A few years ago, I made it my mission to tackle every book on the Rory Gilmore Reading List.

For those who aren’t familiar with Rory Gilmore, she’s one of the lead characters in the TV series Gilmore Girls, which ran for seven seasons from 2000 – 2007 (with a short revival in 2016). Rory is a likeable, intelligent girl who aspires to an Ivy League education, followed by a career as a journalist. And she reads. A LOT.

‘Is there a book you don’t own?’ exclaims her boyfriend Logan in one episode. (I related to that bit)

In every episode of the series, Rory is seen reading. Over the course of 154 episodes, she reads 390 books in total, from the classics (Catcher in the Rye, Sense and Sensibility etc.) to biographies and children’s novels. Being an avid reader myself, I decided to tackle the full list. At first, this was an enjoyable endeavor: re-reads of Pride and Prejudice, To Kill a Mockingbird and The Bell Jar brought me much joy and reminded me why I loved reading in the first place. But then things began to change. Like a relationship gone sour, the cracks began to show themselves imperceptibly. Progressing to some of the more challenging titles on Rory’s list, I found my mind increasingly beginning to wander. Household tasks began to take preference over time spent reading. I went to bed later, my usual hour of reading in bed before lights out gradually becoming a thing of the past.

And then one night it happened.

During one cold, dark week in November, spent reading Marcel Proust’s In Search of Lost Time, a strange series of events took place. Every night, I would get into bed, pick up my Kindle and…fall asleep. After only a couple of pages, I’d begin nodding off and, the next night, I’d be unable to remember what I’d read the night before. The text wouldn’t make sense and… the same thing would happen again. Night after night.

Eventually, I realized that I hadn’t developed narcolepsy. I had a different problem – the book. I realized that I’d been struggling with a book that I neither understood or enjoyed.

Why was I doing this to myself? I love reading, and reading in bed at night is my happy place. But I’d put pursuit of a goal ahead of simply enjoying a good book, and I had to accept that it wasn’t working any more.

I was reading wrong.

There is such a thing as How Not To Read. Here’s my tips, to avoid falling into the same trap:

Quality over quantity

You don’t have to spend hours every day reading. Who has that kind of time? Just 10 minutes per day is beneficial from a wellbeing / mental health perspective. Try reading on your commute, or in bed at night.

Take reviews with a pinch of salt.

Reviews can be useful and informative, if we’re choosing a service or product (e.g. a hotel, a new sofa or bed). But books are subjective. If you like the sound of a book and it appeals to you, why not give it a go? My advice would be to ignore reviews that say any of the following:

‘I couldn’t get into it’

‘It was boring / slow / the characters annoyed me’

‘It should be banned because of (insert plot point / theme/ scene)

These reviews are highly subjective, and won’t help you decide if you like a book or not. Why not make up your own mind?

Take your time.

Ignore those posts from people who claim to have read 300 books in a year. If you read too quickly, you may miss vital plot points, nuances in the text, and some great writing! There’s no shame in reading at a slower pace. It isn’t a race!

Don’t read for the sake of it.

If you’re not enjoying a book, it’s ok to put it down and read something else. This is a lesson I’ve had to learn over the years, and something I’m not always very good at. These days, I exercise the 20% rule – if I’ve completed 20% of the book and I’m not enjoying it, I stop and find something else to read instead. That way, I know I’ve given the book a fair chance.

It isn’t necessary to read the classics.

Controversial, I know. Whilst some classic novels are wonderful works of literature – timeless stories that are still relevant today – everyone’s taste is different. Some are challenging, with archaic language, complex narratives and unusual styles of writing that can be off-putting for the less confident reader. Reading is personal, and if Dickens doesn’t do it for you, that’s ok!

Step away from that reading list.

Lists entitled ‘The Greatest Novels of All Time’ are all well and good, but there’s no guarantee that every book on the list will capture your imagination. It’s really easy to get stuck in a cycle with reading lists, going from one book to the next with little thought for what you’re actually reading. Here’s a alternative suggestion: why not try a reading challenge with prompts instead? Reading prompts allow you to choose a book on a specific theme, but the genre, author and plot is up to you. It allows for greater freedom and you’re more likely to enjoy the book, because you’ve chosen it yourself.

Anything I’ve missed?