Thoughtful Thursdays: Sometimes I Don’t Like Reading Thick Books (and why)

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Because of the way that every sensible blogger does posts like this, I’m sure you’re expecting a short, insightful list with 3-5 points, gifs at every marker, and total blow-your-mind revelations about reading that’ll make you laugh and think at the same time.

However. I am not a sensible blogger. So I only have one reason (only one gif too; sorry), and even that one is actually kinda silly (the reason, not the gif).

I don’t like reading thick books because they’re thick.

See, I’m the sort of bookworm who is constantly aware that there are over 983710924378347 books in the world and that new pieces of literary perfection are coming out everyday, and I desperately want to read them all—or at the very least, check out all the good ones. So for me, the shorter is often the better, because then I can cram way more epic awesomeness into my painfully short reading time. But when I stumble upon a long novel—one that goes over the 3-400 pages marker—the never-ending TBR grinds to a halt and I am forced to love that book alone for nearly a week.

Tragic, I know.

At the same time though, thick books are often some of favorites. I think it’s because fantasies are normally pretty big and that’s my favorite genre, plus I like stories with deep and complex character arcs, which, by definition, are often harder to fit into a smaller novel (though when I find authors that do manage this in such a short amount of space, my mind is blown and I basically remember them forever).

Honestly, it’s kind of a problem in my life: I want to read gorgeously epic and beautiful tales that take me on the ride of my life, but they’re so long it takes me days to finish them. I also want to read all the books in existence, but when I’m on the same book for almost a week... well, you can do the math. It’s really not happening.

The only solutions I have found are to add another 260 hours to each week or to go without sleep. Unfortunately, I do not—yet—know how to do the first, and frankly, I refuse to do the second. Like I said in the Bedtime Book Tag, Sleep and I are tight and it takes a lot to come between us. ;)

via GIPHY

Because this post probablyought to have a point and I haven’t managed to find one yet, here are a few of my favorite long books (and short ones at the end) for your reading pleasure. (also if you have any idea how I can add 260 hours to each week or how I can read more books without losing sleep, feel free to share in the comments ;) )

Inkspell (635 pages)

So I’ve mentioned this series several times. It’s great. It’s one of my all-time favorite book series, and Inkspell is my favorite in this series (although warning, a few of the characters have a little problem with their language. :p But still, it’s an amazing read.)

Mark of Athena (586 pages)

So Heroes of Olympus may not be everything I once thought it was, but it’s still a fantastic ride with lots of great characters and beautiful arcs. The entire series will probably always hold a special place in my heart <3

Winter (824 pages)

I don’t know how long it took me to finish this one, but I remember it had ALL the heart-stopping epicness, and several of these characters are my loves for life. The emotions are so powerful, and at the end, I was basically in a mental state of “I can’t.” I think I had a book hangover for the entire weekend after. Jacin and Winter forever <3

Tiger’s Quest (479 pages)

Admittedly, this series is not perfect. But I adore it anyway. And Kishan will forever be mine. <3 <3 <3 <3

Resonance (543 pages)

All the love for Resonance <3 <3 The writing is perfect for this kind of story, and the character journey is so magnificently unique for a sci-fi. Arman and Glacia till the end of the universe <3

The Short Books

Bluefish (226 pages)

This is one of those where the author manages to pack not one but two incredible character journeys in less than 300 pages. It’s deep and moving and even before I finished it, I knew that I’d reread. So, especially considering I don’t reread often, that’s gotta tell you something.

Mindblind (248 pages)

Another of my all-time favorites. I know I’ve read it at least twice, and I have never been able to forget this story. The style was so perfect for showing everything Nathaniel went through and how his mind worked, and it just gave me a whole new understanding of autism and Asperger’s Syndrome.

Rush (320 pages)

This one’s more midway than short, but it’s another one I have never forgotten. The story truly is a rush and the journey is one that I would love to go on again--in fact, I need to add it to this year’s TBR for rereading.

I Don’t Know How The Story Ends (288 pages)

Everything about this story is absolutely gorgeous, and if it weren’t for Navigating Early, it would be my favorite historical of all time.

Winter’s Child (173 pages)

A breathtaking take on The Snow Queen, this story is just lovely. Besides The Lunar Chronicles, it's my favorite fairytale retelling.

***

So what about you? Do you like longer books or shorter ones in general? Are you, like me, intent on finishing ALL THE STORIES or are you fine with rereading a selection of your favorites? What's the best long book you’ve ever read? Leave me a comment and let me know; I'd love to hear from you!

