I used to read loads of fiction as a kid - a novel or two a week. But I think sometime in late middle school I stopped reading so much, and by high school pretty much the only fiction I read was the by-and-large horrible stuff that was assigned in English classes. I eventually forgot why people like fiction - at that time the only reason I could think of was to write long boring essays about them, thus ruining weekends and summer breaks with tedious frustration. In college I tested out of and/or avoided classes that involved fiction. Unless you count untranslated Miles Gloriosus or the Aeneid, the only fiction I read during college was Siddhartha at the insistence of my English-teacher aunt. I didn't understand it much and swore that I would re-read it after studying some more Buddhism (which I have yet to do). I found Catalyst of Sorrows in a bookstore, but sorry, garamet, I haven’t been able to make myself read more that thirty pages of it. At the goading of many people, a while back I read this short story and later its sequel (which libertarians should love), and I kind of liked it. Although the initial reaction is Fanfiction! it actually had more literary merit than a lot of the ‘classics’ that were forced on us high school kids. But like Siddhartha I was never really enamored of the characters, not terribly interested in what would happen to them or how it would all end the way I was when I was reading novels as a little kid. It took me several days to get through that short story. I had no interesting in pondering the work much or seeking out other stories. Is there any way to reclaim my old zeal for fiction? Or is it something I’ve just grown out of? I am a bit worried that my interest in non-fiction is fading, too.
I feel your pain. Not a fiction fan myself. My reading interests are news, biographies, science articles and the like.
In my observation, men seem to read less fiction than women. Not sure why that is. Maybe you're just going through a phase, Prufrock. I know I go through phases where I just do crosswords for weeks on end. (Besides, my books are *not* easy reading. The biggest whine I get from the under-20 set is that my stories "jump around too much." Translation: I do flashbacks. Apparently the Playstation Generation can't follow anything that isn't linear.)
I like flashback stories. They make me think, and I have to read carefully to remember all the little details that make each book so much better.
Probably just a phase. Try reading something that's out of the ordinary for you. Or read something and try to stretch your reading muscles.
I went through the same thing during my English Literature A-Level. Up until then I was a fanatical fiction reader, but having to read literature (often poetry and novels I wouldn't have touched if it weren't for the course) and then analyse them again and again and again put me off reading fiction for about 3-4 years. Finally a couple of friends gave me books to read that I really enjoyed and it started me off again. I wouldn't be without a good book now. It may just be a phase or you may find that it just isn't your cup of tea anymore. However IMO there probably is fiction you would still enjoy. It's just a case of finding it.
Well, if that's what english lit classes do to you, I'm glad I never took any. Will not suffer something that kills what I love.
I kind of like NAHTMMM's idea of 'stretching the reading muscles'. Sometimes I have phases where I don't read much, don't write much and generally am satisfied with simple entertainment. When I first start reading again after that, it really feels like my brain is a muscle that's been without exercise for too long - it's stiff, sluggish, I don't even feel like exercising it and I generally don't enjoy what I read - even if it's my favorite author. But I know that if I listen to that dislike, I'll put down the book and not pick it up again and that's not something I want to do. So I plow along, and if I do that every day for a number of days, i.e. if I exercise, the enjoyment comes back and I suddenly like the book I was reading. Not only that, but it's easier to remember what's going on in the story, it's easier to care for the characters and I read a lot faster. The first few times I had this, I thought the writer had finally found the right way to tell the story. But after a couple of times, I realised it was me. So maybe it's the same for you? You said a short story took you days. That means you probably put it down not long after you pick it up. Maybe seeing it as exercise for a while will help, and if you struggle along (not putting reading aside for days, but doing it every day) you'll get back in the zone. Silly advice perhaps, but maybe worth a shot.
My own $.02 on the subject, take it for what it's worth. (And I may be subliminally plagarizing Mortimer Adler on the subject...) There are several levels to reading... The first is merely comprehending the words on the paper. Most of us can do that well before we get out of grade school. Call it "level 1." The next level is appreciating a piece of literature as a whole; that is, reading and understanding a story as it is written. Pretty much all of us can do this when we're still children. And it's at this level that reading either takes off for you or it doesn't. There are either books that you enjoy spending the time with or there aren't. If there aren't, your reading career is pretty much at an end: you're well-trained enough to read newspaper and magazine articles. This is "level 2." The next level is fathoming the deeper meaning of a work, a process that doesn't necessarily have any right answers. You can read a work and analyze its symbols or determine its prior literary influences or discover its historical context or...you name it. This level of reading is very demanding of the reader; it's not the passive activity of watching a television show. And it takes a lot of work to cultivate. A few achieve this level of reading on their own; most people won't even approach it unless they're involved in a literature-related subject in college. For those who enjoy reading, it gives an extra challenge and provides an additional reward for the efforts; for those who don't, it's endless drudgery. This is "level 3." Prufrock, it may be that you're beyond level 2. You can read any popular fiction that is handed to you and understand the plot, but you're no longer entertained by it because there's not really any more challenge there for you. But you're not ready/willing to take on the deeper meaning that serious literature has, either. So, as I see it, you have three options: 1. Give up reading for pleasure altogether. After all, you don't seem to enjoy it. It's okay; not everyone is a reader. 2. Search (probably in vain) for fiction books at your current level that will offer you something new and interesting. 3. Try to get yourself to the next level and appreciate a new challenge in reading.
I don't really know what you've read or what you like but I keep getting the feeling I should tell you to read Dostoevsky. Forget Tolstoy IMHO. The big D is where it's at.
Eh, Paladin's overthinking it IMHO. I mean, I devoured the Dune saga, and those are pretty thick and beefy and full of heady stuff. But then, after that, I wasn't "ruined", for other stuff, I read the novel of The Princess Bride after that. Not that that's necessarily witless fluff, I'm just saying. It's not this one size fits all "eew-heew, I'm too nerdy for normal human books", thing like Paladin is saying. You're probably getting more picky with your tastes, whatever they are. Hell, I barely ever read anymore. I used to read stacks of stuff as a kid just for the sake of it. Nowadays, something really has to grab me. And it's not always smartypants stuff. Course, it's not drivel either. Tom Clancy and Michael Crichton can eat me. ..okay, maybe it is a nerd thing.
Same for me. Tho it's at least partially a lack of leasure time for reading, now that I'm married and stuff. Books that would have been a week's worth of effort back in the day are now taking me months to get thru.
What Paladin said. Just one thought: Can you tell whether it's really fiction you're beginning to dislike, or prose? That is, how do you feel about fictional movies, TV, even the theatre? And how do you feel about factual books about intriguing subjects? In fact, how do you feel about WF?
I think it's just a periodof burnout myself. For example, I get burned out playing too much WoW from time to time and have to take a break from it.But after the break I find myself enjoying it again.
