5種方式助你渡過閱讀低潮狀態

06-23

當你閱讀時是否出現過疲乏和倦意的狀態？

而你也知道這種狀態十分不利於吸收掌中卷的內容，但出現困頓期好像是每個人都會發生的事情。不信？你可以回想上學時期，這種狀態並不陌生。

今天和大家聊聊這種閱讀低潮，本文摘選了Huffingtonpost（赫芬頓郵報）的一篇雙語文章，博主Linda Johns給出了詳細的解決辦法以及做了針對性的書目推薦，估計看完後又有人要收藏買書了。

本篇不是薦書文章。

希望結束後你能繼續拾起手中的書繼續狂啃。

赫芬頓郵報原題目：

Five Ways to Climb Out of a Reading Slump

（譯：五種方法助你渡過閱讀低潮狀態）

What if I told you that being a librarian had ruined me as a reader? Well, it would be a lie. Mostly.

如果我告訴你當一個圖書館管理員破壞了我作為一個讀者的體驗你會信嗎？好吧我其實是在騙你。

About four times a year, I suffer a bit of a reading crisis. You could call it a reading slump if you』d like, but given that my day job involves connecting people with books, I consider it a full-blown bookish crisis. I feel an obligation to be up on what』s new; plus, shiny new books! If I』m preparing for a community book talk program, I』ll spend weeks and weeks of late-night reading specifically for what that audience might like. It starts to feel like an assignment.

差不多每年四次我會遭遇閱讀危機，或者你可以稱其為閱讀低潮狀態，但是鑒於我每天的工作是把人和書聯繫起來，我個人認為這是一個完完全全的書獃子危機。我總是覺得自己有義務知道有哪些牛逼閃閃的新書上架了！如果我需要給一個社區舉辦讀書交流會，我就會花數周的時間每天晚上閱讀到深夜，尤其是讀那些聽眾可能喜歡的書。這開始讓我覺得它就像是一個任務。

Luckily, this happens only occasionally. Seasonally, in fact. And, luckily, I』ve found a few ways to climb out of the plotless, character-void abyss of a reading slump that comes after required reading. Here are five ways I』ve found to connect with books again, along with my personal book prescriptions.

幸運的是，這種情況的發生只是偶然性的。好吧，季節性的。更幸運的是，我已經找到了一些越過這種毫無情節毫無特點產生於強迫閱讀之後的閱讀低潮深淵的方法。下面是五種我發現的可以再次將人與書聯繫起來的五種方法，還有我開的書單處方，專治閱讀低潮。

1. Choose a different format

選擇一種不同的版式。

I』m not just talking e-book versus print here. I most often read new releases (hardcover, checked out from the library) or soon-to-be-released (which means digital advance copies on an ereader). My favorite format, however, is trade paperback. The size is great for bus commuting and couch reclining, the weight feels good in my hands, and I plain and simple just like this type of book best.

我可不是在簡單的討論電子書vs紙質書的對比。我經常閱讀新上架的書（精裝書，在圖書館裡找的）或者是馬上就要上市的書（電子書上的先行版）。不過我最喜歡的板式是平裝版。平裝版的大小正適合乘公交車的時候或是窩在沙發里看，拿在手裡的重量也剛剛好，我就是如此簡單而純粹的喜歡這種版本的書。

Rx: Amy Falls Down by Jincy Willett (2013). A novelist hits her head right before a reporter interviews her, and whatever she said (she can』t quite recall) has made her a literary darling in great demand for wisdom on writing and publishing.

Prescription notes: I had checked this out twice in hardcover, but returned it both times unread. I was attracted to the redesigned cover (a basset hound!) and a blurb from super librarian Nancy Pearl.

處方：《跌出艾米的才華》（Jincy Willett, 2013）

一個小說家剛好在記者採訪她之前把腦袋摔了，然後不管她說了什麼（她其實並不太記得自己說過些什麼），她變成了一個文學界的寵兒，人們都強烈渴求她在寫作和發布書籍上的智慧。

2. Shop differently.

購物方式不同

I work in a building with close to a million books (Yes, I know! Bliss.) Yet I do most of my browsing online from reviews and Twitter. I』ve lost the 「serendipity in the stacks」 that lead to some of the best discoveries. Sometimes I just need to get out of my regular book selection space — computer screen and my workplace — and visit a book store or another library.

我工作在一幢可以與一百萬本書親密接觸的大樓里（是的我知道，這種感覺超幸福！）但是我大部分的閱讀卻是在網上看評論和推特。我已經喪失了像「在一垛乾草堆里發現寶物」一樣的可以在生活中做出一些極好的發現的運氣。有些時候我只需要走出自己常規的選擇書籍的區域——電腦屏幕和我工作的地方——並去拜訪一家書店或是另一個圖書館。

Rx: Me Before You by Jojo Moyes (2012). A rom com with an unlikely relationship between a quadriplegic and the young woman hired to help him.

PS：That description didn』t exactly pull me in, which is why I hadn』t placed it on hold at my own library. It also was one of those books that I didn』t need to read, because it was so widely shared and read. Then one day, three years after it was published, I came across the book — a nice, clean trade paperback version of the book — on display at a different library branch. Sold.

