This month was not destined for much reading. We bought a house at the end of April and spent May getting the house ready and moving in. We’re still not completely settled, of course, but at least in June I can say all my stuff is in one place.

Books are a comfort in stressful times. However, to benefit from their ability to comfort and transport there’s a time commitment required. As much as I wanted an escape many, many times during the month of May, I just didn’t have the time to settle into a book.

Books I finished reading in May:

• The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet – Becky Chambers

Books I’m currently reading:

• The Subtle Knife – Philip Pullman
• A Closed and Common Orbit – Becky Chambers

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What books did you read in May? How to you handle wanting to reading during times there just isn’t time to put into books?

April was a chaotic month! We bought a house! We spent the first two thirds of the month stressing and completing all the necessary steps to finalize buying the house. Then we started working on making the house the way we want it to be and moving in. As you can imagine, reading wasn’t top priority.

However, I still managed to read some this month! I don’t think I’d be able to go a whole month without reading at all.

Books I finished reading in April:

Books I’m currently reading:

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Have you ever had periods in your life where you just can’t find the time to dedicate to reading? How did you get through it? I feel like I’m missing out on so much when I don’t read much for an extended period of time. It also drives me up the wall when I don’t get through books and I have so many left waiting on my to be read pile.

March was a deceptive month reading-wise. It felt like I didn’t read much at all. However, my Goodreads says something different. I did a decent amount of reading in March.

Books I finished reading in March:

• The Golden Compass – Philip Pullman
• Harrow the Ninth – Tamsyn Muir
• The Mysterious Study of Doctor Sex – Tamsyn Muir
• The Girl Who Drank the Moon – Kelly Barnhill

Books I’m currently reading:

• Heaven Official’s Blessing (Volume 2) – Mo Xiang Tong Xiu
• The Subtle Knife – Philip Pullman
• The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet – Becky Chambers

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What have you been reading lately? Are there any books you are looking forward to reading this spring?

October was an interesting month for reading. I usually read a classic like Frankenstein or Dracula. This year I decided to find something I hadn’t read before and browsed my library’s app. That’s where I found Practical Magic. I’d watched the movie more than once but never read the book so I gave it a try. It wasn’t the scariest book, but a Halloween read doesn’t have to scare me out of a night’s sleep to scratch the spooky book itch.

Books I finished reading in October:

• Network Effect – Martha Wells
• Priestess of the Morrigan: Prayers, Rituals & Devotional Work to the Great Queen – Stephanie Woodfield
• Practical Magic – Alice Hoffman

Books I’m currently reading:

• House of Many Ways – Diana Wynne Jones

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Did you read anything spooky or scary during October? It’s one of my favorite things to do and I’d love to get some ideas for new or overlooked books for next year.

I read a bit more in September than I did in August. It wasn’t something I made a conscious effort to do. I just allowed myself to read when I wanted to read. It just happened to work out well for me.

Books I finished reading in September:

• Exit Strategy – Martha Wells
• The Poppy War – R. F. Kuang

Books I’m currently reading:

• House of Many Ways – Diana Wynne Jones
• Network Effect – Martha Wells
• Priestess of the Morrigan: Prayers, Rituals & Devotional Work to the Great Queen – Stephanie Woodfield

Did you read more during September? Sometimes I think the months with changing seasons make for easier reading, but I have no evidence to back this up.

I didn’t finish as many books this month and I didn’t start any new ones either. I guess it was a slow reading month. It happens sometimes but I’m a little worried it will become a pattern. I don’t want to read less. There are too many good books out there.

Books I finished reading in August:

• Six of Crows – Leigh Bardugo

Books I’m currently reading:

• House of Many Ways – Diana Wynne Jones
• The Poppy War – R. F. Kuang
• Exit Strategy – Martha Wells

Do you ever unintentionally read less for a little while? Do you do something to start reading more or do you let the phase run its course?