How to read more books

Recently I started posting on social media the books that made a strong impression as I read them, and a friend of mine wrote me asking how do I manage to read so fast, especially taking into consideration how busy people are with their jobs, family and social life. I get asked this question quite often, so this post is an attempt to answer this question. 

I want to start by writing that I do not include the easy tricks that can be used to get the reading frequency up (there are plenty of blogs and vlogs about that issue already), since I do not see reading as a competitive sport or a way to self promote oneself. Some of these tricks include switching to shorter reads (thinner books), switch to audio books, divide longer books into their equivalent partial chunks (like some people could divide Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings into three books and count each one of them separately, for example), include work or study literature on your reading lists, etc. In some cases it can be justified (literature about laser technology is both work and pleasure to me, or some editions of long books are naturally divided into relatively independent tomes), but remember that the goal is not to impress your neighbors. 

So here they are:

1. Choose your books: this is maybe a bit controversial to some, but this is something I found out that it is maybe the most important factor. Choose your books well! I generally only read books that I am really interested in reading, and I drop the ones that I am not very invested on. Life is too short to read bad literature! This makes me a bit biased towards classics and well established authors, but well, if people  bother to read something that is still being republished after 200 years, than it must be really interesting. I generally do a thorough research about the book beforehand, sometimes to the point of spoiling the plot, but better to know the ending and still be interested in reading it than to drop a book midway because it bores you. If you are really interested in a book, than you naturally want to go back to its reading whenever you have the chance. That makes you read fast and enjoy it. 

2. Prioritise reading: I have to confess that my house is a mess, I eat a lot of fast food, my career could have been better if I used more time and focus on it and I could potentially have a better social life. But I love reading. So I prioritise it. I purposefully set aside at least half an hour every day to sit down and read, either in the morning before going to work, or just right after, or before I lay down and sleep. It is important to get a routine of reading and make it a daily habit. You (probably) shower every day, right? Why? Because it is important to you. The same can be said about reading. So make time for it.  

3. Immerse yourself in the book, make it into an experience: each book is a piece of art. It took someone a lot of time, energy and will to write the work that you are reading. Respect the effort! I generally use time to research about the author, about the time period, the geographical setting, the context of the book, etc, in parallel to its reading. Each book is an opportunity to learn something new. Even fiction novels potentially have unique insights about human psychology or perspectives that are outside yourself, and that should be cherished. I often like to read local literature in the places I travel to. Because it is easier (and kind of cool!) to understand the context of a novel in the same place where they were written or where the action of the narrative happens. You get a personal relationship and perspective to the location, the book and the author. Or I watch youtube videos about the theme of the non-fiction book I am reading. Many books are also adapted to cinema or theatre. It could be fun to watch them in parallel. Sometimes I even take notes and reread them after I finish the book. 

4. Switch between themes and genres: Related to the first point of this list, I rarely read more than 2 or 3 books in a row about the same theme or in the same genre. I find it important to alternate often between fiction and non-fiction, between history and science, between languages, between "classic" codex format ,graphical novel and audiobook, etc. The objective is to not get bored or fed up with a theme. Variety is more important than depth, unless it is something that you are very particularly interested in. The depth of a subject generally comes with time, because when you rotate between themes and genres, you are bound to return to the same after a while.  

5. Always have a book with you: modern life often implies wasted time in transportation or waiting times before meetings and events, that people usually fill with social media or internet browsing. Why not using that time to read instead? I always carry a book or two in my backpack everywhere I go, so that my literature is always at hand. Or maybe listen to audiobooks while jogging. Travelling is certainly the perfect time for reading, with all that dead time sitting in busses, trains and airplanes. I enjoy slow travelling exactly because it gives me so much time to read. 

6. Join the club: fortunately there is nowadays plenty of opportunities to join a local (or digital) bookclub or literature event, where you can meet people who are equally interested in books as yourself. That helps with motivation. Reading a work in parallel with someone else and discussing it is very rewarding and it forces you to see it from different perspectives. It helps you remember what you read. It can be a form of social bonding. If you live in a (bigger) city, it is also possible to attend presentations or public discussions in your local library, literature center or university institution. This connects well with point 3 of this list.  

7. Keep a record: This one is not an absolute necessity, but it can help. Keeping a log can motivate some people, because it makes them realize that they are building up a knowledge bank for themselves. I also find it much easier to remember the content of a book when I see it on a list. Or writing a short synopsis or critic on a website could help you remember the book's content.Some people gamify their reading when they put it on a list, by feeling that they should improve their "score" with time. But be aware that it can also backfire and have the opposite effect. It can be demotivating for some to see that your colleague from work reads three times more books than you. There is enough in social media to stress ourselves with. You can keep your log private or public. A public record may have the advantage of attracting the attention of people who enjoy the same themes or have read the same works as yourself, and then it connects this topic with point 6. 

Regarding public records on social media, just remember this: yes, I read 50 books per year. But my house is always a mess and I dress like a 16-year old and most of my colleagues with the same level of education earn more than me. There is no perfect life. People just post on social media the positive sides, so that distorts the perception of their life. So if someone is good at something, they are less good at something else. Time is limited, so it all depends on what you prioritise. So avoid comparing yourself with others. Reading many books is not a goal in itself, it is a result of someone's very nerdy hobby. Better to remember the 5-10 books you read than read 70 and do not remember anything after. Or be bored by them. Do what you think it is fun for you.