處方：《我在你之前》（Jojo Moyes,2012）

一個浪漫喜劇，講述了四肢癱瘓的殘疾人與被僱傭來照顧他的年輕姑娘之間不可思議的愛情。

PS：這個簡介當時並沒有吸引我，這也是我為什麼沒有把它放進自己的圖書館。它也是那些我不需要讀的書之一，因為這本書非常多的人都看過。後來，距它出版三年後的一天，我偶然間路過了這本書——一本乾淨整潔的平裝書——在另一個圖書館展出著。已經賣出去了。

3. Read short stories or essays by favorite author.

讀讀那些你喜歡的作者的短篇故事或文章。

I was going to say 「pick up a collection of short stories.」 But what I』ve found is that to come out of this particular slump, I need assurance that an author』s style and voice will keep me going. I stick with authors I know I enjoy, but look for their shorter work.

我本來打算建議「挑一本短篇故事合集」。但是我後來發現想要跳出閱讀低潮，我需要確定一個作家的風格和語言可以保證我能看的下去。我會持續關注那些我喜歡的作家，但是只會找出他們的短作品來讀。

Rx: We Live in Water: Stories by Jess Walter (2013) and A Supposedly Fun Thing I』ll Never Do Again: Essays and Arguments by David Foster Wallace (1998).

PS： Walter』s slim collection of short stories offers the same wry observations I found in my favorite of his novels, The Financial Lives of the Poets. As for Wallace』s nonfiction, I fall in love anew each time I read one of his essays.

處方：《我們生活在水中》Jess Walter寫的故事（2013年）和《一件據說很有趣但我不會做第二次的事》（好任性的題目）David Foster Wallace寫的文章和論據（1998年）

PS：我在華萊士這本十分薄的短篇故事集中看到了熟悉的嘲諷般的觀察，這種風格我曾在自己最喜歡的他的小說《詩人的金融生活》中見過的。每當我讀一篇華萊士的非小說文章，我都會重新愛上他。

4. Base your next book on its appeal characteristic.

換下一本的時候考慮一下什麼書會吸引到你。

Do you read for character, story, setting, or pure love of the language of writing? Sure, it』s possible you read for all four, or for different ones depending on your mood. But what』s the common appeal among your favorite books? For me, it』s character.

你閱讀是因為人物，故事，設定，還是對文字純純的愛？當然，很有可能你對以上四種特點都鍾愛，也有可能你是一個任性的根據心情換喜好的讀者。但是在那些你最喜歡的書中共有的吸引力是什麼？對我來說，是人物。

Rx: A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara (2015). I』m still reading this one, immersed in the lives of four friends who first met at college. I don』t ever want to come out of this book.

PS：This character-rich novel is such a satisfying reading experience for me, reminiscent of my other favorite character novels: The Interestings by Meg Wolitzer, The Art of Fielding by Chad Harbach, and A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving.

處方：《小生命》（Hanya Yanagihara，2015）我現在還在讀這本書，並且深深沉迷於四個在大學相遇的朋友的生活（真的不是小時代嗎……）。我甚至不想走出這本書。

PS：閱讀這部角色豐富的小說對我來說是一次非常令人滿意的閱讀體驗。順便懷念一下我愛的其他的角色小說：《樂在其中》Meg Wolitzer著，《防守的藝術》Chad Harbach著，以及《為小氣鬼歐文的祈禱》John Irving著。

5. Ask a professional.

問問專業人士。

Talking to a librarian or a bookseller is the truest form of reading therapy. A good one will get you talking about what you like in books, and give you a book match based on clues you』ve given when talking about books you love AND the mood you』re in at the moment. Ask a friend for a book recommendation and you』ll often get one of her personal favorites; ask a librarian or a bookseller and you』ll get a suggestion tailored just for you.

和一個圖書館管理員或是書店售貨員談一談才是閱讀治療的正確打開方式。一個好的推薦人會讓你講講自己喜歡書里的什麼，然後根據你在談話時給出的信息以及當時的心情給你一個相匹配的書單。如果你詢問你的朋友的話可能只會得到她最喜歡的書單，但是如果你詢問圖書館管理員或是書店售貨員，你可以得到一份專屬你自己的書單。

Rx: Bellweather Rhapsody by Kate Racculia (2014).

PS: A librarian friend handed this to me, knowing I』d first be intrigued by the cover art and then enticed by the set up. If Glee and Heathers had a baby — and added a mystery — it would be this book. I read it in two sittings, and was back on my way to being the reader I am.

My quarterly slump is behind me now, and I』m off for a great reading season. Here』s hoping you are, too.

處方：《酒店狂想曲》（Kate Racculia，2014）

PS: 一個圖書館管理員朋友給了我這本書，她知道我會先被封面藝術吸引然後被情節設定所引誘。如果Glee和Heathers有一個孩子的話——再加上一點推理——那應該就是這本書了。這本書我已經讀了兩遍了，現在我準備再讀一遍。

My quarterly slump is behind me now, and I』m off for a great reading season. Here』s hoping you are, too.

我的季節性閱讀低潮狀態已經不再出現了，現在我正準備開始一個新的閱讀季節。希望你也不再受它困擾。

（註：所有書籍皆可在美國亞馬遜購買。）

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