I Love To Read?

I told myself that this summer I would read as many books as possible. Since I've gotten home I've been able to read pretty consistently and I have finished a few books, but I realized that I'm not that happy with the way I've been reading. Every time I start a new book I seem to get burnt out a little over halfway through. The story becomes boring and the pace slows. Instead of staying up late into the night finishing just one more chapter, I find myself falling asleep in the middle of a page.

When I read more than a few chapters at a time, I tend to start skimming quickly as if I'm rushing to get to the end. I have begun to feel that each book is a race. Every chapter is another hill to climb before I can finally reach the finish. For the most part, I struggle to reach the top of the hill without taking multiple breaks on the way.

When did reading become such a chore? I used to love to read. I hoped that each new book I began would never end. For hours I would sit with the book and read, getting lost in another world. Books were more like a vacation than a hobby. Each offered a new adventure and most of the time I never wanted that adventure to end.

There's something different about reading now. With so many new books to read it begins to feel like I just need to rush through them and get to the next one. It becomes harder and harder to just sit still and enjoy the story. And getting transported to another world? Forget it. I'm lucky if I even partially connect with the characters.

This post was supposed to be a review of The Thirteenth Tale, but I can't write an honest review. I loved the book when I first began to read it and all I wanted to do was find out what happened in the end. I really did want to follow the story along and read as slowly as possible to take in as many details as I could.

Unfortunately, the same thing happened to me all over. When I was less than 100 pages from the end I began to get that nagging feeling in the back of my mind. The little voice that says I'm taking too long and I need to finish the book already. Once that feeling started, I couldn't get back into the story. It began to feel boring and I just wanted to rush through to the end. Last night, I fell asleep with only ten pages left and no desire to find out how the story would end.

The next book on my list has been sitting on my nightstand for days. It has been staring at me as I struggled to maintain my interest in The Thirteenth Tale. The never ending list of books that I want to read is actually preventing me from enjoying reading.

Does this ever happen to you?

** This song basically sums up the feeling**