Life is full of little decisions which in the short term can be insignificant, but at the time can make or break your day. An example of this is cooking dinner. Get it right and you’re on cloud 9.5, mess it up and the rest of the day is, well sh*#!.
Picking a book can be a similar feeling. We have a limited amount of motivation, but reading a good novel/ autobiography doesn’t detract from that. Instead, it adds to it. It leaves a feeling of security that no matter what life throws at you, that on any given Monday you can escape into the mind of a world-class athlete or imagined alternative world to escape the humdrum of everyday life.
You become attached to the characters you meet. Develop a friendship with them, rejoice in the ecstasy of their victories, recoil in the agony of their losses and are genuinely sad when it’s time to say goodbye.
In a way it’s like chasing a high: as soon as you get your fix you are left longing for more, although hopefully without the other issues. It can be hard to replicate the feeling of finding a book that is entertaining enough to stop you from reaching for your phone, pulsating enough to keep you engaged but also challenging enough to ask questions beyond the ones in black and white on the page in front of you.
But like all good things in life there's no one tell tale sign to inform you that you've struck gold. Instead you trust your gut and when you know, you know.
On the other side of the page, we’ve all experienced what it’s like to trudge through a publication that we’d really rather not have to read. It doesn’t have to be downright awful but sometimes reading a book, whether it’s for college or for a book club (ahem), can be like eating three-day-old lasagne. You know you don't get any real satisfaction from it but you put your head down and barrel through it. Afterwards, you’re unlikely to feel better but sometimes needs must.
Sticking with analogies, reading a bad book on your own is like being in the final throws of a relationship that has run its course. You question why you’re doing it to yourself, you know that there are other, more suitable books out there but if you stick with it long enough it could come good.
You know from experience that going “ on a break” doesn’t work and if it does come to an end then there is no coming back. It’s final. End of discussion.
The aftermath can be brutal. You tell yourself it’s the book's fault but not so deep down you know millions of others have gotten through it, but what stopped you? You look at in on your coffee table or bedside locker and wondered where did it go wrong and although you may try to get back in contact with it, something unshakeable has come between you two, something that can’t be, well shook.
So with all that in mind, choose your next book wisely, it has more of an impact on you than you think.
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