Submitted by Successful-Design972 t3_zz098g in books
Not to be mistaken for second book syndrome, next book syndrome as I have so confusingly named it is when you struggle to enjoy the book you are currently reading cause you reallly just want to read the next one. This could already be a highlighted thing but I’ve just gotten into reading and it has become a massive issue for me. I was just wondering if anyone else suffers and if there is a way to deal with it. So help, please.
Personally, its a comfort and a curse. It usually feels like a curse when it is a series and taking a break may mean forgetting key information. I'll just try adapt to your much more healthy and positive mindset lol
Trying to figure out what to read next is literally the only thing I hate about reading.
Pick up the next book. Maybe you need some time away from the book you’re struggling with or now just isn’t your time to enjoy it. I usually have several books in rotation because of “next book syndrome”. I just avoid reading multiple books in the same genre or with similar plots/themes.
Yea I was hesitant to this but it turns out it's fine and have 3-4 book books going at one time and it's much more motivating to read.
This is what I do too, usually in different formats. For example right now I've got a SF book in paperback (7th in a long series), a fantasy on my Kindle in airplane mode to read slowly, an Agatha Christie novel on my cell phone kindle app to read quickly, and an autobiography on my Libby app in audiobook format. Bonus listening to A Wrinkle in Time on my Libby App to see if it's age appropriate for my kids. It basically becomes setting specific what I read or listen to.
This is what I was going to suggest! I always have at minimum two books going because my spouse and I read together every night (so basically I have my book and our book) and when I am in the middle of reading but getting that feeling of wanting to move on, I just do it. Most of the time I go back, but sometimes the time away is enough to help me realize I am not feeling something. I read for fun, so why torture myself for fun?
Having said that, I should confess that my spouse and I just picked up Antkind to read together next year, so I guess I'm OK with a little torture in good company, haha.
Antkind is actually tentatively the book I am feeling this over. Sewer, Gas, and Electric: The Public Works Trilogy isn't as weird and trippy as I had hoped. Its obvious nods and homages to Illuminatus! only emphasize how sane and low risk it actually is. Meanwhile people seem to struggle to describe Antkind the same way I do Illuminatus! and it has me riled up. But I'm gonna ignore the advice posted here by a few people and make myself finish SGE: TPWT. Seeing books through is an important part of my reclamation of reading from trauma. And I want to have as much context and detail as possible to work up a good analysis of the book's--thus far increasingly problematic--"electric negro problem" and other race issues.
I think I will do this, thanks.
I have bookmarks in like a dozen books right now. I can read parts of 8-10 books in a week. That's probably more than I should. But, I do it. I used to think I was crazy for doing this. But, I recently saw a youtuber say this is actually a good strategy to always be reading. If you stick to one book, you may have a day where you aren't in the mood for said book. We don't force ourselves to only watch one genre of TV, or only listen to one genre of music at a time.
Having several books going at once, means you should always have one you'll be in the mood to open at some point in the day.
I came here to say the same ... OP, what's preventing you from picking up the next book?!
I have this problem sometimes when I read several books in succession that are fine, but not great. It feels like I just keep hoping the next book will be "the one." This was happening to me recently so what I did was paused reading new books and decided to re-read a comfort series (Harry Potter in this case). I already know I like it and it is long enough that I haven't had to think about what I will read next for a while. It feels kind of like a reset for my brain.
Can't wait to find a comfort series, sounds very helpful. Ignoring my already problematic TBR which started this thread do you have any recommendations that could fufill that position?
Depends on what kind of books you like to read. What is a series you have read before that you really liked and wasn't too mentally challenging to read?
I think one of the things that makes my "comfort reads" comforting is that I have already read them before, so I already know I like them. But also they are long or a series, so I have forgotten some details that I get to rediscover. And it just blocks out a decent chunk of my future reading time so I stop trying to organize my line up of next books to read.
Probably mort, so I guess discworld could be one, haven’t read any other ones though.
Not who you replied to but two of my favorite books are all creatures great and small and Watership Down. If you search the suggestion subreddits for best or favorite you will find a wide variety.
