How To Get Over a Book
Welcome to the Dear Book Nerd podcast, a bi-weekly show that answers your questions about life, love, and literature. My guest co-host this week is the wonderful Martha Mihalick! We answer three interesting listener-submitted questions and discuss topics such as: how do I get over a book I really loved? Will I ever be able to find another good book again? I read and loved all of the Harry Potter series – NOW what do I do? And much more! Don’t miss it, have a listen.
Martha is an editor of Children’s & YA literature at Greenwillow Books, which can be found on Twitter here and on Facebook here. You can find Martha herself on Twitter @MarthaMihalick. Thanks for joining me, Martha!
This episode is sponsored by Random House Audiobooks. Go to tryaudiobooks.com to check it out!
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Questions Discussed:
Dear Book Nerd,
I just finished reading a truly fantastic book–the kind of book that you stay awake until 4am reading because you can’t think about anything else. It’s the only book by the author, and there’s no sequel. When I try to pick up another book, it just doesn’t seem interesting, no matter how good I objectively know it is. What I really want is to read that book again for the first time, and spend more time hanging out with the characters. But I need to move on with my life! How to I get back into a new novel now?
– Bereft Post Book Breakup
Dear Book Nerd:
I recently discovered your podcast and became an instant fan. Recently, I spent a majority of my commute to and from work catching up on all of the previous episodes. After I finished the most recent recorded episode my first thought was “Well, what am I supposed to listen to now?!?” (haha). I often get this same feeling when I finish reading a good book. After reading the last sentence and closing the book for the last time, there’s a sense of longing and loss. Then there’s always the question that follows. “Will what I read next live up to the reading experience I just had?” Oftentimes, it takes me a bit of time to release the memory of the previous book (even longer if it was a series!) and become fully engrossed in what I am currently reading, and then the cycle just begins again! Do you ever experience this “problem”? If so, what advice would you give for dealing with those good book postpartum blues?
– Book End Blues
Dear Book Nerd,
For the past year or so I’ve been in the grips of the dreaded reading slump, after only recently having returned to reading a lot for pleasure. It’s gotten so bad that regardless of how much I like a book, I’m not finishing anything. It’s occurred to me that I don’t feel attached to characters like I used to; like I did with, say, Harry Potter. Any suggestions for series I can use to fill this need in between the heavier and more literary fare I still love? If it helps, I’ve always read a lot of fantasy.
– Mori
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Links Discussed:
“Book Hangover: When the Words Stop” (Epic Reads)
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