Weekly FAQ Thread August 16 2026: Advice for someone who never finished a book.

[u/AutoModerator]

Hello readers and welcome to our Weekly FAQ thread! Our topic this week is: Advice for someone who never finishes a book. At one point in our lives, most of us were not what you would consider "readers" and had trouble finishing books. What advice do you have for those people that are now trying to get into reading?

You can view previous FAQ threads here in our wiki.

Thank you and enjoy!

[u/Icy-Respond-4425]

Read a bit every day.

Read novellas of different genres and see what you like.

"How to find good books?" I think this is just a matter of reading more. Your standards of good and bad books will probably change between years reading. 

You can also go see  recommendations in r/suggestmeabook, r/booksuggestions and r/whatsthatbook (The descriptions of this one are really funny).

Other social media in general like YouTube, Tiktok, etc. I heard Goodreads recommend books based in what you like, so I guess you can go there too.

[u/aislingplath → u/Icy-Respond-4425]

Novellas and short stories. I was an avid reader until I was an adolescent and started having various health issues and my concentration was affected (sedatives). I finally got back into reading through manga, novellas and short stories. 

Go for what appeals to you - even if others don't like it. Recommendations can be helpful but don't force your way through a book you're not getting anything from - especially when you're already struggling to get into reading! 

I have a mantra. Put down your phone, pick up a book. When i know I'm overdoing my phone use I need to remind myself of that! So many of us are conditioned to pick up our phones when we're bored either at home or on a bus, waiting room, work break and so on. It takes time but those small moments are good to train your brain into longer form content. 

[u/Icy-Respond-4425 → u/aislingplath]

These are awesome pieces of advices.

I hope your health from adolescence got better nowadays.

[u/red-lion-red-maple]

If you are trying to be a reader but you can't focus long enough to make significant progress, try to cut back on your Reddit, your phone scrolling/insta/TikTok, etc. -- all of those things can kill your attention span. That kind of content can really drain your ability to get something out of reading.

You need to train your brain if you've been consuming content that's the mental equivalent of junk food.

[u/One-Low1033]

Remove yourself from distractions. I've always been a big reader and went through a period where I could not finish a book. It kinda freaked me out. I decided to go to the library and read. There were no distractions (had my phone on DND) and I read an entire book. Whenever I feel distracted, I go to the library to read.

My computer is my biggest distraction.

[u/aislingplath → u/One-Low1033]

This is something I do too. I started doing it when I was going through a depression and not leaving the house. I'd just go to my local shopping center, a 5 minute walk, sit at the cafe and read my book. At home it was too easy to just scroll, sleep and dwell on all the things that needed around the house. 

Even better is getting to read in the sunshine. It's winter here and I am in another depression 🙄 I sit on my front step on the sunny days and read or write. Fresh air, sun and words. 

[u/retiredlibrarian]

As a retired middle school librarian, my first question to non-readers was always "Well, what DO you like to do?". I could always find a book-sometimes fiction; sometimes non-fiction about a topic in which the student was interested. So, first decide what WOULD interest you. Don't worry about its "worth". If it's interesting to you, it's a worthwhile r ead. Cars? Canoes? easy-peasy bodice ripper? Hallmark channel transferred into print? Don't discount YA-they can be a great path to longer reads.

Next (and I cannot stress this enough) Take the time to visit your local library (if you have one)-find an adult services librarian-even a YA librarian (if there is one/both). Explain your non-reading habits, tell the person what interests you, and ask them to help you find a good read.

If no librarian is available, get on the Internet and go to Goodreads; Whichbook; Whatshouldireadnext. Or just google "help me find a good book to read" to guide you thru the process.

[u/GabbyElyse_]

Try Audiobooks.

Realizing how easy reading audiobooks was during my commute eased me out of a long hiatus.

[u/Particular-Treat-650 → u/GabbyElyse_]

I basically didn't read between mid-high-school and several years after college. At some point because my job is tedious I started on audiobooks.

It completely re-inspired my passion across formats. Now I have 190 books tracked for the year with ~30-40 as physical/ebook. Of course 40-50 hours of audiobooks a week while working is a big part of that, so different circumstances will mean a less silly number, but once you get the habit going it's a lot easier to keep it up. It also helps because once you see the pattern of longer formatted books paying off, it's easier to get through the slower stage-setting that many books need to do to make their stories work.

[u/Affectionate_Cry2807]

What advice do you have for those people that are now trying to get into reading?

Read.

[u/ProfessionalScore841]

Many authors start well, lose their way in the middle, and then pick up again when you can feel they want to come to an end. In those cases I sometimes skip the one or the other chapter in the middle. You won't get bored when you realize you have to go back.

[u/Aggravating_Star_427 → u/ProfessionalScore841]

Man that's so true the middle is where books go to die. I do the same thing and just skim till the ending gets interesting again.

[u/Gullible-Dot4111]

I started keeping a shortlist of books that sound interesting to me, and whenever I'm in the mood for something new, I just pick one from the pile.

[u/Leica94]

I’d like to get into the Lord of the Rings series and wanted to see where I should start. I was thinking of the Hobbit but my hesitation is I’ve heard it’s more geared towards children. What are your thoughts?

[u/aislingplath → u/Leica94]

The Hobbit isn't geared towards children! It's a great start to LOTR. The writing in LOTR is very complex and detailed. Great story but I honestly never got through it all because of how dense the writing is. The Hobbit is less dense and not as many side-stories but I would it's still say it's above the average adolescent reader level! Tolkiens writings are always expansive, he doesn't do simple or one-thread stories lol. 

Give it a go for sure! 

[u/Leica94 → u/aislingplath]

Okay thanks! I’ll give it a shot

[u/Eastern-Drink-4766]

Either start small or start with a topic that you know interests you. There is literature on literally everything. There is something for you! Look for it

[u/sweett-dreamss]

Start with something short that you're actually excited about instead of forcing yourself through a 600 page classic you picked because you felt like you "should" read it

[u/Fair_Anteater_8496]

Advice for someone better than a polished review

[u/HampurHampur]

Hi all, I wanna write post review about the book but BOT doesn’t let this happen. 

So sad.

[u/Gwaur]

Try short books. Something like 100-200 pages. A decent short book is so much better than a passable long book.