Tuesday, January 23, 2018

Top Ten Tuesday: Reasons I Forgot Your Book


Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. This week’s topic is books I read but don’t remember anything about. I’m changing the topic a little. This post is basically my apology letter to authors. Here are nine reasons why I read your beautiful book . . . and then promptly forgot everything about it.




Reasons I Forgot Your Book






1. I was tired, ill, pissed off, nervous, hungry, or otherwise distracted when I read it. I read every day. Every. Single. Day. I don’t remember the last time I skipped a day. As a result, I’m sometimes not in a brilliant mood while I’m reading. I’ll fully admit that my mood sometimes interferes with my ability to absorb information. This is especially a problem in January, when I'm trying to lose my Christmas blubber. Right now, the only thought in my mind is I'm so freakin' hungry!









2. I read the book in public. How do bookworms read with other humans around? I read The Stepford Wives while stuck in an airport. There were announcements about unattended luggage, and kids trying to outsmart a vending machine, and an old rando who thought I needed to hear his vacation plans. When I got home, I had to reread the book because I remembered nothing.







3. I read the book too fast. This doesn’t happen much anymore, but it happened constantly in college. I can’t read with deadlines. I usually don’t remember anything I skim. If I read something for a test, the info stays in my brain long enough to take the test. Then it’s gone forever. My brain basically purges it as soon as I walk out of the classroom.









4. I read too many books. My brain-meat has limited storage capacity. A lot of that storage space is dedicated to remembering all the possible toppings for nachos. The rest of the space is reserved for books. When your brain is full of non-book-stuff, and you read over 100 books a year, something is going to get forgot.









5. I read the book a long time ago. “A long time ago” means about a week ago. That’s why I have to write a review within a few days of finishing a book. Otherwise, it’s gone.







6. I’ve read too many similar books. This is why I don’t read much fantasy. I can’t keep all those Pirate Queen’s Daughter of the Smoky Bone Throne books straight. There are too many of them! The same thing happened with British classics. I read so much Brit Lit in school that it all blurred into one tedious dinner party scene. Characters in British classics sure like dinner parties. That much socialization would have killed me.









7. The characters are bland. I always forget character names. I even forget names while I’m reading the book. I usually don’t forget personalities, though, unless the character has no personality. If a character is boring, they won’t stick in my brain.









8. The book has no atmosphere. I love atmospheric books. Probably because I often remember the feel of a book more than what actually happened in the book. If a book isn’t atmospheric or doesn’t make me feel anything, then I’ll probably forget it. 







9. The book is a textbook. You know all those science, and math, and history textbooks we had to read in school? Yeah . . . I remember nothing. Please don’t make me do math.









Why do you forget books?








23 comments:

  1. I agree with a lot of these. I read a ton of books each year, so there is just no way I'm going to remember everything about all of them. Sometimes I read too fast. And I agree about fantasy books, sometimes they all seem to blur together.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Haha. This list is great--and many of the reasons why I don't remember some books!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Reading in public does it to me every time. Too many distractions and absolutely nothing sinks in.

    Pirate Queen’s Daughter of the Smoky Bone Throne. Bahahaha! OMG, I think I just ruptured something from laughing too hard. You’re killing me. =D

    ReplyDelete
  4. Oh my great twist on this week!! YES YES YES to all of these!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Number 4 is ALWAYS me, and think that is why I need to write reviews as soon as I finish the book! And I don't know how people read in public too, reading at airports always makes me antsy. All of the traffic, announcements, and I always freak out that I've missed an important announcement about my flight.

    ReplyDelete

  6. I forget characters' names easily as well.

    Here is our Top Ten Tuesday.

    ReplyDelete
  7. This list is fantastic and everything is so, so true! Reading books in public is a surefire way for me to get home and realize I haven't the slightest idea what happened in the book I read while out. When I was kid, I read in public all the time and was able to completely tune out the rest of the world, but now... nope. I have the hardest time with character names and no matter how well I might remember the character, their name is a mystery. All of these reasons are completely accurate for me as well--great list!

