I like to read books all at once. Front to back. My husband finds this bewildering and cannot for the life of him understand how/why I do it. I believe this to be a good thing… most of the time. However, I’m finding it hard to read now that I’m back to working (so far everyday of the week). I don’t want to start a book before bed because I’ll have to get up early in the morning and therefore cannot stay up all night reading. I don’t want to start it in the afternoon because I do need to spend a little time with the hubs. So how do I teach myself to only read a few chapters and put the book down?! Has anyone else had to teach themselves how to do this? What did you do to break yourself of the front-to-back reading habit?
I don’t have that problem. I can read one or two chapters at a time and come back to the book weeks later. I usually try to do that only to non-fiction though. With fiction, you end up having to read the book over again.
Maybe you can try fitting in a chapter or two on your lunch break or your commute home. That way you have to put the book down. Good luck!
I love being able to read an entire book in one sitting, but life often gets in the way. At night I have to give myself a cut off time that I must stop or I’ll be unable to get my daughter on the school bus the next morning. This usually works, unless I’m close to the end. Then I blow off the cut off time and pay for it in the morning.
During the day, I try to sneak in a couple of pages or chapters wherever I can. My 2 smallest children are very good at making sure my attention is on nothing but them, so when they get up from a nap, the reading time is over.
If I know I’ll only have a short time, I’ll pick up a shorter book, giving myself a better chance of being able to finish it before 3 am.
Discipline? =P
When I was younger, my mom would always interrupt me and make me do chores in the middle of a book… so I’ve learned how to stop myself. Sometimes I will put a bookmark at a certain point in the book, and only read until that spot. And also, you have to prioritize and put certain things above finishing a book in one sitting. It’s not like the book is going to disappear on you. And putting the book down gives you something to look forward to (finishing it!).
That’s a good idea! Maybe if I read when HAVE to put it down I can teach myself to do it when I don’t have to.
Thank you!!
I’ve tried to cut-off time and I never follow through lol. Maybe I should work on smaller books during the week. I have no idea how you read as much as you do. I’m very, very, very impressed!! I think I need to cut back my computer/TV time quite a bit as well.
That sounds like child abuse
Hmmm I should try the bookmark thing. I just HATE cliffhangers (as you may have noticed). It’s not just about finishing a book all at once, but I’ve gone without sleep for days to read a series all at once. I think I have reverse ADD.
I can only read during my breaks at work or at dinner at work, so I can really only get one or two chapters in at a time.
I really wish I could read a few chapters at a time. Something I’m really trying to work on