I’ve been in a mood when it comes to reading in 2015. I’ve been having 3 very distinct and reoccurring feelings about reading thus far. This post was originally kind of a mess when I started it a couple weeks ago — a bunch of random thoughts all pasted haphazardly together with cement glue like 1st grade Jamie would have done (she also really like to let it get stuck to her fingers so she could peel it off). I didn’t think it was ever going to see the light of day. Thought maybe it was just something I needed to get out for myself. However, after I was chatting with some lovely ladies on Twitter about it, I decided to take a look at it again and every thought kind of started to fall under these 3 distinct feelings. I’m going to talk about one over the course of the next 3 weeks to split it up because it would be massive (it’s already going to be too long because I’m overly verbose).
If you missed the first “mood” I’ve been in when it comes to reading, you can check it out here!
This second mood? IT HAS BEEN SO STRONG AND PERSISTENT THIS YEAR.
It’s the feeling of wanting to read things that nobody is talking about at all.
Here’s the thing. The whole reason I fell in love with this community is because I LOVED having people to talk about books with. And not just like vague “oh I like books too” conversations but ACTUALLY TALKING WITH PEOPLE ABOUT BOOKS WE HAVE BOTH READ. When you were so used to reading in isolation and then suddenly you have this whole community of readers it’s like you just can’t even contain yourself and you want to read ALLLLL the books that everyone else is reading so that you can talk about them. I love reading with people. Talking about the books we’ve read. I still love that.
But lately? I have been scouring my library for reads that nobody is talking about. Things that nobody have really heard of. Older books. Undiscovered gems. Even with the ARCs I get I’ve been gravitating to the ones people aren’t talking about as much. Now, that’s not to say I’m NOT reading popular stuff or semi-popular stuff. I SO AM. I just have been in this mood more and more where I want to read things that are a little more off the radar.
It might be the fact that after 5 years of blogging and being fed the same books as other bloggers, that I’m just wanting to reclaim my reading a little bit. Don’t get me wrong, I’m so enthused and excited about new releases (genuinely some of my fave books are new and well known) and all the opportunities I get. But something in me wants books for myself? Books that barely have any expectations built around them because really nobody is actively talking about them?
I DON’T EVEN KNOW IF I AM EXPLAINING THIS RIGHT??
It’s just been this feeling where I’d rather be stumbling upon something that I’ve never heard of myself than what is being promoted all around me. Sometimes it’s nice to read something that nobody is shouting about. That I can quietly read myself and then talk about it. It’s so fun to DISCOVER something. Even though I have a good balance of backlist vs. advanced copies in my reading diet and my mood is the real dictator of my reading, I still find that these past years my reading selection has largely guided by what I get sent/the new releases others are talking about and then I choose from that. So YES I am still choosing and discovering….but it’s different? It’s a pre-selected pool to choose from really? UGH, does that make sense?
I feel like I am not articulating myself properly today. COME ON WORDS. COME ON BRAIN. LET’S WORK TOGETHER. This mood is really hard to explain, whatever it is, but all I know is I’ve been drawn more to the stacks of unknown books of the library in search of that gem more than ever. It’s just nice sometimes to have something kind of to yourself that the whole book world isn’t talking about. As much as this is what I love about this community. And as much as I am just as excited about all the new releases/popular books as the next person.
So, I’ve been just letting my mood take my reading where it goes!
Has anybody ever felt this way? Or am I just reallllyyy in a weird mood?
meena says
Have you tried giving yourself a break from words? Maybe you just need to binge watch something on Netflix. 🙂
Jamie says
Haha I totally do that! I don’t think it’s that I need a break (I don’t read every day anyways). Sometimes, with reading, I just get in MOODS. Sometimes it’s a mood to read certain things. Sometimes it’s a slump to not read at all (so I don’t). I just run with it.
meena says
I understand wanting to read something that nobody is hyping up. It gives you a chance to discover for yourself. It’s completely new to you. So why can’t you just read forgotten gems? It sounds like thats what you want but aren’t really giving into it.
