A Book Guide On Reading Slumps

#6 And how I got out of mine

Hello remember me? That girl that started sending you semi-regular newsletters and then promptly fell off the face of the earth. Or at least fell off the face of Substack. Well, I’m back! Nice to see you. I hope you haven’t completely lost faith in my ability to be a dependable email sender.

Like every skilled slacker, I have an abundance of excuses to offer you:

1. I’ve had a lot of work on,

2. the newsletter started to feel like work,

3. I wanted to reconsider the structure,

4. I went on holiday,

5. I was living in a van,

6. I had to see my friends,

7. I had to make the most of the good weather,

8. I had to get away from my desk,

9. I had to make a music video about Ken (yes that Ken).

The real truth is, I was in a big fat reading slump. It was summer and then there was work madness in September and these things happen sometimes and that’s ok.

So, to mix things up, for this newsletter I thought I’d share some of the things that I consumed when I wasn’t reading. Some of these things helped me clamber out of my slump and got me back to doing the two things that I love to do.  

Things I listened to

Listening to a podcast, the radio or even a book can be a great vice for someone going through a reading slump. You can be passively consuming culture while you actively slack off and procrastinate.

In the midst of my slump, I stumbled across Annie Macmanus’ podcast Changes after randomly searching ‘Zadie Smith’ in the Spotify search bar and what a treasure! In each episode, Annie asks her guests what they have overcome in childhood and adulthood and how they effect change. Unsurprisingly hearing about other people’s paths to success and the challenges they have faced along the way is not only inspiring but can offer a much-needed dose of perspective. My favourites so far are her interview with Zadie Smith, where they talk a lot about living in north London, the episode with Louie Theroux and this one with comedian Joanne McNally who I have recently become obsessed with.

I also re-listened to nearly every episode of Love Stories with Dolly Alderton. A podcast I always revisit when I’m looking to un-slump for no other reason than its very wholesome, heartwarming content - perfect for Nora Ephron season (that’s autumn for those of you who don’t celebrate). The episode with Stanley Tucci and this one with Emma Freud are both excellent.

Things I watched

I know I’m late to the party on this one, but if you’re looking for something all-consuming to consume, then look no further than Top Boy. It’s not only worth the hype but I was struck by how considered and well-fleshed-out the character storylines are. Also, the fact that they managed to get so many of the same characters from the Summerhouse series back after a 6-YEAR-BREAK for the new season is completely mind-boggling to me and adds a layer of emotional depth to the show that I haven’t come across anywhere else.

When you’re neglecting your commitments, there is nothing more comforting (and satisfying) than finding someone who is slacking even more than you are. In August I found the queen of slacking in this lighthearted, yet bizarre Vice documentary about scandalous influencer, Caroline Calloway who skips out on her half-a-million-dollar book deal. The media frenzy around this woman and the book trilogy she is now finally (supposedly) publishing makes for great watching. Especially when you yourself are slacking.

Other things I did

Went swimming in the ponds, went to France, lived in a van for two weeks, went to Malta, drank margaritas, went for dinner (mainly at the Plimsoll because the burgers bang), played tennis, went for long walks, celebrated turning 27, wrote a silly little list about turning 27, made espressos with MY OWN espresso machine, broke the espresso machine, had lunch with my godmother, had tea with my great aunt, went to the farmers market, bought a pumpkin, made pumpkin soup, made bucket-loads of potato salad, had my first roast of the season, gawked at all of the beautiful things in this overpriced garden centre, got my boyfriend to cut my hair, went bowling with old and new friends.

Newsletter Update

Have you noticed that this newsletter is a bit different to the others? Yeah, so basically I’ve decided to change the structure (see point 4 on my list of excuses). It turns out that doing two deep dives on two books every month is not sustainable. This is what will happen instead.

The newsletter is still bi-weekly, but instead of two deep-dive book reviews per month, I’ll just send you one. Then you’ll get a second newsletter within the same month including a collection of short-form content, thoughts on books and things related to them, recommendations and random titbits about my life ( a bit like this one). Essentially something more skimmable.

Read along with me!

My next deep dive review will be on Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin.

New to Nat’s Notes?

If you have somehow ended up here and this sounds like something you’d enjoy please subscribe!

If you subscribed between July and now and this is the first newsletter you’re getting, welcome! Thank you so much for subscribing! All I can promise is that the next one will be less random.