I’ll have a look, cheers mate.
From what I understand, I think your difficulties with enjoying your current book might be concerning whether you have a "good book" to follow this book with. I don't think you're currently reading series, because knowing what book is next is pretty simple. (For that reason, The Earth's Children series was agonizing: I think the shortest time between books was 10 years) If you have a "TBR pile", it's kind of comforting. If you don't have a physical pile but a list, that's fine too. But, learning how to enjoy your current book without worrying about what to read next is only a decision you can make. And something you'll learn as you go on reading. But, I think mostly a decision. If a worry starts sneaking in, remind yourself, "I have another book to read after this one. It sounds interesting, too" then keep reading. Good luck.
Fear of missing out is not limited to books. It is a big problem in our overly connected world. Every choice precludes others and there are more excellent books than can be read in a lifetime. I just add books that strike my interest to my to read list on good reads but I am currently reading down my collection that I own.
Opportunity cost sucks.
Sometimes I wish I could just inject books into my veins, especially series.
I can't read just 1 book at a time. A lot of times I am really enjoying a book, but I'm just not in the mood for it, but I still want to read. Sometimes I get really bad book anxiety and I need to put the book in the freezer for awhile. (metaphorically à la Joey on Friends)
Not to mention that certain books (Non-fiction or classics) I prefer to read in small doses, whereas other books I read them straight through.
Sometimes I even do this thing I call Round Robin where I read a few chapters from each book that I am currently reading in a row, and when I finish I circle back around and start over.
I realize that this might not work for everyone, but I find it very freeing.
That "Round Robin" sounds interesting for sure. I guess it could also be adapted to only moving on when it gets a bit stale, I'll definitely give it a go. Thanks!
I kind of have the opposite problem, where I really LOVED a book and I’m too bummed to start another one because it just won’t feel quite the same.
I usually have a couple of books lying around and I pick up the one that I'm in the mood to read.
I have last book Syndrome where if I read a good enough book it's all I can think about and end up wanting to read something similar.
I've found that re reading a book tends to cure it. Maybe try that.
>I’ve found that re reading a book tends to cure it.
THIS. My approach is usually read the book then listen to the audiobook, and I don’t know what it is but it gives me a good feeling of closure. Ended up doing it with three books this year.
Usually I'll read more than one book at a time so I don't have this problem exactly, but if I've ordered a book and it's been shipped, sometimes I can be too excited to read what I already started.
Because what I want to read shifts, I read up to a dozen books at a time. To avoid confusion, I read dissimilar books; different story types and character names. I have stopped all other reading to finish a really good book. I did it yesterday to finish Notorious Sorcerer, by Davinia Evans. Her first novel, first in a series, just got better and better all the way through.
I think this is a just sign of being really excited to read a lot of books. Presently, the world constantly throws headlines and short articles at you, and in turn, you read them and move on to the next one, forgetting most of what you read about yesterday or last week. Longform writing and books that demand my attention are some of the most rewarding experiences I have ever had. There is nothing quite like finishing up a great novel. I used to get the feeling you describe a lot and I occasionally get it now. This feeling usually creeps-in after I browse through my stacks of books or visit the bookstore/library then return to my current book.
What has helped me is to realize that I probably felt the same way about the book I'm currently reading while I was reading the previous book. It's a feeling of unsatisfactoriness that rears it's head quite often. To get rid of this feeling, I tell myself that the other books don't matter and go ALL in on the character and situation happening in my current book. I read the next few pages carefully with all my presence and usually this is enough to get me back in the zone and the pages fly by. I refocus whenever I feel I'm trying to finish a book to move on to the next.
I think... if you're not enjoying the book so much that you're looking forward to the next one on your list, pause your current book. Read the one you're looking forward to, and then come back to it. Or if it's just not doing it for you, DNF it.
Try not to race through books because you want to get to the next one for accomplishment or numbers. Enjoy what you're reading :)
I’ve been getting this lately. I think the main issue is typically i wasn’t overly enjoying the book i was currently on. So I’m starting to just move on when this happens.
This happens to me so much.
