Hey do you guys also count rereads in your reading challenge? I have been but I didn’t know how everyone else does it?

I’m re reading this before I move onto the second novel in the Earthseed duology to refresh my memory on what happened in a different format.

I forgot how much I enjoyed Lauren’s dad’s message about teaching people how to survive instead of scaring them about the ills of the world that may come for us. It’s a luxury to go about this method, though. They are a lot of situations where people are past being too scared to address the dangers looming.

I love these books!!

For many years I've only borrowed ebooks from the library, not physical copies. A few weeks ago, I started going to the library after work to read for an hour or so before heading home, but I've always brought my own book with me like a weirdo. 😂 Yesterday I wandered through the fiction stacks a little, and I pulled some print copies of books to check out. (Sincerest apologies to my TBR.) It was wonderful to walk out of the library with a new-to-me stack of books, FOR FREE! 📚

Now my new obsession is going to be checking out print copies. 😂 I realized that my library system has some print editions of books I want to read that they don't have in E, and if I put them on hold they'll be sent to my library branch for me to pick up when ready. This is basically magic! 💖

So libraries, thank you for free access to lots of amazing books, and for giving me a place to chill when I'm not yet ready to go home and face my chores. 🥰 Librarians and library workers, thank you for all of your hard work!

Hello Boundlings!

I wonder if anyone else has run into this before. I'm reading an ARC that' s a short story collection. I want to post my thoughts on each story as I go. But I can only make 5 posts a day, and this collection has 15 stories. This is particularly difficult as I'm the first person to be posting on pagebound about this book. I'm not concerned about the points, but I would like to make sure each story gets its attention. But I do find it tedious to have to write my thoughts elsewhere and only post 5 each day until it's completed. Does anyone else have any thoughts about this, or is this something that is being worked on?

Reading goals are a great way to stay motivated with reading and encourage you to pick up a book. Streaks help to motivate you to pick up a book when there is a day where you do not wish to read.

However, I have found that it also becomes quite pressuring and stressful. In my opinion, the worst thing to do with a hobby is to force yourself to do it. If there are days where you do not feel like reading, forcing yourself to get through a chapter for the sake of a streak/goal starts to make the hobby feel more like a chore.

I have been in a reading ‘slump’ that lasted over a year, and recently I have found myself in a bit of one again. My reading progression has been a lot slower this month. But I found that it is okay to be in ‘slumps.’ Sometimes you need to take a break from your hobby, focus on some other things for a little time. Read at your own pace, read when you want to. That is what kept my love for books.

Forcing myself to get through a chapter had made reading miserable for me. I used to set page count goals of getting through 50 pages before I could put the book down. But why? why set those goals instead of reading what you want to in that moment? So I scrapped those goals. I started reading 20 pages because I wanted to, sometimes went as far as 70 pages because I wanted to. Reading is so much more enjoyable for me when I just completely ditch those goals and follow what I want.

I used to force myself to get through books quickly, because I thought it was embarrassing to have the reading dates on my reviews show that I had spent more than a week reading that book. But why? there is nothing wrong with going at your own pace. I also used to get embarrassed to see I had ‘only’ finished 4 books in a month. But why? there is nothing wrong with picking up what you want to, rather than what you have to.

For these reasons, I will no longer participate in reading goals/streaks. I want reading to remain a hobby for me rather than a chore. I want it to be something that I want to do, not need to do. I don’t want to feel embarrassed at seeing the amount of books I finished in a month compared to other people. Reading goals are great for a lot of people, but for me they do not work out.