Oh, and by the way, I’m hosting my first-ever Facebook party this coming Monday (June 13th) from 7:30-8:30 pm Eastern time. It’s for a company called Usborne Books And More, and they carry all kinds of kids’ books, everything from baby to YA. We’ll have games and stuff at the party, plus the chance to connect with one of their consultants and check out some of their cool books. :) If you're interested, leave me a comment about it or friend me (Alexandria Mintah) on Facebook, and I can send you an invite. Oh, and even if you can’t make it to the exact event time, the games and threads will stay open until Friday, the 17th, so you can check them all out at your leisure. :) Hope to see you there! :D

24 comments:

Emily GJune 9, 2016 at 9:39 PM
We need an extra day of the week just for reading.
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The Girl with the Gold PenJune 9, 2016 at 9:48 PM
Great post. Hmm... I don't know which I like better. I love the idea of thick books. They look so impressive. But it's so depressing when you look, and your bookmark is only 1/3 through the book. :/
But then, sometimes short books feel rushed. *shrugs* I guess I like both. :)
I so know what you mean, though.

Unfortunately I don't have Facebook. :( Sounds like fun, though. :)
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SharMJune 10, 2016 at 5:09 AM
I was expecting you to say something like 'they're heavy' or 'don't fit on shelf' or 'don't stay open properly' but your point was so much better. I do like thick books though. The party sounds fun only it's happening at 5 am over here so I might look at it later?
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Victoria JacksonJune 10, 2016 at 5:13 AM
I honestly don't mind whether a book is thick or thin, as long as it tells the story properly. I suppose carpal tunnel syndrome can be an issue, though. *shrugs* It comes with the job description.

And I REALLY need to check out Mindblind, it sounds beyond incredible. I really want to write a MC with a mental disability, but can't decide on one so I basically want to read everything and then decide from there. (Also, Winter was amazing. Just beyond amazing. I think my family thought I was sick after I finished it because I just wandered around the house in a daze, completely brain-dead.)
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HeatherJune 10, 2016 at 12:42 PM
In general I don't think I have a particularly strong aversion to long books once I'm reading them, but it can be hard for me to get started on them because I often assume that because they're long they're going to be boring. But I too have many long books that I love, even though my preference tends to be the shorter 300-pages. I dunno. I'm flexible, I guess, it's just a matter of how I perceive the issues.
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TheScribblingSpriteJune 11, 2016 at 3:57 PM
I get this. I really do. I mean, some of my favorite books are thick, and it doesn't always take super long to finish them (I read The Half Blood Prince in less than 2 days, so...). But it usually does, and, like you, I want to be able to read them faster! Also, it's harder to become invested in longer books usually. Except for books like Winter, because I was already so invested in the series. But when I'm starting on a long book I have to have a lot of focus to stay on track.

Big books are great, but I tend to keep to books that 300-400 pages. A good, solid range :)

Ally @ The Scribbling Sprite
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cleemckenzieJune 12, 2016 at 7:01 PM
Short of War and Peace, I don't pay too much attention to how thick a book is. Of course, if I'm reading a long book on Kindle, I keep glancing at how many hours I have left or the % of the book I've read. There are a lot of book out there, as you said, and I want to read tons.
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Charisma C.June 12, 2016 at 10:23 PM
Heh... Whenever I see a big book, I fangirl over that book (you know, in my head; I don't want people staring at me in the library or being shushed at) and rush over to it to find if I can read it. Then it goes onto my imaginary TBR list. (I need to make an actually TBR list, but there are waaay too many books for me to read to actually want to write the list.)

But I completely understand! Especially if some people say the start is really boring, but the book overall is amazing! (I don't want to be in that situation...) But this summer, I'm going to tackle the Eragon series as well as the Lord of the Rings. Those have been sitting on my TBR list for a while now, and I feel as if it's the perfect summer to do so.

Also, I did not know Winter was that long. I was going to guess (by looking solely at the cover) that it was around 400 or 450 pages long. But now I see that I'm wrong. -_- Well! I'm excited to read that series... (If I don't die through Eragon or the Lord of the Rings.)
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KatJune 13, 2016 at 9:21 PM
I agree that I don't really like reading long books, just because they're long. And it's so true that they hold up your TBR, and are often slower-paced than short books. I didn't realize I had this sort of preference, haha!
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Skye HoffertJune 15, 2016 at 8:16 PM
I don't have time to read thick books anymore either.
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UnknownJune 17, 2016 at 3:18 PM
I when I saw the words "I don't like thick books because they're thick" I thought you were having a laugh! Of course, I read on and found myself agreeing with you. It's hard to find time to read thick books but I love the sense of satisfaction after finishing them, y'know?

But when you do book reviews, they can be a burden. An almighty burden :/
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Keturah LambJune 25, 2016 at 5:53 PM
Oh..my...i have never told any one...but this is how I feel too! I want to read every book! But it is impossible...and so many of them are thick...yet, thick books...Oooh, very fun post :)
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