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This Book Made No Sense...Then It Clicked.
Published 28 days ago • 2 min read
You May Not Be Ready for That Book - YET -
Hello Reader,
When I first read Slaughterhouse-Five, I didn’t like it. I couldn’t figure out why people called it a great book. To me, it was just about a strange guy named Billy Pilgrim who bounced around in time, got abducted by some weird aliens from Tralfamadore, and tried to make sense of all the death he witnessed in World War II.
Now, years later, I love it. So it goes.
Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut
I didn’t like the book at first because I wasn’t ready for it. At that point in my life, I was only reading fast-paced crime thrillers, and my brain wasn’t in the right headspace for something with multiple arms, so to speak.
What changed? I got older, for one thing. That helped. I’m also halfway through a degree in Philosophy now, which often feels like swimming through primordial mud. I’ve had to slow down—excessively slow down—and that’s made me a better reader. Shocking, I know.
At first, I felt stupid. But here’s the thing: I wasn’t stupid. And if you're struggling with a book, you’re not either. Reading is a skill—like playing the piano. It takes work and patience.
The tricky part is that we bring ourselves to the books we read. If you’ve recently gone through a tragedy, tragic books can feel unbearable. Lost a love? Romance might sting.
Part of becoming a better reader is understanding where you are in life—and what your soul needs right now. You may not be ready for a certain book, and that’s okay. Maybe you will be soon.
I hope you have a beautiful week. I genuinely, truly do.
👋 Until next time, read slowly – take notes – apply the ideas.
-Eddy
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Reading isn’t enough. People love to say that books make you smarter, but that’s only true if you do something with what you read. In this episode, I’ll talk about how to read for knowledge in a way that actually improves your life. I’ll also share some key decisions I’ve made as a reader to sharpen my understanding, including lessons from my study of Macbeth.
This month, I'm focusing on the dangers of "Group Think." The goal is to recognize when we're swept away with the crowd and to hit pause and think before we act.
Feel free to respond to this email. Let me know how I can make your experience in our reading community better, or if you have questions, I'm all ears.
As always, read slowly - take notes - apply the ideas.
-Eddy
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Weekly Newsletter on Great Books, Reading Habits, and Literary Appreciation.
Subscribe to my newsletter for tips on close reading, detailed note-taking, and applying bookish wisdom to your life. I talk about fiction and non-fiction, interview literary experts, and host The Read Well Podcast. Subscribe today and build better reading habits.