how to get my brain back into reading?

[Bells3032]

I used to love reading. got easily get through 2-3 books in a week. but life happened - work a full time job and have a toddler but when i get into a book i still love it. but only book i've read in the last year is Homecoming by Kate Morton.

Any recommendations for what to get into next to try and get me back into my books and away from tiktok?

I've always been very eclectic in my reading from Kate Morton to Sophie Kinsella. Not a fan of fantasy or romance but beyond that everything going from murder mystery, mystery, fluffy, dystopian, historical etc

Anyone else been in similar circumstance. what got you back into reading?

Do you like travel books? My all-time favourite is A Time of Gifts by Patrick Leigh Fermor. It's his account of walking across Holland and Germany as a teenager in the 1930s. He's just such amazing company.

Bill Bryson's A Short History of Nearly Everything is my favourite science book of all time. Perfect for the average div (like me).

A few novels I really love:

Evelyn Waugh: Decline and Fall
Thomas Hardy: Mayor of Casterbridge
Dickens: David Copperfield
Truman Capote: In Cold Blood
J G Ballard: Empire of the Sun

What works for me (especially when I'm busy and knackered) is a very easy read that gets me back in the habit. Something fun or gripping - not light and fluffy but not hard going either. The ones that spring to mind from the last few years are Lessons in Chemistry, the Ruth Galloway crime series, and People Like Her.

Have you tried audiobooks? They can feel more accessible when life is busy.

Something good quality but short.
Something you've read before and enjoyed.

Short chapter books are great for this.

I listen to books. I listen at night when falling asleep, when doing housework or when driving. It means that I can 'read' a book, when I don't have time to read, if you see what I mean.

I also used to read four or five books a week, then my marriage broke up and the resulting depression meant that I literally lost the ability to read. Moving into audio means that I can feel I'm still reading. I also joined a book club and having to read one book a month has also helped me. I don't like attending the club when I haven't read the book so I tend to force myself to read and then enjoy it more than I thought I would.

Some books I've really enjoyed in the last year or two are:
Demon Copperhead - Barbara Kingsolver
Kala - Colin Walsh
Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow - Gabrielle Zevin
Trespasses - Louise Kennedy
The Institute - Stephen King
Cloud Cuckoo Land - Anthony Doerr

I’ve been feeling like you for a few years. Children, busy job etc. I decided I wanted to focus back on reading again and have been recording my books in a journal. I'm only reading what’s on my shelves or in charity shops and have read 23 books already since January. I make a conscious effort and put my phone in another room when I’m reading. I’m also not making myself stick with anything I’m not enjoying.

Short stories? They give you lots to enjoy / ponder and take a fraction of the time ... Cat In The Rain (Hemingway), An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge (Ambrose Bierce), anything in Labyrinths by Jorge Luis Borges ...