    ReplyDelete
  8. I read fast but I don't skim-I do take in every word. I used to read on the bus coming home from work and strangers were forever trying to talk to me. I hated it! Go away I'm reading! I write full notes on plot and characters as I read the book and I keep the notes until my review is on the blog and GR. That certainly helps me. I do have issues with short term memory so I sometimes have to re-read a first book in a series to freshen my memory before I read the next book if there are a few years gap in between. I generally remember the basics and characters I like in my books but not all the action that takes place.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Like your twist on this week's topic!
    My TTT: https://jjbookblog.wordpress.com/2018/01/23/top-ten-tuesday-143/

    ReplyDelete
  10. This is great and so on point. I think reading too many similar books is the reason I forgot a few, but I agree, if a book is not that memorable or the characters, then it's easy to forget it.

    ReplyDelete
  11. I love your twist and you know, I think there are a lot of similar books out there. There seems to be a big insurgence of fantasy peasant-would-be-queen YA books out there which I would probably mix up if I read them all. Awesome reasons!

    ReplyDelete
  12. I think reading too many books is a big one. How are we supposed to remember all that stuff? The answer is- I think we're not lol. Oh and reading in public! Yes the distractions- I've definitely had that happen. I know I read it but I remember almost nothing.

    Atmosphere is another good one! Yes sometimes I remember the mood or the setting of a story more than the actual story!

    ReplyDelete
  13. Yes to all! And I love your take on this week's topic. I really struggle to read in public. I can handle if it I'm by myself in a doctor's office or something but if there are other people around I'm lost. I think my biggest issue is to similar to other books. There are several authors I love but they write enormous series and after awhile it all blends!

    ReplyDelete
  14. 1, 4, 5, 7, and 9 all apply to me to an extent.

    ReplyDelete
  15. I so so love how you did the prompt like this! haha! I relate to all of those so much. (Also totally going to title my next book Pirate Queen’s Daughter of the Smoky Bone Throne because that is A+ bestseller material. 😂😂) I can't read in public either?!? I concentrate on NOTHING then.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Yes, absolutely forgettable if the book was a textbook. LOL! I do the bulk of my reading on my commute, so I am used to reading with other people around. I actually read to try and make them disappear.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Nice twist on the prompt! You're right, there are so many plots that are similar that it's hard to keep them straight or remember them as distinct. I also struggle with high fantasy. If like 75% percent of the book is world building and only 25% is plot, you've completely lost me.

    ReplyDelete
  18. I really enjoyed how you did this prompt and you made it a lot of fun too! I usually forget books that have boring characters too or simply books that don't make an impression on me. Although I have to admit that while I rarely forget the plot, sometimes I remember moments from books but I cannot remember the title of them! It is very hard to google a book when you know the plot but not the title!!

    ReplyDelete
  19. Great list! I can identify with all of the reasons - especially 4-8!

    ReplyDelete
  20. Ha, all of this!

    Also, I have a theory that no-one remembers what happens at the end of Oliver Twist. I've *read* Oliver Twist, and I don't have a clue! Ask anyone. NO-ONE KNOWS!!!!

    ReplyDelete
  21. I forget textbooks so quickly! But these are all good reasons. If I read too many similar books, and I read a lot of books so sometimes that happens, I easily forget a book too. Or with time. I actually started writing reviews to help me remember books better.

    ReplyDelete
  22. Hhaha I LOVE this list! It's so true too, all of these. I was afraid to do the list because I figured my list would just be me sharing my "read" shelf. I used to remember stuff like that, but now? Nope, my brain just lets it alllll go. Oooops.

    ReplyDelete
  23. The biggest reason is that I read too many books. I also think I forget the book when I read it too fast, I was distracted, and the characters were bland.

    ReplyDelete