If you read 50+ books a year, how do you do it?

[Pigtailsandall]

I admit, this is just me being nosy, but I'm hugely impressed and astounded by people who get through 50+ books a year. I'm interested in how people do it- during what gaps in your day do you read, do you have many books on the go at once, do you have time for other hobbies? In other words, what does your reading day/week look like? Are you a fast reader? Do you read evenly throughout the year?

My goal is to read 24-26 books this year, essentially one every two weeks or so, and I know come summer months I'll struggle to keep that pace as life will get busy.

Agree also. One audible. One kindle

Def is.

would you tell a blind person using an audio book they're not reading?

Yes it is.

@Youcancallmeirrelevant I am quite a fast reader but it would take me a lot longer than 2.5 hours to read a 350 page book. I think you must read extremely fast, which is not realistic for most people. Also, I think with some books it would be a pity to whiz through it like that and not appreciate the language and the atmosphere. It would be a shame if people felt discouraged because it took them longer to finish a book.

@Youcancallmeirrelevant I am quite a fast reader but it would take me a lot longer than 2.5 hours to read a 350 page book. I think you must read extremely fast, which is not realistic for most people. Also, I think with some books it would be a pity to whiz through it like that and not appreciate the language and the atmosphere. It would be a shame if people felt discouraged because it took them longer to finish a book.

Read on the train to work, instead of watching TV in the evening, use multiple formats like e-books so I can listen while walking the dog or in the gym. I can also up my weekly average with a holiday!

I not only read a fair bit, but am writing a novel while working full time. Early mornings, evenings and weekends basically.

I read about 100-130 a year.... always have done! I love American literature and can easily read a book in an afternoon. I don't watch much TV...I go to bed at 9 and read before bed.

I have had long fallow periods when I have only read magazines and Mumsnet. Forgive yourself for that; your brain just needs a rest or a reset.

Firstly, you need to ease yourself back into reading. I always start with re-reading easy old favourites - mine are Jane Austen, PG Wodehouse, and Agatha Christie.

Then I go in with new books and use post-its to mark up seven sections per book - ie days of the week. Naturally a short book such as Orbital can be read in a day, but it evens out because A Suitable Boy will take several weeks. So long books are for weekends and holidays, and short books are for commuting, and if I read one marked section at least I’ve always done a daily minimum.

I always read for an hour before bed - it’s essential for killing insomnia. Then on the tube and when waiting around to collect the offspring from activities. I try to use real books as I find I retain more information than when using a Kindle.

I would just recommend downloading Goodreads and setting yourself a challenge for the year on it. It tells you how ahead or behind your target you are.

I used to read easily 100 books a year, that was when working full time but before the internet.
Having children slowed it down to under 20 a year.
Now I am retired and DC grown up I'm reading just under 50. I've made a really concerted effort to read more instead of scrolling (and yet here I am faffing on MN instead of reading).
I can't get on with audio books and only read on kindle or kobo. I bought a second hand kobo which I only use for library books and out of copyright free books.

What helps me read more?
I DNF very quickly if I don't love a book within a chapter.
I am unadventurous and stick mostly to genres I like.
I can speed read but I don't do it all the time.

Yes - I use the storygraph app, you can set challenges on there to and it also produces lots of lovely different graphs telling you about what kind of books you've read and things.

It also recommends books you might like which inspires me to try new books

I have a very fast processing speed so about 100 pages in an hour is the right speed for me to feel fully immersed in the book (for me it's a bit like being on a movie set when I read). I have a 40 minute commute and I read then twice a day. I'm also not a massive TV/screen person so I tend to read when the family are watching in the evening. Early mornings at the weekend when I'm doing chores I might have an audio book on if I'm in the mood. Over the year it averages out to about a book a day but it's rarely as simple as reading a whole book every single day. Of course I read much more on the holidays!

I am a fast reader. Last year I read 229 books. So far this year I have read 27.

I read a lot, I take my kindle with me to read instead of scrolling on my phone while waiting for people, on the bus, lunch time etc. I also don’t sleep well so often read instead the night to try to make me sleepy.

I read about 80-100 books a year.

i don’t really watch tv.

i include audiobooks in this which i listen to on my commute for minimum of 1 hour per week day.

i read an actual book at the same time.

i read everyday.

i could probably read a lot more if I spent less time on my phone.

I read a lot. I don’t watch much tv. My son is non verbal autistic and I need to watch him all the time but he likes to do his own thing so I usually read my kindle around him, so I am there if needed. I probably read a book every couple days. Sadly I also get a lot of migraines and if i am feeling rubbish reading is the best distraction .
I wouldn’t put pressure on yourself to read , just do when you can. You have a small child! It’s very different if you were retired.

I did in my 20's, generally by heading to bed around 9pm and reading for anything up to 3 hours. No smart phones in those days with time wasting doom scrolling. Also working in a library gave me first dibs on all the latest book releases!

Now rapidly heading towards my 50's and lucky if I can get a book finished within 3 weeks via our councils elibrary app.

Really wish I could get back to the days of finishing a book over a weekend.

I read about 85 books last year - mostly I read super fast but when I find an author I love I will tear through every book until I’ve read them all.

I read when having lunch, read if I’m treadmill walking, read when everyone’s watching TV and we’re all on the couch, read for half hour before I sleep.

I read 70 books last year.

I read 8-10 books on holiday. We go on holiday 2-3 times a year for 10-14 days at a time. It's my favourite thing to do, no washing to sort out, food to prepare, cleaning to be done - total guilt free reading.

I read quite quickly, will pick a couple of short stories and often read an audio book (autobiographies) when I'm out walking, so that bumps the numbers up too.

I read everywhere, when I eat my meals (apart from with my partner) take my kindle to appointments and will grab 10 minutes whenever I can. Read every night before bed.

I retired last year so my reading has increased slightly (still doing ad hoc work here & there). I will read before watching TV. Sit outside and read when it's sunny.

I worked in a library while I was studying for my masters it was amazing - I would take home a big bag of books every shift and then tear my way through them around studying for my masters and other work

It was my favourite job I think (apart from some customers looking down their noses at me for some inexplicable reason) . I loved creating displays and helping customers find books that they could only remember some vague detail about. Everyone who worked in the library was brilliant and well read and we had the most wonderful conversations about books

I don’t count how many books I read, but it’s a lot. I read in the bath, before bed, and when I wake in the night. If I go on holiday I take half a dozen paperbacks and hope there’s a book exchange in the hotel.

The length of the book is a huge factor. Anyone reading tomes like Middlemarch, Daniel Deronda, War and Peace and A House for Mr Biswas will likely read fewer books than someone reading novels of 100 to 200 pages.

I recently read a couple of Penelope Lively's shorter novels in one day, I couldn't do that with War and Peace.

True. I tend to read a wide mixture over the course of the Year from tiny novellas to weighty tomes.

I remember my English teacher in year seven telling me off because I hadn't read a book a week like I was supposed to. When I pointed out that was because I had been reading the Grapes of Wrath while my peers were reading Sweet Valley High she just looked at me blankly. My mum had to take a copy of the book in to show it to her

I have two small DC, work full time and read at least double that figure, probably more. I love reading, always have, and always have a book on the go. Having a Kindle helps and I'll often have it in hand as I do housework! Recently though I've been reading less and more time doom scrolling so really trying to get back to reading as it makes me happy. Also want to challenge myself more with the content I'm reading.