I always see some people here claiming to read HUNDREDS of books a year. I just wonder how you can find so much time as an adult.
You read at work? Well not possible at most jobs. I have to be constantly there – physically and mentally. Also I have a taxing job – after work I am just exhausted and cant concentrate.
Reading at home? Well not really possible with a family and adult responsibilities. You have to cook, clean, do groceries, pay the bills, be there for wife and kids, repair something in the house, visit friends and relatives, squeeze in some training etc
I watch TV only like once a week or so and I dont game but with work + adult responsibilities I have only a limited amount of time to read. If I manage 20 books a year im happy.
And then when I read people claiming 100+ or 200+ or 300+ like how? Unless their life is nothing else than reading I just cant fathom these numbers.
by Tiredworker27
37 Comments
I don’t have a life so I just try everything to numb my brain. I read two books, one at work and one at home.
I’m not a good person to take examples from.
The same way as people find time to watch TV or play video games. It’s their primary hobby.
You get good at things you do frequently.
Nobody asks where a college student gets all the time to play football when they get drafted to the NFL.
I use audiobooks, maybe that’s what they do, because damn…that’s a lot words to read
I have a job that requires me to drive around the city for my whole work day. I listen to audio books while I’m behind the wheel and it’s a great way to “read” books.
I use audiobooks so I can read while I do chores and exercise.
I’m a fast reader. I don’t watch much tv, I commute by train so I read there, and I read after work. Sometimes when I go out for walks, I’ll listen to an audiobook. It adds up fast. I don’t have kids & don’t live with my romantic partner but see her often.
The content/prose/complexity of the story can change the pace of the reading. If I’m reading a lighter story (ie YA or a romance) instead of something more complicated like Dostoevsky or a big chunky epic fantasy, the book goes faster.
Honestly I don’t get how most people don’t read at least 25 books a year. 🤷
Yep, audio books. But before I started using audio I was also happy with the amount of books I got through, as long as I enjoyed them. Quantity doesn’t really matter to me but if it does to you, audio could be your friend.
I probably get through over 200 a year, though I don’t really keep track as it’s just my entertainment and I use my library so don’t have to budget for it. But with audio I can continue my story while doing so many mundane things. Multi-tasking, sortof.
Yep, audiobooks while commuting to work. I listen at roughly 1.5x speed. I finished a book in 3 days this week.
I read 1-2 books a week. I read during breakfast, I read at lunch, and I read in bed at night. I just got into the habit
It’s important to find time for yourself for activities and hobbies, even if its just 15-30 minutes a day.
Talking to friends is done during work hours. Exercise during lunch hours (wfh job). Kids are mostly grown and busy. Husband works nights and sleeps from afternoon to early evening. I don’t watch TV. So, my nights are usually spent by myself, reading and gaming during the week. More importantly, I read absolute garbage books usually that aren’t challenging and are just a way to pass time.
I’m lucky, I can read at my desk (not that anyone knows), at my lunch break, and in between commercials at home, and sometimes when I’m in the car, as a passenger.
I do audio books, but I also read instead of watching TV. That’s probably the main thing. So some nights I’ll spend like 1-2hrs reading.
Recently got a Kobo and I’m finding I read much more. For instance when I’m cooking and hanging in the kitchen it’s much more convenient with the e reader then holding a paperback or a hard cover
My full time job is in an office, and I have a 45 min commute each way. I listen to audiobooks while commuting + during the day while working. I can finish anywhere from 2-5 books weekly.
I also listen to audiobooks while cooking or doing chores at home, and even sometimes running errands. Love an audiobook at the grocery store.
I also have a weekend job where I work at a very niche retail supply store, and I usually bring a physical book/kindle to read in my down time. I usually finish 1 book per weekend.
When I have downtime in the evenings I usually try to read a couple chapters instead of scrolling on tiktok.
I read 100-150+ books a year. I’m a fast reader and I have insomnia. I go to bed at 9pm and read until I can’t stay awake, might be 2 hours, might be 5! I also read to fall back to sleep if I wake and can’t drop back off.
I’ve been physically reading the same book for month, in the same time I’ve probably listened to more than a dozen audiobooks.
A surgeon I worked for read like 200 books last year. I asked her how she had time for it & she said she had a kindle & would read whenever she could. I’ve read 7 books this year so far & I’m in college too so it would be way higher if I didn’t have to read so much for my classes. I just read in the morning, on my breaks, & every night before I go to bed.
Admittedly, 100 books a year is a lot. But the time you spent posting on Reddit you could have read more… there’s your answer. Priorities.
I just read fast. I go to work, do my chores, pay my bills, exercise daily, visit friends or family most weekends.
I do dedicate most of my leisure time to reading, so how do I have a relatively high amount of leisure time with all the above?
– I live in a tiny studio flat because I’m poor.
– I don’t have kids.
– I work from home so no commute.
– I exercise at home so no journey to and from a gym.
– My friends all live nearby.
I didn’t have kids and I’m pretty introverted.
Finish work at 4.30pm, get all house shit sorted by 7-8pm, easily 10 or so hours a week reading
I’m allowed to listen to audiobooks at work. Getting paid to do what I love.
Audiobook during commute. Or during household chores.
Don’t forget this ‘n-books-a-year-trend’ comes from booktok. We’re talking girls who are very inattentively reading dumb short romances with formulaic plots which ChatGPT could’ve written in an extremely unchallenging vocabulary. Moreover most of these books have fluffed up paper and more white lines and page breaks to thicken the thing up. It’s the sense of reading literature, while having none of the actual thinky stuff.
Audio books,
I’m not as fast as others, but I can probably finish 1 a week. If I want, and if I like the narrator and the content.
I started reading on the kindle app on my phone instead of scrolling on socials to waste time. I listen to audiobooks while I drive to and from work, while I cook dinner and clean, and while I go on walks. I also read at night instead of watching tv. I don’t have kids so my home time is my own.
I just read on my lunch break, and a little bit before bed.
Working from home helps because I can pre-prepare lunch. Less time cooking – more time reading!
It really depends on lifestyle. I’m disabled, live alone, work from home, and rarely socialize. So I have a lot of time on my hand and not any other real hobbies to speak of. So I read a lot. For someone with your lifestyle, it’s completely natural that you can’t read a shitload of books.
Nowadays, the biggest time thief, by far, is smartphone/social media. Would try to limit it as much as possible, if you want to get more time for books.
I listen to audiobooks as I work and have dialed back TV and video games to read more. It’s just a choice of hobby. Don’t put too much pressure on yourself to meet goals, because I promise it stops being fun if you treat it like a job.
At minimum most days I read on my breaks, so I get 30 minutes. I’ll also read during meetings and just during the day when I want (my job does not matter). I also try to read for a bit before I go to bed.
Depends on what you read. I can read 2-3 YA or simple prose book in the same time i read a more dense book.
HP book 1 takes way less time then LoTR book 1 for example.
Audio books. Don’t watch tv. Read on my phone.
Depends. I have more time now as an adult than I did in my early 20s so I usually end up reading on weekends and in the evening.
Long ago I used to just read at work. I read all the fine books, Douglas Adams, and anything I could get m hands on. I’d read pdf’s of the books on my computer while at work for the longest time.
I watch quite literally no TV. Not because I’m against it or anything, it’s just not a pass time I enjoy! So any TV time is dedicated to reading for me. I also don’t really play a lot of video games anymore. Reading is my main hobby along with learning embroidery, doing puzzles, etc.
Perhaps they spend less time worrying about unverifiable claims from strangers on the internet?