- Hey everyone, I'm Hannah.
Welcome back to my channel,
and today I have the lovely Anna James with me.
- Hi. - So Anna is a author,
and also a book critic/reviewer.
- Book person, yeah. - Book person in general.
When I think about people that I know
who read a lot and know the most about books
and the publishing world,
like you, always come to mind. - Oh, that's nice.
- And I've been in a bit of a reading slump lately,
and I think it was a public
Twitter interaction, - Yes, it was.
- That then became DMs. - Yep, yep.
- I was just like, "How do I read more?"
I need to be able to read faster, or something.
And you were like, "I can't help with reading fast ..."
- Mm Hmm, but I was like, I do actually have
things that can help you read more if that is
something you really need.
- I do!
Unread, unread, unread, unread.
It's really sad.
- I mean I have a lot of unread books, as well.
There's like, no shame or judgement to not
reading in any way at all.
- How many books do you think you read?
- So, I reckon I read, at the moment, about
100 books a year.
- So, like two a week. - But it used to be more.
- So now I do a lot of writing but
previously I was a full time books journalist.
And I used to read about 200 books a year
when I was working as a proper literary editor.
- I don't know if this is going to be
one of your tips, but one thing that I've found
that really helps me,
and it seems so basic that this helps me read faster,
is actually running my finger along the line--
- Oh, okay.
- at the same time.
Like I feel like I go way faster
and I'm actually picking up the words
and what's happening when I'm doing that
versus just staring at the page.
- Right.
- Anna has basically come up with five?
- Yes.
- Five tips for how to read more
- More I don't know what they are.
So you can share them with me
and you guys.
And hopefully we'll all learn something.
- When I was writing these down, these all sound so obvious.
But I genuinely think ...
- But sometime we might need reminding.
I genuinely think that maybe it's just
if you consciously think about this
and actually do it.
So none of them are quirky or ...
- Okay, no, that's fine.
- But the first one is know what you want to read.
You have an evening that you want-- you fancy reading,
you want to go on holiday and you look at your
bookcases and you're like, oh but there's nothing
I really fancy.
I always know what I'm going to read next.
So when I get books in,
and I'm lucky that I get sent lots of books.
But I keep them in priority order.
And I really think that if you don't have your book ready
and the moment passes so quickly.
So have a pile of books that you know that you want to read.
With like a couple of options,
for like being in whatever mood you're in.
- Yeah.
Cause sometimes if you finish a book
you're like in that momentum.
You will wanna just like pick one up straight away.
Whereas if you then put that down
and then you spend a couple days being like,
ooh what do I want to read next, you've lost it.
- A habit sounds so dull.
but so much of it is habit.
Buying books when you see them, that you fancy them
and then keeping them.
And having them.
And having books on your shelf that you're excited
to pick up.
Rather than just sort of staring and being like,
oh I maybe would read a book but I have nothing to hand.
- Oh my god. I definitely do that.
And it reminds me staring at my wardrobe,
full of clothes,
and being like, I've got nothing to wear.
- Exactly!
- I don't want to wear any of this.
And I do that with my book shelf.
- Yeah, I have nothing to read.
Another obvious one, but actually when you do it,
makes a huge amount of difference.
I'd say this is the one that makes most of a difference.
And that is just use every moment.
So much of my reading is because
I always have a book in my bag.
And I read on the tube, I read when I'm waiting for
a doctor's appointment, I read when I'm waiting for the bus.
There's nothing wrong with going on your phone, obviously,
in those moments, but sometimes I think it's just
easy to do it because you just want to pass the time.
And if you always have a paperback in your bag
the amount that you will get through ...
I can read a book in a week
and I've never sat and just like read it
at home on the sofa.
I'm just reading it while I'm on the tube
and I'm doing things.
And I know that Lena,
she basically only reads on her commute.
And she reads a huge amount of books.
So much of it is just an active choice.
