How to Start Reading Again

Love that Le Guin shelf

10:35 Ah, no wonder you get along with MCT so well XD

I just recently started reading again. And I intentionally started with Notes from Undergound by Dostoyevsky as I knew while dense in content it’s a relatively short book; my copy being only 100 pages. It took sometime and was challenging at some points but it built up my confidence to finally read some fiction books I’ve been wanting to get to. I’ve read 2 books now and have started my 3rd.

It isnt the solution for everyone, but as someone who works odd hours where I can't really use a light to read whether at home (at risk of waking my partner up) or at work (we only run service lights building wide on third shift at my job), a Kindle got me from not having read a book in years, to reading multiple books in a couple weeks.

Time to de-brainrotize my brain

I've been playing more games partly because I'm interested in gamedev & I wanted to go through some games which inspired me + obscure-ish indie games like Noita use the medium beautfiully (Noita requires a lot of patience really), same w/some stuff like Crypt of the Necrodancer, Moonring, and Darkest Dungeon. Also some RPGs but mostly those roguelites recently + these ones reward patience. But yeah somehow that made me realise, "I want to read more, too! I like that I'm spending less time on social media with this medium and that these specific games are making me more patient (working the patience like a muscle) and not seek instant gratification, instant brief rushes of cheap dopamine."

That + the fact that I've had plenty of books in my tbr anyway. And the fact that I've been trying to read non-fiction (statistics + neurology + stuff abuot consciousness + two volumes of Musimathics) more recently , and the fact that college also required me to read....... but my reading muscles have just been weaker w/o fiction books. Reading books on statistics isn't really the same as the other stuff since there's more note-taking & practical application but the neurology & Musimathics are mostly reading + one of the stats books is more conventional and I really do not like how weak I've gotten at reading........ but I'm intensely interested in these subjects, and I've got some fiction books to get to as well! So I guess I'll just have to try a little harder. Work that muscle. Just like weightlifting, it's hard at first but the efforts pay off.

(and i'm getting physical versions of some f these books too because my god I need less screen time, I need way less of this blue light. no i don't have an e-reader, maybe i'll get one at some point but who knows. but not the same as a physical book. i use obsidian so that helps w/note-taking alongside reading. but still i think reading away from my laptop or phone will be v beneficial.......... also I recommend The Art of Statistics by David Spiegelhalter even for non-maths people)

I honestly think reading on a kindle has reignited the love of reading for me. I read avidly as a teen and young adult and didn’t for twenty years, now it’s my main hobby. I like a kindle because
A. It is a uniform and comfortable reading experience. Whether I’m reading a 1300 page chunker or a quick read, it feels the same. Also, I can read anywhere and in any position. I love laying down and holding my book right over my face.
B. You are less likely to get intimidated by the length of a book and just appreciate the story.
C. I can easily swap between books. I often like having a non fiction and fiction book that I read, it’s very easy on my kindle.

Because video games and movies are way better than books

I hate reading, but this book about homesteading is awesome. I read 15 minutes as soon as I heard it. Then went on a deep dive researching different soil types.

What helps me is going somewhere I don’t want to be and using the kindle app as a distraction. You hate dancing? Go to a nightclub. Hate sports? Go to a game. Put yourself in situations where reading is the better option, then get so engrossed in the book that you want to finish it in your free time.

Youtube is one of two social medias I have left, the other being a small forum for one of my hobbies. I don’t struggle with reading a lot, I struggle with finding something that is worth reading. Not because there aren’t good books but my brain seems to be very picky about them. I read the entire dune original series, got maybe 20 pages into the author’s son’s book and gave up as it was too different of writing style. Read all of Neil Gaiman’s books, tried reading a Terry Pratchett and could NOT get into it (Neil and terry literally co authored a book I loved too, Good Omens)

I like really dry narration with interesting stories. Frank Herbert and Neil Gaiman both write very matter of fact, but books that deal with more surface emotions or get too descriptive drive me bonkers.

