Book club told me I was reading too fast and it actually fixed my hot takes

At my last book club meetup in Austin, someone finally called me out for always having the hottest takes on the characters. They said I was reading so fast that I was missing the subtle scenes where people show their real motivations. I was finishing books in two days and showing up with opinions that had no foundation in the actual story. So I forced myself to read a chapter a night for our next book, which was The Round House by Louise Erdrich. It took me two weeks instead of two days, but I caught details I'd normally gloss over, like the way the main character notices his dad's silence. Now I actually feel like I understand why people disagree with me instead of just getting defensive. Has anyone else had to slow their reading pace to stop embarrassing themselves in discussion?

2 comments

2 Comments

adam_robinson3d ago

I used to think people who took two weeks to read a book were just slow readers lol. But your post made me realize I've been doing the exact same thing flying through pages and missing the quiet moments that actually explain everything. Gonna try the one chapter a night thing on my next book, pretty sure my book club will appreciate me not sounding like a dummy for once.

jessec393d ago

Switched to one chapter a night a few years back and it changed everything for me. Now I actually remember what I read instead of just checking a box that I finished the book.