Reading and Aging: Has it changed for you?

[Hack&Lube]

I was a voracious reader up to university and then university just burned me out from the enjoyment of reading physical books.

There was a time I would read a novel or two via ebooks but only once every few years. Now it's been a decade since I have read any form of novel until I read Dune on my phone last year before the movie came out.

Just like music, the desire to read seems to fade with age. I am in the same boat, I'm not passionate about music anymore when I used to be the fake hipster with multiple guitars, pianos, playing in a band, and with 1000 records in 2013.

[Swift]

I've been the opposite with reading. I stopped completely as a teenager, and maybe only read 15 books total in my twenties (and most of them were during the year I worked night shift airport security) and I always bemoaned the fact that I didn't read as much as I should. And then something clicked for me in my thirties and I became obsessed with reading and collecting books. Second hand book shopping and being in libraries surrounded by books is heaven to me. I wish this love had presented itself earlier in my life because I would've loved to have followed a career as a librarian!

I'm a fairly slow reader though. It can take me a week or two to finish a book, depending on length. That's partly because I only take an hour or so a day to read and partly because my mind does wander as I'm reading. I think modern technology has given us shorter attention spans sadly.I also sometimes find myself reading pages without actually taking it in and then having to backtrack a bit. Keeping track of who's who when there are a lot of characters can be a problem too. Might be an age issue.

The suggestion to switch up genres is a good one. I usually alternate between fiction and nonfiction, or between modern and classic, or if I do end up reading the same genre back to back (usually crime/mystery), I'll switch up the setting of the book from say, gritty American city to cosy English countryside. Graphic novels are a good palate cleanser for a quick read.

I am going through something similar with movies lately though. I used to watch 5-6 movies a week from all over the world, but during the pandemic all I wanted to do was revisit 90s American movies from my youth. The past month I've found it hard to finish anything. Timing might be an issue as I usually start after everyone has gone to bed and then find myself tired. Do you tend to try to read late and night when you're already not at full mental capacity?

Regarding music, there was actually an article in the Guardian the other day on this very subject - https://www.theguardian.com/music/20...ng-up-on-music

I think that happens to the majority of us, and is fairly normal. I listen to music everyday (mostly as background noise rather than sitting down to actively listen like I used to) but it's all stuff I already like. I looked back through my discogs and I've probably only bought 20 new albums in the past decade and some of them are from already established artists I like. I have explored classical, jazz and classic ambient stuff more though.

[indes]

I've been an extremely polarized reader where I'm either crushing 3 novels a week or 0 from my early teens to late 20s. As mentioned in this thread since I've gotten older I have no time for poor writing or storytelling. The story has to be amazing to keep me through poor grammar, over explanation/description or no character development.

Now I have essentially have 3 authors I read when they put out new books (Mark Gearney, Brad Thor, Vince Flynn(Kyle Mills).

[Slava]

I think what's changed for me is that I can stop reading a book if it's just not that good. I used to finish what I started and muddle through, but I just don't do that anymore. Unfortunately, it seems like a lot of books could be 130-150 pages (talking about non-fiction), but there's a pub to get them to 200-250 so they seem substantive (I'm guessing). The problem is that those final 70-100 pages are a lot of repetition.

[Ozy_Flame]

Reading is something people have been doing for generations. I don't think it's old school, but the delivery mechanisms change over time.

Reading a book is a fantastic way to disconnect from the noise of everyone else and the media. It's just you, the book, and the story. No outside influences or catered, curated information.

I'm a slow reader but as I age I'm starting to read more books again. Read lots when I was a kid to about 16 years old, then just did it for English classes. 20 or so years later, I'm returning to books and it's ..... just great.

[csnarpy]

Personally, I love reading and dedicate myself time every morning and evening to do so. Just wish the glasses didn’t come with getting older.

[Puppet Guy]

I read a lot and read whatever I get my hands on (Mrs. Puppet says I eat books rather than read them), but it seems now that I only read while riding the bus to work/home.

I think re-reading old favourites at certain stages of your life enhances the appreciation of it as it'll hit differently. I re-read Dune in my mid-forties and it was a lot different from when I read it in my twenties, which was different from when I read it as a teen.

[photon]

Yeah that's definitely part of the appeal of rereading especially with books like Dune.

I've been thinking about rereading the whole Ringworld/Known Space stuff by Niven.

[Ashartus]

I certainly don't read as much as I used to, went from a couple of books a week in my 20's to maybe a book a month, largely due to all the other things competing for my time. I still really enjoy reading though, and have trouble putting down a good book when I get towards the end.

I agree on re-reading. I first read Dune around the time the David Lynch movie came out, re-read it in my late 20's, and again a couple of years ago, each time getting something different out of it. Even more so with the sequels which I didn't really "get" when I was younger but appreciated more as an adult. There are other books like that such as the Lord of the Rings that are worth re-read.

Some other books I found re-reading as an adult didn't hold up - Asimov's Foundation for example, I couldn't get past the poor writing in his early career; not sure how well Ringworld etc. would hold up either.