- Yeah, it's like in that moment
where you would normally reach for your phone,
reaching for a book. - A book.
- This one, I think you'll like,
because you like, you know, you're very productive
because of them.
- Tell me.
- So have goals, basically.
If I have to read a book in a short amount of time,
I read it in 50 page chunks.
And it doesn't have to be 50 pages.
But if you sit down to read ...
- And you go, I'm not stopping until I've read 50 pages-
- Right. Or two chapters.
Because I think a lot of people--
I was watching your video where you read the first chapter
and you were getting sleepy. - I was getting so sleepy.
- And I think that if you sit down to read
and you're like, I'm just gonna read,
it's really easy to get distracted or
to just, oh I'm going to go make a cup of tea.
Or I just feel sleepy.
And I think if you say no, I'm going sit down
and I'm going to read for half an hour
or maybe 20 pages is a better example.
Because 50 pages is when I really need to read a book fast.
And you just get through stuff
if you give yourself a goal.
And then linked to that is making lists.
- I have a spreadsheet - I love lists.
of books that I have read. - (gasp) Oh my god!
- I wanna see the spreadsheet.
Because I have just a general list
and then I also have my book shelf.
But, oh my gosh, tell me about your
categories on your spreadsheet.
- So it's really deeply nerdy
and it is also quite publishing oriented.
So there's a lot of just publishing details
about lists, and who published it,
and when it came out and things like that.
But it has title, author, gender of author,
and I also keep track of how many rights of colour
I'm reading. I just realised I was reading books
almost entirely by white women,
a couple of years ago.
So I try to consciously make sure that
I'm reading more diverse things.
- I also can't really remember the last time
I read a book by a man. (laughing)
- I mean, I don't. I keep track of that more
to just entertain myself at the end of the year
by how few books by men I have read.
And it's also you can just know what you've read.
And I think that people forget what they've read.
And it's nice to see the patterns that you form
and what you're drawn towards.
And there's a level of satisfaction.
And also you can like, no I have read that many books.
And I read three books that actually I really really loved.
- Do you think there's any benefit in having a goal
of how many books you want to read in a year?
Because people have different opinions about this.
- Yes. I--
(both laughing)
Personally it's not how I would approach it.
I think that it's obviously not something
that is morally or ethically wrong in anyway,
it's just personal preference.
I am aware that I see people kind of beating
themselves up for not getting to those targets.
And I just think that how can that help you
A: read more or B: like have a positive approach to reading.
Part of the reason I read so much is because
I just uncomplicatedly love it.
And I am not chastising myself if I--
I keep track of how many books a year I've read,
but I don't feel any pressure
to get to a certain number or judgement .
And also like sometimes books just take longer to read.
You know, if you read like the Luminaries,
which is an 800 page novel, that's slow going
or you read a graphic novel,
both of which are brilliant, enjoyable things to read.
But they take a different amount of time.
And I don't know if a number of books
quantifies anything useful.
Read with a purpose I put this one.
This is things like, so potentially it's join a book club.
I can't be apart of book clubs
because I'm too annoying.
- (laughing) That's some great self awareness there.
- So I'm not going to join a book club.
But you could join a book club.
Although other people-- it's a risk other people.
So the other version of that is
pick a book with a friend that you know and like.
Or use things like Book Prizes.
So most people don't, you know the Booker in August
has just been announced.
Obviously most people, you don't read all the books
on that long list.
But what you can do is look at the long list
and pick out the one that appeals the most to you
and then say, well I'm going to read it
by the time the short list is announced.
So many people, I feel,
read books that they don't like that much
because they don't know how to pick things
that they are going to like.
- What's your opinion of stopping half way
through a book that you're not enjoying?
- I am all for it.
And my last tip was basically
read without any judgement or rules what-so-ever.
There is just no-- it's supposed to be fun.
It's not a chore.
(laughing)
Because as soon as you apply rules and structure
it can take away some of the fun of it.