Jamie says
Oh I totally do! I have been. I just was explaining the mood I’ve been in and what I’ve been doing. Just trying to explain the longing I’ve been having (and have been giving into).
Cat says
This makes a lot of sense! I think I sometimes feel the opposite way: people will always say, Cat have you read [book that apparently everyone was supposed to read]? Ummm.. No.. But I did just read a really great historical fiction about a lost Caravaggio painting that was super awesome! I don’t buy books very often and the library I have access to is kind of like a paperback take a book leave a book, so new ones don’t exist exactly – I feel like ALL I read is the unknowns. But sometimes that’s awesome because sometimes THEY are awesome! You should go to the library and pick random ones! Judge by the cover or something fun! I guess it’s always good to get out of our “book comfort zone” and take a recommendation you never would have chosen for yourself or head to the dusty shelves or finally pick up that one everyone’s talking about.. Sometimes it’s great to be able to talk about a book and sometimes it’s great to be able to keep one to yourself! No wrong way to read, right? 🙂
Jamie says
I TOTALLY KNOW WHAT YOU MEAN. When I first joined this community I was like that. I had not read ANYTHING that everyone else had read…especially with YA. I was NOT a YA reader before I joined this community and it was a nice discovery!
That’s what I’ve been doing! Going to the library and picking out things that look good…AND NOT LET MYSELF LOOK AT GOODREADS OR ANYTHING TO SEE RATINGS/WHAT MY FRIENDS THOUGHT. It’s so fun just to wander the library or bookstore and pick up books at random!
Grace says
I think you explained yourself perfectly and I can totally see how that can happen. You just have to do ( or read) whatever feels right for you!
Jamie says
Yep! Anytime I get in any sort of “mood” when it comes to reading (even if it’s an “I don’t want to read slump”) I just let myself ride it out and do what I want.
Cynthia says
I do agree with you on this point. And maybe it’s because of NetGalley and Edeilweiss, but I generally see a lot of reviews for the same book at the same time. I do the same thing. Sometimes I intentionally look for books that haven’t been talked about.
Sofi says
The podcasts Books on the Nightstand and Literary Disco have some great book reccomendations that are off the beaten path. I know BOTNS has a segment that looks at older books that have been forgotten about. You should check them out.
Kristen@My Friends Are Fiction says
I totally get you! And yes, I do feel like that myself. I just read a book I’d not heard anything about and I ended up really enjoying it. It was sort of refreshing? I’m a mood reader myself so I can completely relate to being pulled my those moods. I hope you find the perfect book!
Shelumiel says
This is completely valid and I sometimes feel this way too! Much like my fondness of indie music, every so often I want to read something no one knows about. Like, zero, nothing whatever. Because the problem with social reading (and I mean, I LOVE TALKING ABOUT BOOKS WITH THIS WONDERFUL COMMUNITY) is that sometimes the intimacy between the reader and the book gets lost, you know what I mean? So yeah. Just read what you feel like reading, I guess? I’m a firm believer that more often than not we read books at the time we need to read them.
Stormy says
I’ve been feeling very similar lately! Now that I’ve been blogging for awhile, I feel like I’ve mostly “caught up” on all the big YA books everyone talks about(because I had read maybe two before I started blogging? I wasn’t a big YA reader then. In fact, I read mostly nonfiction with some classics). Now I often get the urge to discover more hidden gems. I still read a good chunk of hyped books, but I’m also trying to read the ones that have past mostly under the radar.
Candice @ The Grown-Up YA says
I get what you’re saying. Sometimes I think it feels like we’re all fed the same 20 books and we all feel like we HAVE to read the same 20 books and the only thing people talk about are those same 20 books. It’s almost as if we forget that there’s 20 million OTHER books out there to read. I really enjoy finding hidden gems but I also love going back and reading books that I missed out on when they were “popular.” Maybe it’s silly, but I find that I have more discussions about older titles than I do newer titles, mostly because my excitement reminds others about their excitement when they first read.
