. I’ve been figuring it out on my own but this really helps!
Hello Emily, Thank you for taking time to put this together - so refreshing! I’m a wimp when it comes to thinking about “goals” because of my quantitative associations with the word; yet I will occasionally buck up and allow myself to think in terms of “objectives.” You seem to be “a list” person. I generally perceive such people as being so well put together; unfortunately perhaps, I’m not one of them. And although, unlike you, I like annotating in my books, I will most always use pencil - and then seldom within the text itself. I also use 4x7 post-it notes or 4x7 vertically lined notecards. So tickled I am when an author writes something that resonates particularly well, and then they follow up with mention of another author - off I go finding out about that person (and book) as well… Thanks again Emily - I’ll be watching for more! ~Spike 🥸
Hello! Thank you so much for watching. Oh yes, I am a list person. Is it correct to say that you don't write with pencil in the book itself, but on your post-it notes? Do you let them sit in the book after you finish it?
@@ProseAndPetticoats // Emily - sorry for the confusion. I use pencil in the book on the margins. Rarely underlining within the printed text itself, I will bracket off sections in the margins instead. On the post-it notes or vertical notecards, I use pen. The post-it notes stick nicely within the pages; the notecards not so well, so I use fewer of them (and often slipped in the back). Thanks for your follow-up!