Which is why we read.
and I absolutely believe in stopping books
that you're not enjoying.
Because life is too short to read,
not necessarily bad books, but books that
you don't enjoy.
- But just ones that aren't bringing you joy.
- It's not actually important to read more.
It doesn't make you a better or worse person.
This is me telling it to myself rocking back and forth.
- Yeah. This is like if you would like to read more
because you enjoy reading
and you struggle to find the time.
That's what this is about.
It's not saying that you should read more.
It's saying if you feel like you would like to read more,
this is maybe some ways that you can find the time
or gives yourself ways of thinking about reading
so you can read more.
- So you have some recommendations.
- Yes. So I tried to think of three books,
that there's no such thing as a book
that everyone will enjoy, but I've tried to
think of three books that I felt
had a fairly broad appeal.
The first one I don't have.
The first one is called, Daisy Jones & The Six.
Which you might have seen
doing the rounds at Kmart quite recently.
Daisy Jones & The Six is a novel
but it's written through kind of like
imagined interviews with the members of a band
that are Fleetwood Mac-esque.
- Oh okay, so like legends.
- Yes and it is about how they got successful.
How the singer, Daisy Jones, kind of got
involved in the band.
And then they had this gig and after that
they didn't, they went their separate ways.
And it's like piecing back together what happens.
It's incredibly readable but incredibly good.
I love books told in lots of different narrative voices.
The other two I've got is this one,
An American Marriage. - That won the Women's Prize.
- That just won the Women's Prize.
- And you bet money on it.
- I did.
(laughing)
- I'm so insufferably smug about it.
But this is also one of those books
that I would just recommend to almost anybody.
It is about a marriage, as the title suggests.
It's about a young couple
and the man is accused of rape.
And he goes to prison and it's just after they got married.
And it's a young black couple in America.
And it is about marriage and race
and the way that you change and evolve.
And a lot of it is told through letters.
And again, very very readable,
but it is also tackling really big
and very timely subjects.
It feels like a book that just
is a good one to read in 2019.
And the third one is Station Eleven.
- A friend of mine has just finished reading this
and has been raving about it.
- This is a dystopian novel.
But it doesn't necessarily tick-- it's not what you expect.
It's flashes between a sort of, now like time,
with a virus that is spreading around the world.
And then in the future we're in the after math
of what has happened.
The other narrative is about, basically,
what do you live for and is survival enough?
Is just existing, is that enough?
And how the world might put itself back together
if a virus wiped most of us out.
This is the proper, can't put it down,
will read it in a small amount of time.
- And do you want to plug your book?
- I just happen to have it right here.
This is the first one that just came out in paperback.
It's called Pages & Co. Tilly and the Bookwanders.
And it's a fantasy, adventure series for, kind of,
eight to twelve-year-olds.
- And she like steps into books and stuff.
- Yeah.
- It's all that language you use about getting lost
in a good book and books can transport.
So like what would that look like
if that was all literal.
The language we use like, plot holes, and stuff.
- What would-- - Whoa! That's cool.
- But yeah, thank you so much - Thank you.
for the recommendations as well.
Just like more books to add to the TBR.
Where can people find you online.
- Oh I am @acaseofbooks almost everywhere.
I'm @acaseofbooks in Instagram, Twitter.
I have a YouTube channel that I sometimes
talk about books on.
- Yeah so if you want more book content
go and check Anna out.
Thank you so much for watching.
Please do give the video a thumbs up
if you enjoyed it.
And let us know, in the comments,
if you've got any other tips for how to read more.
Find the joy in reading rather than making it
like this competition with yourself.
And also if you've got any other book recommendations
that you think are as universal as possible.
- Obviously there's no such thing really, but
some books are closer.
- Yeah, exactly.
Don't forget to subscribe and hit that notification bell.
And I'll see you in my next video. Bye.
- I feel like when I think of people that I know
who read a lot and like know the most about book--
and ... book?
Just book.
(laughing)