I really miss how I used to find books before I started blogging. I’d just walk the shelves and pull out covers that jumped out at me (I read lots of pink-colored books back then). Because of that method I found so many wonderful titles and hidden gems. Now I feel like all I do when I go to the library or book store is look for titles I already know of/that people are gushing about and ignore books I’ve never heard of. Definitely need to stop using this new method and go back to spending hours scouring the library shelves and find me some great hidden gems!
Tamara @ Tamaraniac says
I feel like this ALL the time. When I was younger it would be more like I would just read whatever I thought looked cool, but now it’s more like “well people say THAT is good, but I’ve never heard of this one and it looks cool.” I just like to give the less popular books a chance I guess, though it does lead to some pain when I read something AMAZING and I want to talk about it but not many people have read it, or if they have they haven’t talked about it much.
Michelle says
You are not weird at all. I know that I love when people comment that they are unfamiliar with the novels I am reading or going to read. It makes me feel good knowing that I am bringing some attention to a book that is not getting as much love as I think it should.
Also, if it makes you feel any better, I am getting a little exhausted playing the review copy game. I have let so many e-galleys expire in the last few months, more than I have in the last five years combined. My reading pace has slowed to nonexistant (for me), and while I still love to read, I find myself playing games on my phone first. I don’t necessarily like it, but I don’t want to force myself to read something when I am obviously not in the mood to do so.
Leah says
I have an entire shelf on GR dedicated solely to under the radar books! They’re my absolute FAVORITE when it comes t reviewing – I feel like I’ve discovered a hidden gem. 🙂 They’re also my super secret army of go-to recommendations for customers looking for a “good book.”
Orchid @ The Haunting of Orchid Forsythia says
Yes
Christina (A Reader of Fictions) says
Totally understand this feeling, Jamie. For the first time, I’m really less interested in getting ARCs. That doesn’t meant that I’m not accepting some, because I am, but I would be okay without them more than I have been in the past. I’ve been making an effort to read more books for myself, which I’m going to stick to, even if it messes with my schedule.
Though I’m still buying into a lot of the really popular books, what I’m finding is that I need to sneak read them waaaay early or the hype will completely kill the book for me. Either I won’t like it much when I finally get there or I won’t even have the urge to read the book at all. For example, I was so freaking excited for Mortal Heart, but by the time its release came I’d seen so much promo and hype for it that I just felt annoyed when I looked at it. If I hadn’t read ACOTAR in January, I imagine I’d feel the same about that. By the time the uber popular books come out, I’m worn out on them already.
Anna says
I miss reading in a vacuum SO. SO. much. Like, yes, my reading taste has been broadened by the online bookish community, in that when there’s intense chatter about a book I wouldn’t normally read, I’ll check it out and typically, duh, I like it. All the same, there’s something about getting to read a book without knowing anything about it that is wonderful. I had this experience last month, when I somehow read an ARC of Hilary T. Smith’s new book before any of my book friends. (Yeah, I don’t know how that happened either.) AND IT WAS SO GREAT.
One way I break up my reading and give myself something “fresh” is to take on a non-fiction book every month or so, because typically they don’t get at all as much coverage as YA and literary fiction do—at least, not in my bookish circle.
That said, it’s definitely tiring me out to see everyone reading all the same YA books ALL THE TIME, which isn’t anyone’s fault, but it’s still pretty exhausting.
TL;DR I feel you, lady friend.
Runwright says
Totally! I just have to read what I love. Too many years of mandated reading in school so now, even if I read something for a book club or something, I must have something that just satisfies ME.
Killian says
I definitely get what you mean. Sometimes it is kind of refreshing to read a book that you haven’t heard much about so you can go into it with no preconceived notions or bias. I think it is a bit liberating when I don’t go into a book expecting to either love or hate it. I also think it makes it easier to review because chances are nobody will jump down your throat and tear you apart if you don’t like it (which is part of the reason why I’m putting off reading Divergent, Throne Of Glass and a bunch of other YA books).
I actually end up doing this accidentally more often than not. While many of the books I read are loved by loads of people, those people tend not to be people who I interact with on the blogosphere, so by a total accident I actually end up talking about books they haven’t heard of.