[photon]

Yeah that's always the risk of rereading.. if it destroys your fond memory of it.

I recently tried rereading the Sword of Shannara (or listening to it this time on audiobook), and I don't remember much of it and I think I was pretty young when I read it the first time but it certainly didn't appeal much to me this time.

I was thinking of rereading the Anne McCaffrey Pern books but maybe I should avoid.

There's been a few books from when I was young that I still enjoyed, though the nostalgia factor probably skews it a bit.

[SilverKast]

I probably read just as much now as I ever have. I grew up reading a ton of books, stopped a bit during university, but then the 25 years since continued on. I love sci-fi and fantasy for the most part, but can get hooked on anything if it's well written and interesting. I still love having the physical book and just disconnecting from everything else while I read (my wife prefers a Kindle).

It's one thing that surprisingly caught on with one of my kids as well. My daughter is an avid reader in her early 20's, while many of her friends hardly read at all. Her university friends all read quite a bit while her other party type friends don't lol.

I almost always find I enjoy the book more than the movie, although I'm hoping the upcoming LotR and GoT series on tv might change that a little.

[CliffFletcher]

I definitely read less often and for shorter duration than I used. I’m down to fewer than 10 books a year from 30+ in my twenties and 20+ in my 30s.

Part of it is I find it increasingly difficult to get immersed in fiction. Cliches, clumsy writing, and eye-rolling characterizations mar the experience more than they used to. I can’t fall into that imaginary world because the author’s hamfisted manipulation keeps distracting me. And fiction that is well-written tends to be boring as ####. I struggle to find novels that are both well-written and engaging.

So I lean more towards history and other non-fiction than I used to. But I’m exhausting the subjects I’m most interested in: the ancient world, WW2, military history in general. There are only so many books you can read about the Fall of the Roman Republic or Operation Barbarossa. Especially when there are excellent podcasts covering the same material.

But diminishing attention span is the big one. For the first time since I learned to read, I did not finish a book over my summer vacation. I started a couple and set them aside. I’d settle in to my deck chair and read for about 20 mins before I’d doze off, or get restless and reach for my iPad. Reading even 60 minutes in a day, spread out over a couple sessions, is difficult to manage these days.

[GirlySports]

I've totally gone to the dark side of audiobooks. I would fall asleep to them and replay chapters. I can't remember the last time I actually held a book.

[photon]

Yeah I'm 90+% audiobooks at this point, and I almost always have something going when I fall asleep (either an audiobook or a podcast).. and I almost always forget the sleep timer so I wake up to spoilers or a finished book and then spend 5 minutes trying to figure out where I was.

The only downside of that is every so often a book is TOO interesting it keeps me awake. Or anything with lots of comedy or romance also keeps me awake. Then I have to switch to a podcast that specializes in helping people sleep.

[CroFlames]

I was a huge reader as a teen. Was always reading stuff.

As the internet and social media came along, I basically stopped reading altogether.

In my 30s, I've been forcing myself to read more and more. I enjoy it immensly when I'm actively reading, but then sometimes when I go to read I end up mindlessly scrolling reddit and don't read that night.

I guess for me its a function of consciously not allowing myself to be distracted, and jumping into the book.

Also, I'm trying to set an example and inspire my kids to be readers like I was when I was young. So I keep making a conscious chioce to get back into it.

[MoneyGuy]

We’ll be away a big chunk of this coming winter and I’d gathered a few books to take along. I’d been hitting up the little libraries that are springing up around town. There are some treasures there. I like WWII history, and have found some John Grisham and Patricia Cornwell.

[Sr. Mints]

I used to read a *ton*, and super fast and accurately, of all varying genres and materials; 100+ books a year easily - and that was on top of the ~10,000 words a week I had to edit. Now it's maybe 1-2 books a year, and it's a painfully awful experience. I can't even keep up with subtitles on TV.

For me the issue stems from a TBI and vision problems, but I gather from a neurospychologist I see that the issue of reading/focus has a lot to do with how we digest information now in bits and pieces through social media, places like Calgary puck. It sorta re-wires our brains to not like long-form. She explained it waaay better haha. It's actually fascinating stuff.

[Russic]

It's an interesting problem, as Sr. Mints points out. On one hand, the older we get, the less likely the thing we're consuming is going to be above average. In your 20s novel experiences are so exciting. Past 40, many find it a better bet to just stick with what you know is going to entertain you. Plus, as mentioned we change enough that books hit different at different times of our lives.

Plus we're dealing with distraction at a level unprecedented in human history. We light up our brains in such an unnatural way, it's clear why getting even simple tasks completed is an uphill battle. A lot of people use audiobooks while they're doing other tasks in life (like grocery shopping or cleaning). I'm trying not to be a snob, but that's a great way to not fully connect with a book.

[troutman]

As I get older I realize there is just a finite number of books I will be able to read. I feel like I have no time to re-read books, or read anything crappy. So, I do a fair amount of research before committing to the next book.

[Jiri Hrdina]

I used to read before bed. Now I find if I do…I don’t sleep. It activates my brain too much. And I’ve struggled to find another time to read instead