I think I figured something out

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This may belong in the new forum because it's ADD related, I think (maybe). Anyway I've wondered why it's so easy for me to read fiction but not non-fiction unless I'm really fascinated with the subject (sometimes even then).

I think it's because when I read fiction I read differently than when I read non-fiction. I am usually one of those readers who don't read each and every word in their head. I read in blocks and I create visual impressions of what the characters are doing.

I can't do that when I'm reading non-fiction. It's a different kind of communication. In order to grasp something that's new non visual information I have to read word by word. My tendency is to want to read in blocks and I miss things. I also have real trouble keeping my eye focused on the right line of type.

Does anyone else experience this? Maybe the same problem but reversed, better at non fiction because of reading style?

Definitely reversed. I can blow through non-fiction pretty quickly, but fiction takes a ton of "set up" in my head. I usually feel extremely lost for a few chapters, and I think it's because I read every single word and tend to only really comprehend it when I can "see" the scene in my head. It ends up being a lot of effort. Non-fiction doesn't require the same amount of scene setup for me.

That said, once I've set the scene in my head for a particular piece of fiction, I'm likely to obsessively read it until I'm done. And then I may go and re-read it.

Aimless, I'm with you on this. For the first page or two I'm reading the words and sinking-in to the process, but then I read differently and although I have non-visual contextual thinking, the story is a substantial, live 'thing' going on in my head, and I have no conscious awareness of reading at all. I have been told that when I'm engrossed in a book, it is as if I have 'left the room', which I suppose implies that, apart from page-turning, I'm immobile and my thought processes are completely internalised.

This has a down-side, since it's difficult to read if I'm on my own in a situation such as waiting for an appointment, where I need some external awareness - I worry about getting inadvertently engrossed. It's ok on a journey, if I know how long I've got, or if I have company to nudge me.

I think I judge how much I enjoy a book by how complex the mental structures it generates are, how substantial they feel, and how reluctant I am to stop reading.

Occasionally though I've tried to read a literary recommendation where the words are like glue, and the process is a plodding bore, with no imagery at all. It's strange when that happens, but I usually give up and don't bother with that author again.

Non-fiction varies depending on interest level, but if I can't build a contextual structure, I usually need to scribble diagrams or occasional notes. But it depends what you mean by non-fiction. I love structured things like instruction manuals, cookery books, how-to books, reference books etc. I tend to read them cover-to-cover and find them as hard to put down as a great story.

I like well written fiction. I get lost in it and lose track of the world, just like you describe, Ladyrain.

Unfortunately there's a lot of stuff out there that makes it to the recommended lists because it's very easy to read (Dan Brown) but is lacking in... integrity. There's also the "wordplay" type stuff where the idea is simple but the author spends too much time babbling. Neither of these types (usually) have authors who "devellopped the world beyond the story" - they only built enough knowledge about their story to do the strict storyline, and there are usually too many "take it on faith" assumptions or proposals that my mind gives up on.

Try Fledgeling, by Octavia Butler, for a good vampire story - it's actually about racial equality.
Try Legend of Miaree, by Zach Hughes - it's actually a space fable. Or Killbird, same author.
Dragonflight, Anne McCaffrey - Dragonriders. Pay attention to the social mores of the different peoples on her planet.
The Alchemist, Paulo Coelho - Amazing book: Self-belief and fate and promise and hope.
Anthem, Ayn Rand - A post-apocalypse society where the word "I" has been outlawed and forgotten..
Half Asleep in Frog Pyjamas, Tom Robbins. A masterpiece in 2nd person ("you").
Ender's Game, Orson Scott Card - Kids training to fight war in space against a race that plans to obliterate Earth.

There are others
But all in all, these books have always struck me as stories where the author has FULLY lived in and created and loved their work, their worlds... and has put the dedication in that make their books THRIVE. All are worth reading if you want to try good fiction. Which one is best? Depends your tastes...

Edit: I'm going to add
Rainbows End, by Vernor Vinge. Especially if you are interested in where the internet might go next....

I'm an extremely slow reader no matter what kind of writing it is. My comprehension has always been very good though, so it never caused me too many problems in school.

ladyrain wrote:

i can relate to how you read fiction..for me it's more like watching a movie when I read a good fiction book...have you read cs lewis's space trilogy?

I am finding I enjoy bibliographys because they are often like a story (just a true one) so I can read it in the same way.

My approach to other non-fiction is to read it twice so I can interpret it correctly....I usually read every paragraph twice. If there are no visual descriptions the more difficult it is for me to read it, it is difficult for me to read history texts.