If anyone has books that are similar vibes to Neil Gaiman’s or Frank Herbert’s writing style please reply to my comment with them.

I love reading comic books but I feel that I get judged when I do. Because some people think it is not counted as reading a book.

For people who don't like books but want a middle ground between books and games I highly recommend visual novels. They still have a lot of the descriptive detail of books but with some nice art and voice acting and music to make it more exciting😂. Personally I haven't read a normal novel in about 5 years but I love vn's and highly recommend them to anyone who wants to still exercise their imagination but not to such an extreme extent as normal books😂

I used to read constantly as a teen, then found myself no longer having the time as an adult. After deleting all social media apps from my phone, I realised how much free time to read I actually had. Now I go everywhere with a book (or read on my foldable phone), but it's amazing the difference removing like two apps made to my free time, mental health and quality of life

His name is Jake?!?!?

Catch-22 is such an amazing comedy book that kinda scratches the itch of "accomplishing something" while also being extremely entertaining.

20:00 I have a 1924 Cambridge University copy of "Miltons Complete Poems" where someone with the handwriting of that era, did just that. It's fascinating to read the poem, read his annotated thoughts, and see how someone 100 years ago interpreted Milton's works, compared to how I do reading them today.

I'm trying to read more fiction again and just books in general, so thank you for this, Jared! Took some notes on the video to apply, but here are a couple of tips for y'all that I'm also about to test:

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1. If you play a lot of video games (single-player story-driven ones mainly like me), and reading regular books feel too under-stimulating, try transitioning yourself into reading by playing what you may call "book games".

I recommend the following:
1. "Lifeline" (2015) by 3 Minute Games (Android/iOS only) (Sci-fi/Horror)
2. "Choice of Robots" (2014) by Choice of Games (Sci-fi)
3. Psy High (2014) by Choice of Games (Drama/Thriller)
4. Sixth Grade Detective (2015) by Choice of Games (Mystery) (short and sweet)

These games are 80-100% just texts, so it's not as stimulating as regular video games, but they're interactive enough (like old-school choose your adventure books) that you won't get bored too easily.

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2. This may sound counter-productive, especially if you're trying to read more fiction, but try reading a non-fiction book that you find at least mildly interesting.

You don't even have to finish it, just read it as much as possible. If you enjoy it and get to finish it, great, but even if you don't, your brain might return to a lower baseline for stimulation sensititivity (since non-fiction may not have very engaging plots to follow), that jumping into a fiction right after the non-fiction may just be just what the brain wants to not get bored.




All the best and have a good one guys!

Mfs will say "I don't read because I don't have the attention span for that" and then proceed to not do anything to fix that. It's like saying "I don't like talking to people because I have anxiety" and then instead of finding ways to treat their anxiety (the best way is forcing yourself to talk to people) they just stay home avoiding people which just makes their anxiety worse

The murderbot series hooked me in a couple years ago, and most recently dungeon crawler carl. Just finished Jurassic park recently. It feels good to be reading again

I read a lot but prefer non fiction

Reading a physical book before bed also helps me personally relax better and help me fall to sleep much easier as compared to not doing it

I love Pratchett! Anytime I read a challenging literary number, I follow it up with a Discworld novel, just so reading doesn’t begin to feel like a difficult chore:)

7:27 funny you mention that, I attended a class that essentially had that premise 😂
We played through RDR2 and analyzed its narrative alongside classic literature. That game is full of literary references! Some of the books we were encouraged to read included Moby Dick, Beloved, True Grit, All The Pretty Horses, The Sound and The Fury etc. The premise *actually worked*, and that class had a bunch of dude bros (and video game skeptics) thinking deeply about these narratives.

I hadn't read a single book to completion in over five years. This year I decided to change that. I've read three books so far, and have a whole new backlog building up. I have definitely found it easy to read at a pace of around 20 pages at a time, long enough to feel like progress but short enough to fit in the gaps of everyday life.

