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I have a book buying addiction. This is fine, it’s a more healthy addiction than some other things like crack cocaine or the gee gees..
There is a slight problem though. I don’t have a reading addiction. I used to. When I was in primary school I got my bronze, silver and gold reading badges from the library and I would take pages and pages on holiday in the caravan – and when mum and I read the same trash that doubled!
But somewhere between the advent of Netflix, the tablet and now TikTok the worlds that my head can create are no longer riveting enough to hold my attention. That sweet sweet hit of dopamine I get from swiping on social media just isn’t hit by a book anymore.
So, in 2023 I have developed a two pronged attack.
One. I will go to bed every night, put my phone on charge and no social media in the bedroom. The only reason to look at my phone is to pop on my beloved pink noise playlist to help me get to sleep with my ever faithful sleep headphones.
Two. I commit to reading 80 pages a night. Yes, it seems a lot, but if I do this it means I will read at least one book per week, with 2 days to spare. I have started a list which I will add to overtime – you can see it here on my recommendations page or here on my Amazon ideas page. It’s a bit sparse at the moment but it will grow!
I am nearly at the end of my first book of 2023. It’s The Shelf by Helly Acton.
I’m enjoying it but I am not sure about the premise.
Everyone in Amy’s life seems to be getting married, having children and settling down (or so Instagram tells her), and she feels like she’s falling behind. So, when her long-term boyfriend surprises her with a dream holiday, she thinks he’s going to finally pop the Big Question. But the dream turns into a nightmare when, instead, she finds herself on the set of a Big Brother-style reality television show, The Shelf.
Along with five other women, Amy is heartlessly dumped live on TV and must compete in a series of humiliating and obnoxious tasks in the hope of being crowned ‘The Keeper’.
The language and views expressed by the men in this book are as horrific as you might imagine – a woman’s place is in the home and all that. But 100 pages from the end it has definitely been a book to kick me into a year of easy reading,
What else should I add to my reading list?