Do you get stressed by the amount of TBR books you have?

[Anonymous]

No - it doesn’t stress me out. I view them as ideas for books to read - not a mandate.

[Anonymous]

No, it makes me feel aspirational seeing all the possibilities.

[Anonymous]

I’m more stressed out that I forget what I’ve read.

[Anonymous]

I'm a big fan of the library. Only having a book for a couple months makes me prioritize reading it.

[Anonymous]

Not at all. I love knowing I have so many good book options waiting for me!

I’m all about borrowing books from Libby and the library, so there’s no penalty for trying something I don’t end up liking. I use my TBR list to collect TONS of book ideas, including many outside my usual reading lanes. Definitely encourages me to try reading more widely!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No, I never stress about it. My TBR is much longer than yours and I am a much slower reader. Sometimes I marvel that there are so many good books that I will never be able to read it all in my lifetime, and each year brings us more.

Basically I see this as a treasure chest and not a school assignment.

Well said! ❤️

[Anonymous]

I read 100-150 books a year and it’s my main way to use free time. I do get stressed sometimes, especially if I’ve just read something truly life-changing. I will start to worry that I’ll be chasing that feeling forever.

I had a minor crisis while standing in bookstore abroad in a country with limited distribution of its books but relatively substantial English-language publishing. I felt panic realizing that reading from Canada and the Uk and Australia didn’t even give me a chance of making sure I was reading all the good books. I was doomed!

The way I counteract this feeling is to never ever finish a book that sucks. In my 20s I was patient with books and gave the author time to give it a go. But if I’m 25% through and the book or characters or dialogue aren’t working, I’ll stop and pass it on.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’m more stressed out that I forget what I’ve read.

There are books for that!

I record the title with a short summary e.g "young Irish woman travels to Australia to find father who abandoned the family only to find out about her mother's secret love affair"

[Anonymous]

I also document the books I have read each year. I also give them a basic review.

[Anonymous]

I've been doing reviews in a word doc since 2008. I look back at these often and I'm so glad I started doing it. That's about 1300 reviews! It really helps me jog my memory for books I've read when they come up in conversation.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I've been doing reviews in a word doc since 2008. I look back at these often and I'm so glad I started doing it. That's about 1300 reviews! It really helps me jog my memory for books I've read when they come up in conversation.

Personal book review is a great idea. Occasionally, I do take notes on my iphone on interesting passages, word meanings, etc. I suppose I could copy to Word doc.

To answer OP's question, no I do not worry about the TBR books. I read them as time allows. No stress.

[Anonymous]

You should also probably be stressed about all the books that will be published after your death that you will never have a chance to read.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You should also probably be stressed about all the books that will be published after your death that you will never have a chance to read.

You monster!

Never thought about that until now. Thanks.

[Anonymous]

Nope. It's just a list on my phone, not an obligation.