I have to read in self defense

13:25 I tried to read Crime And Punishment as my first book I'd read in years, and don't get me wrong, I enjoyed it to an extent, but it is a long book and I didn't finish it and felt so defeated. I instead picked up Percy Jackson because my son was reading them, and that was far more successful.

Part of the reason why a certain category of men - my past self included - want to get in to reading is specifically to read books that are philosophical or pushing the limits of the medium. This makes "read what you want to read" not super helpful advice, because that includes a lot of books that are too hard to start with and books that are good for easing yourself into reading often seem kinda uninteresting. My goto getting in to reading advice for men is to treat it a bit like picking up running or starting to go to the gym or something. It can feel frustrating and almost embarrassing in the beginning when you're not very good at it, but it becomes more fun once you improve. Don't have too high expectations or be too hard on yourself when you're just starting out, you just gotta put the hours in for a while until it starts to make sense.

A booktuber I like called May Leitz (her channel name is Arsenic Dealer) recently talked about classic Goosebumps books that were designed for middle schoolers and genuinely recommended them as a good starting point for adult wanting to get back into reading, because if you don't have the habit and skills to read something complicated or long then you might as well start with some well crafted 2nd grade literature.

The point about picking books that are too hard is so true, and Ive never heard anyone else say it

I also would recommend e-readers. I read way more since I got one because they are a small and leight weight and easy to hold. You can get them pretty cheaply second hand.

This stigma around "performative male" needs to die, because that's how most people start reading as a performance but somewhere during that they start to enjoy it.

Shitty novels. That’s why

How do I find out what I want to read when everyone on YT and social media tells you what you should read? It starts to get really muddy. How does one go about finding books organically rather than off some top 10 list on YT?

Hey Jared, just wanted to say thank you for this video. I first watched it I think in August of 2025 and it was what gave me the push to start reading again.
It's been almost a year since then and I've completely fallen back in love with reading. I just checked my book journal that I started keeping and I've read over 40 books since then. I've been loving the Discworld novels, Octavia Butlers work and Ursula K Le Guins writings too plus many others. I read first thing when I wake up and last thing before I go to bed and I'm excited to do so every day. My life has improved so much since I started reading for fun again and it's in huge part thanks to this video. Thanks again!

Thanks for this I needed some tools/structure to get me back into reading since I want to read but struggle with slow down and prioritizing the time to do that for a number of reasons but I have realized that I really need to make this happen. I am a guy that grew up in the library where for many years I devoured all the books that interested me and this continued until I was about 35 years old and then life took over. My reading suddenly consisted of only political writings and technical literature for my work as a systems developer. Now that I finally have time to read again I struggle with focus and prioritizing time to read. But I am getting there, day by day I read more so thanks your channel has been important for me here so I just want to show my appreciation. One thing that has made it easier for me to steal some moments to read when at work or when I travel is my new e-reader, easy to bring and to read a bit on my lunch break. Even though I love the physical feeling of a real book the e-reader is a great tool to actually read and not just want to read

9:30 watching this a week after buying brothers karmazov

Every single second of this video can also be applied to listening to good music and I think that's awesome.

I used to read SO MUCH more. I collect vintage paperbacks and antique books and I have a MASSIVE TBR list. It sickens me how many hours I waste on Youtube and Reddit. And when I try to read, I run into the same issues that many others struggle with. My focus and attention span is SHOT, and I know it's from rapid fire, short form content. Pulling that slot machine handle over and over for hours. It's fried my reward center, my dopamine system, and caused my monkey brain to be obsessed with instant gratification. This video has inspired me to stop scrolling for an hour before bed and stick to the goal of reading. It will take practice. I will have to read paragraphs over and over. I'll do whatever it takes. I'm so sick of being addicted to screens.

Maybe poetry ? It's short and engaging. 
Poems are know to be deep in meaning.
Maybe reading the same poem a 10 times is the way to get learn to appreciate reading again. 
I'll try that.