New Year's reading resolutions

If you're anything like me, each January you chide yourself for not reading more books (and better ones) last year, and aspire to do better. This YouGov article should make us BookMen members feel much better about our starting point: "Of 1,500 Americans surveyed, a less-than-ideal 46% finished zero books last year, and 5% read just one." Analyst David Montgomery goes on to parse the findings in terms of literary genres and other variables. (You may also be interested in this Washington Post "Department of Data" article about bookstores around the country; scroll down for that section.)

Reading a mere two books a year puts us in the top half of Americans, but it's still a pretty low bar, admittedly. So how can we up our game? This July 2022 Washington Post Book World article offers 14 tips for getting out of a reading slump, some more helpful than others: "Reread an old favorite. Switch genres. Change formats. Set goals. Start small. Browse the children's shelf. Let luck guide you. Seek professional help (not what you think!). Join a book club (done!). Abandon books that don't spark joy (see the next paragraph). Do something completely different. Think about what you want to get out of a book. Force it. Have faith."

James Joyce reportedly observed, "Life is too short to read bad books." So how do you decide when to cut your losses and move on to something better? This Jan. 2 Washington Post Book World article is all over the map in terms of strategies, ranging from giving a book 50 pages to wow you (or, if you're older than that, subtracting your age from 100 to set the limit) to this: "Whenever I get bored or annoyed by an authorial tic, I immediately stop." For what it's worth, I say: Whatever your own approach, own it. And remember: You can always return to a book later in life, when it might just be perfect for you.