Friday, June 13, 2014

The Art of Reading Multiple Books

It's no secret I love data. And I'm OCD. So I especially love data that I can track for historical trends. Which are just a couple of the reasons I love the site GoodReads. It lets me track what books I've read, what I thought about them, which ones I want to read, plus all that info about what my friends are reading, too. (If you are a reader and you aren't a member, you should be...) This week I noticed something that seems insane even for me: my "currently reading" list contains FIVE - yes, five - books. And yes, I'm actively reading all of them. Which certainly begs the question: How do you read five books at the same time?

I'm a gadget geek so I have an iPad, an iPad mini (that I grudgingly share with the family), and an iPhone. Well, two of them actually since I also have one for work... but I digress. And I've got books on all of them. (Don't judge, I know I'm addicted and that's the first step. Or so I hear!) Here's my secrets to reading multiple books at a time:

First, I'm always reading a book on my iPad via my Kindle app. I've got at least one of my iPads with me at all times and, if I've got a minute of downtime, I'm reading. Sitting in waiting rooms at doctors offices or my monthly lab visit, eating lunch at my desk, wherever I find myself sitting still for more than a minute, I'm reading. I also end my weeknights with a chapter (sometimes more) in bed right before I turn off the light to go to sleep. Plus my favorite; over morning coffee on the weekends.

Next, I've always got a book I'm listening to on the Audible app on my iPhone. At minimum I listen when I'm commuting to and from work or any time I'm alone in the car. If it is one I am super involved in, I've got my headphones on listening while I'm doing mindless things like vacuuming, dishes or laundry. Sometimes I love the current Audible book so much that I get caught up on all my laundry and find myself wishing I bought clothes that required ironing so I'd have something else mindless I could be doing. I also listen to my audio book whenever I'm walking/running unless I'm with a friend.

I'm usually working on the monthly book club selection in conjunction with my own leisure reading. Which means that the week or two before book club I've either got two audibles or two ebooks I'm splitting my time between. 

Lastly, I've usually got at least one book I'm reading in print, lying somewhere in the vicinity of my desk at home, that I'm not reading as quickly. Currently, that book is a grammar book. Yes, I'm a geek who reads books on grammar. But, I'm a writer so it's okay. Don't judge. This is usually a book that I've either picked up in print because that's the most affordable way to acquire it or someone has lent it to me. Or, it's the book we are reading in my book club at work. We read a chapter or two at a time and discuss weekly. Because of this slower pace of discussion, it can also be a slower-paced read which works out well.

Typically, these four situations are the norm. My 'currently reading' list always fluctuates between three and four books. Guaranteed. Right now, my life is beyond the normal level of hectic since I'm working on a new certification at work. This means I'm also trying to read a textbook cover to cover in a matter of weeks in preparation for testing. Five is not a normal load of reading but that's how it is right now.

I look back a few years, when I was lamenting about how I could barely manage to read a book a month to keep up with my book club, and chuckle. In true overachiever fashion I figured out what ways I could multitask those things I have to do in life with the things that I want to do. Reading is essential to my happiness so I found the means. What things do you make time for regardless of how crazy your life gets?

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