More than one book at a time?

[charlatti]

We've probably talked about this before, but the Friday thread brought it up. Do you usually read more than one book at a time? How do you decide which book to read when? If you don't, why not?

[itsme]

I do at times. I haven't been a hard core reader in a few months but when I am into it I often have more than one book going. I'll have an audio book and usually Kindle or regular books going at a time. With the books I actually have to read I let my mood dictate what I'll read at that moment. I often read serious and intense books (war books) and need something lighter on some days.

[msmerymac]

I usually do not. My only exception will be sometimes when I'm reading a more dry non-fiction book. But I'm more likely to take a break from that book and burn through a brain-candy kind of short novel rather than alternate chapters. Occasionally if I'm in the middle of a long and rough book and I have a shorter one that has to go back to the library or something I will also take a break. But I usually try to just fight through books, no matter what! I can count on my fingers the number of books I've given up on.

[aurora]

Probably more often than not these days. Often one is an audiobook and the other is paper or Kindle. I listen to the audiobook while walking to the bus stop or walking my dog or washing dishes, etc. I read while actually on the bus or right before bed.

Sometimes I have 3 going on. This is most common before or after travel, since I'll leave my massive paperback at home even if I haven't finished it and grab my Kindle for the plane, then won't finish the Kindle on my trip so I'll switch between them when I get home until I finish one. This actually summarizes my largely boring responses to January book polls since I was trying to finish 3 books at once.

I'll also occasionally have 2 non-audio books going if one is a non-fiction (like msmerymac noted). I'll read non-fiction on the bus to work and then pull out Harry Potter or similar for my bedtime treat.

[rootbeerfloat]

Not really. I usually don't have the attention span to remember details from more than one story at a time. I might put something boring and/or long down for a bit to read something shorter/lighter, but in that case I would likely read the easy book all the way through rather than bounce back and forth.

[charlatti]

Right now I am always reading whatever my book is and also reading aloud a middle-grade-ish chapter book with DD. Those are easy to separate. Once in a while I'll read nonfiction and fiction books at the same time. I don't get books confused; I guess I just prefer finishing one before getting into another.

[BlackCanary]

Normally I don't, but right now I am.

[cinco]

Sometimes. If I am not that into a book I'll start a new one and then go back to it.

[dorothyinAus]

I usually have a "project book" every year, one that I read a bit of each day -- I've worked through the Bible that way, and a couple of books-of-days where there is a page for each day of the year.

And DH and I do Story Time on Saturday nights, so we each have a book on the go for that.  His current choice is 1984 and I'm sharing A Proud Taste for Scarlet and Miniver.

But for actual reading, I most often concentrate on one book at a time.

[MrsAxilla]

Feb 2, 2015 14:33:35 GMT -5 msmerymac said:

I usually do not. My only exception will be sometimes when I'm reading a more dry non-fiction book. But I'm more likely to take a break from that book and burn through a brain-candy kind of short novel rather than alternate chapters. Occasionally if I'm in the middle of a long and rough book and I have a shorter one that has to go back to the library or something I will also take a break. But I usually try to just fight through books, no matter what! I can count on my fingers the number of books I've given up on.

Similar.  If something is going too slowly, I'll take a break and read something else.  I've stopped I, Claudius like three times already, but I'm determined to finish....one day.  I'll also stop if I need to read for my book club.  

Ben and I always have a book going, too.  Right now we're reading Harry Potter (his first time!)

[apelila]

I usually prefer to read one book at a time, but I have started and paused Don Quixote for the last two years. I am determined to finish it someday, but when DQ exhausts me then I tend to pick up another one. I am also part way through a non-fiction book.

[zizibet]

Feb 2, 2015 20:09:31 GMT -5 dorothyinAus said:

I usually have a "project book" every year, one that I read a bit of each day -- I've worked through the Bible that way, and a couple of books-of-days where there is a page for each day of the year.

And DH and I do Story Time on Saturday nights, so we each have a book on the go for that.  His current choice is 1984 and I'm sharing A Proud Taste for Scarlet and Miniver.

But for actual reading, I most often concentrate on one book at a time.

I LOVE Proud Taste. Love. So cool to see someone else likes that book.

I often do read more than one book at a time. I don't get confused, but generally it's stuff of different genres. So a non-fiction, a fiction book of some kind, and generally a paperback in my purse for on the go, or something on the Nook. DP has been using the Nook lately, so it's been paperbacks.

[aurora]

Feb 3, 2015 11:40:37 GMT -5 apelila said:

I usually prefer to read one book at a time, but I have started and paused Don Quixote for the last two years. I am determined to finish it someday, but when DQ exhausts me then I tend to pick up another one. I am also part way through a non-fiction book.

I had more trouble finishing Don Quixote than any other book I've actually finished.  Such a chore. And now I feel like I no longer remember anything except tilting at windmills, which I knew before I read it.

[Nonny]

I usually have at least one fiction and one non-fiction going at a time, but I'll do multiple fiction novels if they are very dissimilar. For example, I plan to keep reading Dark Tower during the Harry Potter re-read, but I wouldn't start reading another King book while reading Dark Tower because I'd likely merge the stories in my head.

[whitepicketfence]

I used to back in the day but considering that it's taken me 2 months to finish my last book, not anymore. These kids have stolen my reading time.

[kordanegirl]

As with others above, I usually do one fiction and a time, and then often times I can do one or more non-fiction books at the same time, since there isn't necessarily a story or plot to remember or follow along.

[secretlyevil]

Yes and it's tough.

[charlatti]

Feb 9, 2015 23:06:28 GMT -5 secretlyevil said:

Yes and it's tough.

 So why do it?

[secretlyevil]

Feb 10, 2015 8:07:50 GMT -5 charlatti said:

Feb 9, 2015 23:06:28 GMT -5 secretlyevil said:

Yes and it's tough.

 So why do it?

I don't as much anymore with the kindle but I get excited about a new book and try to read two or three at the same time and end up confusing myself so then I neglect the others while I finish one.

[Pippin]

I used to read up to 4 books at a time. Usually because I'd find multiple I wanted to read at the same time and I'd bounce around between them. Not so much now. I will pause a book if it's getting dull or I'm not feeling it at the time and I'll pick up others. I have an extremely good memory when it comes to what I'm reading for fun so I don't really have any problems with forgetting what's going on.