[LET’S TALK BOOKISH] When Are Reading Breaks A Good Idea?

Hello, lovelies!🍁 This is my first time posting a “Let’s Talk Bookish” post, I’ve been eyeing the thread for about two months and it seems proper to start, their topics are always so interesting! I will try to post every Friday from now on, let’s see how that goes¯_(ツ)_/¯ 

Let’s Talk Bookish is hosted by Rukky @ Eternity Books and Dani @ Literary Lion (topics for November can be found here)

So, let’s talk about reading breaks and WHY or WHEN they are good.

When is a good time to take these breaks? Whenever we want or feel like. There is no right or wrong time to take reading breaks. Take them when you feel you don’t have ‘anything’ to read, or when you have looked at your bookshelf and nothing seems appealing, or just because you feel like it.

Do you ever take breaks from reading?

I take a lot of reading breaks – intentionally and unintentionally, long and/or very short ones. Sometimes I don’t read books for days, I may pick one and read a page and put it down. There are times when I have 10 books on my ‘currently reading’ page but I don’t pick any of them for days.

What causes you to take a reading break and how long are they typically?

As a mood reader, many things can cause me to take a break: but most of the time is due to my mood. There is no right or wrong answer about how long these breaks should be. I think taking breaks is necessary, authors get burned from writing so much and I think as readers we get burned from reading. Imagine having a thousand books on your shelf but nothing seems good enough. This doesn’t mean you need to go and buy something new – take a break, watch some TV, listen to music, journal, write a mini-story, paint, change your room around, cook, clean your study/work desk, eat something yummy, sleep, go for a run, play with your pets, spend time with your family.

There are so many good reasons to take reading breaks and not push yourself just because you need to meet a goal, even if Goodreads tells you you’re a book behind. Everything will be alright! You will be back feeling happier, and ready to conquer the book world ᕙ(⇀‸↼‶)ᕗ

Do you think reading breaks help you to read more in the long run?

Yes, at least for me, after reading breaks I feel lighter and those books I put aside start to look appealing again(づ｡◕‿‿◕｡)づ. I don’t think it will get you in such a mood where you read two books in one sitting but it will provide you with a clear, happier mindset where reading becomes enjoyable again – at least for me. Sometimes I’m so ‘blah’ and ‘meh’ when I think about the books I’m currently reading and how I don’t feel like doing anything, so I don’t push myself. You may notice sometimes how my WWW Wednesday keeps having the same books over and over again, that’s because I don’t push myself to finish them if I don’t feel like it and I take a break from them, and finally from reading in general.

Right now I’m in a reading break, a short one or a long one, I don’t know yet but I haven’t read this week at all. It wasn’t planned, reading breaks are never planned for me but I don’t feel pressured because I haven’t read in one week. I have been watching TV, listening to music, laughing at SNL videos, and cooking.

We need to remember that reading is not a competition, that is okay to take a break – everyone takes breaks, even from the things we love. So, when you feel drained, in a ‘meh’ state, don’t worry you’re not betraying yourself or your books.

I didn’t mean to make this bookish talk so dark ಥ_ಥ also: I’m not shaming anyone who loves reading non-stop and won’t take breaks (sometimes I can spend months without taking a reading break), that’s okay if that makes you happy. But, in conclusion (lol, I feel like I’m back to school writing an essay ;A;) READING BREAKS ARE OKAY!

Do you take reading break?