Anyway, I just read whatever I want. I will occasionally consider buying a book if someone I respect loves it, but seeing as I don’t really ever have much money, and a large portion of whatever money I do have goes towards vinyl, I tend to just trust my own judgement and try not to give into the hype of whatever book is trendy or fashionable to read at the moment on the blogosphere. Great post and I completely get your point (don’t worry, you did make your point very well!).
Maraia says
This makes SO MUCH SENSE.
I used to spend hours at the library, searching for a stack of books to bring home. Now, even if I do go to the library to browse, I always check out the Goodreads rating and maybe a couple of reviews from bloggers before starting a book. This means I ALWAYS have some sort of expectations that come from outside influences. It’s never just “hey, here’s a book I think I might like, why don’t I give it a try” and then, ” wow, it’s really great, I’m so glad I read it!” There’s always pressure to like a book that “everyone” loved, small twinges of embarrassment for liking a book that “no one” liked, etc. Or sometimes I feel as though I’ve read so many reviews for a book that my excitement for it has waned.
Julie @ Keep Calm With Books and Coffee says
I do feel this way! I was just thinking about how when I was a kid I found and discovered books that I loved without any help from other people. I miss doing that. Even though I love reading blogs and getting recommendations, I’ve been trying to go beyond the community to find other books/lesser known books. It helps take some of the pressure off reading too. So I totally understand where you are coming from! I hope you find some great ones!
Emmy (Just the Books) says
YES! I totally get this. I’m actually in this weird reading mode this year since I haven’t really been around on social media seeing what people are reading — instead of reading what everyone else is reading, I’ve been browsing my own bookshelves and just reading what’s interesting. So what if it took me 34 days to finish one book? I really enjoyed it! And in between reading time, I spent time with family and got stuff done around the house, too. I kind of like not (for lack of a better phrase) “following the herd” when it comes to what to read. I found that before book blogging, I was quite good at jumping out of my comfort zone, and then book blogging helped me expand my horizons even more. Then I found that I was just stuck in this niche, this comfort zone of reading, and I knew that I had to break free of it. Trust me, it’s so great to just read what the heck I want, when I want! Go you!
Bethany says
I agree. I probably have 3000 books in my house — I won’t get rid of anything that I might read again and lately I have been picking up very old favorites (old Nora Roberts, Mariah Stewart’s FBI series, some of the light harlequins that I read as a teenager). The only problem is that I feel different about them than I did then. I usually don’t like the books that EVERYONE loves — The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Girl on the Train, etc.
Rayna says
I totally get this. Sometimes reading something that not many people have heard of or are talking about is refreshing. You can say, “Hey, I reviewed this [awesome/okay/terrible] book! You should come see!” Sometimes I feel like following the crowd can be boring or overwhelming sometimes. I just want to read what I want to read. Do what you need to to satisfy yourself as a reader.
Rachel says
This is so me like 99% of the time. I do read well-known books because I like to be “up-to-date” or whatever, but I also have this thing (in every aspect of my life) where I like to do my own thing and discover things for myself. One of my most favorite activities in the entire world is browsing at the bookstore or library and picking up whatever stands out to me at that moment. Sometimes I feel bad about doing this because I know my review probably won’t be as popular as it would be if I read a more well-known book, but now that I’m blogging again, I’m putting extra effort into making sure my reading dictates my blog and not the other way around. I can’t wait to see where this “mood” takes you and what books you discover!
Nerd says
I love to find overlooked books! Here are some of my favorite finds…
VIRALS SERIES: All of the books (so far) are absolutely AMAZING, but NOBODY TALKS ABOUT THEM. Why? It’s my fave series and I feel so alone…
THE STORY OF OWEN: DRAGONSLAYER OF TRONDHEIM: Not the best book ever, but the story is pretty unique and interesting.
Alexa S. says
I totally understand where you’re coming from, Jamie! There’s just something super special about finding a book at random (whether in a library or a bookstore), getting interested in it and falling in love with you do read it. I felt the same way when I first became a book blogger; it was so fun to chat with other readers about books I had read and loved before I even heard about them. While I do love that I’ve been learning about all these new releases because of blogging, I have definitely enjoyed reading some lesser known books and talking them up when I fall in love!