I suffer from this in general. I throw the first song of an album on, and before it's over, I've got some other album I'd rather listen to. I'll throw a show/movie on streaming and immediately regret finalizing a choice and go back to browsing.
Like others said - pick up the next book! And maybe once that one is done you'll have a hankering to go back and finish the previous one!
If you're not enjoying what you're currently reading, just stop and move on to the next book. No shame in that.
I feel like this is an issue if you’ve got a mindset of only wanting to check off the next book on your TBR. Just focus on one at a time!
Mmm. I have Kindle unlimited and I usually do a bunch of searching and build up a list then go through them and repeat. I have a bad habit that if a book isn't that great and one of the other books looks more appealing I put it down and don't muster the interest to pick the first one back up after I finish the second.
Oh! I was going to guess it's when you read a great book and then simply cannot find your next book for a while because you just put down something profoundly well-written, unique, and/or touching.
This syndrome I've described usually accounts for my reading hiatuses and also helps me really marinate on adored literature.
I find that I struggle to read my current book without a second book to look forward to. Although, while reading Evenings by Gerard Reves I will admit that I was anxious to read Baron Wenkheim's Homecoming by Lazlo Krasznahorkai next - that anxiety might have spoiled my enjoyment of Evenings somewhat.
I get this syndrome rarely, when I'm working through something that I'm sort of nonplussed with (I only read one at a time, and have never been one to stop reading once I start).
Recently I read The Other Emily (Koontz, because it was free on Amazon and I thought, hey, sometimes I like his books). By about midpoint >!(when it kind of jumps genres about four times)!< I started thinking, "well, this isn't outright horrible, but I'd sure rather be reading ... something else."
In this case, the something else was Children of Time (Tchaikovsky) and let me tell you what. Not thinking I'd rather be reading something else.
I get this a lot when I'm rereading a series, simply because I like the second or third book more than the first one. It also happens when I'm reading a series for the first time and I can't wait to see what happens to the characters.
​
This might seem crazy but I like to open up to a random page in the next book and read it. Keeps me on my toes wondering how the characters got to that stage and encourages me to read my current book so that I can get to the next one!
I get this bad. It's a big reason i rarely read full series. I need to start a new story.
Hmm, I have the opposite problem. I usually love my current book and think I could read any book now, but when I finish the current book and start a new one, it feels meh.:-( And then I have to spend the next few months finding a new book I like.
Yeh sometimes the mere promise of what the next bool can be sounds better than the current one cause it is filled with potential and excitement and really not just the next book but mostly next anything can seems a lot more alluring but it can also be a sign that you’re more exited about the next book and/or a bit bored with the current one if it’s not a constant occurrence but happens sometimes with some books.
I’m stuck at the moment, having started a new sci-fi series on Kindle Unlimited which seemed at first to be a lightweight, easy read. Turns out, it’s getting better with each volume and I’m fully invested. The trouble is, I’m on book 11 of 86 in the series! But I keep picking up other books that take my fancy, including Xmas presents; can’t put down the series I’m reading, don’t want to take a break, lose the thread/lose interest because I genuinely want to see how it finishes, but I’m also itching for the titles in the growing pile! Too much choice, and only so much attention span! 🤣
[deleted]
I’m constantly struggling with this. I’m a horrible mood reader so even if I’m enjoying my current read, I’ll lose interest if there are other books I discover that I’m really interested in.
Sometimes I’ll try putting other books out of sight so I don’t constantly see them when I sit down to read. I also have a “tbf” shelf for books I like but lost interest in at the time so I can go back to them one day (hopefully lol).
I struggle with this in series where I've been spoiled on future plot points and I just want to jump to juicy stuff already. Can't say that there's a solid "fix" for this, but I've managed to force myself to keep reading and remind myself that just because there's juicy sturt ahead doesn't mean that the current stuff isn't worth reading.
And when the next book I was excited about doesn’t meet my expectations I get big sad.
[deleted]
lucia-pacciola t1_j28out4 wrote
I've been reading a while, and for me it's a comfort to have more books lined up, instead of knowing I'll need to flail around to find my next one after this one is finished.