Until a few years ago, I read books “the normal way,” which meant choosing a book, reading it to the end, and moving to the next. Occasionally I would abandon a book, but only after agonizing over it for several nights. Books for school or work didn’t count; I always had one — and only one — book that I was reading for myself.
The way I read books has shifted gradually, but has crystallized into something that feels idiosyncratic. I now read books chaotically; when I find time to read I pick up whatever appeals to me at that moment. I’m only called upon to explicitly give up on some work when it’s due at the library, otherwise I simply abandon a book through neglect, when I’ve forgotten that I’d been reading it (this doesn’t happen often). I tend to have 3–5 books in rotation, but there’s no rule about that. I instead make an effort to have a mix of fiction and non-fiction, and at least one story that’s “easy to read” along with something more “literary.”
As a person with ADHD, reading this way mirrors my approach to other projects. The salient difference is that I actually finish books, whereas most of my other projects stall out before I see them to the end¹. I suppose the discrepancy might arise from the fact that it’s easy to know how close you are to finishing a book. There might be a lesson there about how I ought to plan projects...
Anyway, not only do I actually finish books, but the pace of my reading has increased dramatically. My Bookwyrm account² shows that I’ve finished 9 books in 2026, but that doesn’t count at least 11 of the “easy” books I’ve inhaled³. I have friends (mostly librarians and people in the humanities) who can finish 100 books in a year, so I know these numbers won’t impress everyone, but the numbers aren’t important — my goal is not to read more per se but to be more intentional about my media consumption. When I used to find myself slogging through a book that was good but challenging, I’d also spend more time mindlessly scrolling on the internet. Now, I have other books to which I can turn. I even wised up, finally, and loaded a few (fun and straightforward) reads on my phone. Now I have better choices when looking at a phone is my only option.
I’m curious how many people have stumbled into a similar approach; nobody with whom I’ve talked reads this way but I’m sure I’m not alone. I’m also sharing this in case it’s useful for anyone (especially with ADHD) who wishes to spend more time reading. You’re allowed to read whatever book appeals to you in the moment. Pleasure reading needn’t tax your executive function!
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¹ At least the hobbyist ones. Home repairs don’t count, but these are extrinsically motivated.
² https://bookwyrm.social/user/mycorrhiza
³ This isn’t a judgment of their value; they’re fun books and I liked them. I’m just not concerned with listing everything I’ve ever read on Bookwyrm, and these have all been sequels in long-running series. My favorite use of Bookwyrm is to capture recommendations I get from friends and internet acquaintances. I wouldn’t bother tracking my reading publicly if this wasn’t part of the Fediverse.