If my mother were to judge books based on the author's skin color, I might hate reading too.

Sounds really interesting. Thanks, I've added it to my list.

I prefer to buy if I want something specific. The library in my area doesnt have everything and there are often long holds on popular books (forget about ever taking out an ebook). Once you get a book, you are time limited on how long you can spend with the book. If I want to go browse around with nothing particular in mind, I go to the library. The library is a great community space with lots of amazing resources and I deeply support libraries but that doesnt factor into my decision.

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I almost exclusively borrow books from the library. I still have a few books left over from when I was buying books, which I plan to read and release this year.

A few reasons why I switched from buying to borrowing are:

-It's free, I don't have a tight budget, but it makes no sense to me to pay for something I can get for free.

-There is no guilt if I DNF a book, if I start a book and don't like it, I just return it early.

-I don't need to create space for a large library. For many years I had several large shelves of books, but we moved to a smaller home, and now I have a single small shelf that is more than enough space.

-Dramatically reduces the chances of my binge-buying books that I'll never read.

-I rarely reread a book, so borrowing means I don't have to decide what to do with the book when I'm finished.

My system for buying books is simple, if there is a book I want to read and I can't get it from the library, I buy it, usually as an ebook or audiobook. Although with InterLibrary Loans, there are few books I can't acquire from my library.

I rarely annotate a book, but when I was reading a lot of nonfiction for work I found it best to read the book first (which could have been a loan) then if there was enough valuable info, I would purchase a copy and make my notes.

The one negative about borrowing from the library is not always being able to get the book right away. It took me some time to get my system of holding books so I always had something available to read.

I adore the Stravaganza series by Mary Hoffman. Read them when I was a teen and I still love them, and yet I've never known of anyone else whos even heard of them

I think it's just inexperience. Like anything, you get better with practice.

As people have suggested, try reading a summary, but experiment with reading the summary before you read the section of the book.

Also many people hate this because it destroys books but if it helps it helps - try reading with a highlighter and highlight key phrases. It helped me understand marx in college so maybe it will help you too.

I'm predominantly a library user for a few reasons: minimalism, frugality, and just generally not wanting to kill a tree. I pretty much only buy a physical book if there's no other way to read it.

I would try audio books. I use audible and it helps tremendously with trying to focus because all the characters are dramatized. Some books are even read by the authors themselves.

I find with certain dribbling on writers I do that (and don’t go back) if I keep reading and it feels I missed something then I go back Change writers for less dribbling or just accept that’s what you do and own it 😊😉

Depends. If it’s a popular book with lots of holds on it at the library and I am really interested in it, I will buy it. On Apple Books sometimes you can even get a free preview of books so you can try reading that before buying it to see if you’ll like it. I also like to buy the popular books because if the book has lots of holds after me, I am unable to renew it for longer and therefore only have 3 weeks to read it and I’m a slow reader and don’t like rushing through a book because I have to or having to return it before I’m done.

If it’s available right away at the library and it’s a book I’m not sure id absolutely like I will borrow it from there.

I'll note these down, thanks for sharing! Would you say that Margaret Atwood writes some books that might fit in the magical realism genre?

Thank you kindly, you've given me a lot to think about :)

I'm not a huge nonfiction reader, but one thing I do with my school textbooks is to get a bunch of sticky notes (the small, thin kind) and whenever I see a sentence or paragraph that's important, I put one in that spot, then go back later and take some notes.

I feel like some people I know enjoy to borrow because they like to see, even based on the condition, what it’s been through like how many people enjoyed it. A bit of an aesthetic effect more but, for some of them, it definitely has an added value. For me personally it depends what it is. If it’s an educational one that I’m genuinely interested in then definitely buy, if it’s a fiction just for a good read and letting my mind explore then borrowing is a good option too.

I've got plenty on my shelf to read and I've been supplementing that with visits to the library. I recently borrowed We Own This City by Justin Fenton and the hardcover is rather eye catching. It sure would look good on my shelf. Maybe I'll order a copy for myself with my tax refund this year.

My favorite of hers, by far is And Then There Were None. A simple yet complicated story, anyone could be the killer and such a great twist at the end.

I almost never comment on here but Christie is one of my favorite authors. Another one that I read recently was the mystery of the Christmas pudding. A few short but sweet stories.

If you're bothered by it, then you could use a bookmark to guide your eyes. I tend to accidentally skip or re-read lines because I lose my place on the page. So, I started using the bookmark to underline the line I'm reading (with a physical book) and that helped me. Doesn't really work with e-books though!

That’s one of the major downsides to renting for sure haha. I’m just not sure the benefits of buying outweigh the risks.

Read murder on the orient express. It’s so good !!!

I find 1. Audiobooks help most. I personally digest information better that way. Some folks will listen to an audiobook with the physical copy in hand as well. 2. I’ll write down only what I want to remember if feel is important. Little aha moments. Or a line that reminds me of something. Or a book suggestion in the book that the author has read or is referencing. I’m certainly not filling pages and pages on one book (though you could do so).

I have a nice, but boring job, state reports and all. I listen to audiobooks while I work. Since I’m working I don’t, and probs shouldn’t be writing all that I find important while reading. So I’ll rewind where I need to and screenshot my screen, so that later I can go back and re listen to or write down what I liked about that section. But this could possibly take the stress of writing it down immediately while reading/listening. Put one of those little reading sticky tabs on the edge of the paragraph you’d like to return to. You can write it down at a time in your day when you want to!

3 I think information starts being retained when we listen to/read more sources of the same topic. To the point that we can talk about a new subject without needing to reference a book or google a subject. If you truly want to retain information, repetition is always key. Weather that’s thru writing, listening, or both.

4 It’s ok to not retain it all. I used to worry about this so much. I wanted to be smarter, to be “smart enough”, etc. but it became a source of stress. Not a huge one, but enough that learning kind of became unenjoyable.

So, without minimizing your problem, I’d say just read what you’d like to and don’t over stress about what you’re retaining! Hobbies should always be fun!

I do this. Not all the time, only if there's a really tense section with a visible break. It bugs me, but I just accept it, and go back and read from where I skipped.

Why stop doing that? As I kid I used to skip to the end of books and read the last few pages just so I knew what to expect, then I’d go back and read the rest. I don’t like the artificial tension of fiction so I don’t read it much anymore but when I do I still speed-read through or skip over the parts before the big tension break. Then I just go back and re-read whatever I missed.

I don’t have those issues when I read non-fiction, even narrative non-fiction which flows similarly to fiction. You might want to give that genre a try.

NYC here. Library. Space and availability (one of the best library systems in USA)I've actually borrowed books I donated. Lol. Take my kid there, librarians a big help with suggestions. Kid activities. And I made a new local friend 2 yrs ago.

i hadn’t thought about that, renting and then buying. comparing my TBR to what’s available at my library though, not many options haha