#Our Reading Lives

Our Reading Lives features stories about how books and reading have shaped who we are and how we live.

What Rereading THE YEAR OF MAGICAL THINKING Taught Me About Grief and Love

A reader returns to Joan Didion's THE YEAR OF MAGICAL THINKING after experiencing grief and love, and finds new meaning on the page.

How an Exercise Routine Changed My Reading Habits

One Rioter on how her reading habits have changed over time and how a new exercise habit has allowed her to fit reading physical books back into her life.

My Love for Buying Books Is Waning and I Feel Guilty About It

A reader on striving for a less cluttered life, and mourning a loss of interest in purchasing books on a whim.

On Reading My First Ebook

A reader dives into the world of ebooks and writes about the experience.

Putting Together the Endless Puzzle

When confronted with so many "best of" lists, there's the potential for anxiety about never reading enough.

Do Beloved Paperbacks Need an Upgrade?

Do those paperbacks we love too much -- to the point of them falling apart -- need to be replaced by more beautiful editions?

What to do with Blank Notebooks

You've got a house full of them and we know it.

My Problem with LOLITA

A reader learns something new about her limits after finally conquering Vladimir Nabokov's controversial classic, LOLITA.

What That Worrying New Screen Time Study Means for Parents Who Just Want to Read

Does the worrying new screen time study published in JAMA have you fretting about how you'll ever get any work done ever again? Or, you know, any reading?

Finding the Right Time for the Classics

"Every book has the right time and place in one’s life." Is it better to wait for the right time and place to read daunting books like the classics?