Is anyone else made nervous by books?

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I am speaking mostly of fiction novels, although sometimes text books and instructional books etc make me nervous as well.

I've never been much of a reader, the only books I've really enjoyed as an adult have been for the most part classic russian novels,which I did enjoy immemsely.However that was a good four years ago and the last book I read was this summer.It was a fairly sizeable book and I finished it in a couple of days, so It's not that I'm incapable of reading. Besides that, I am on the internet constantly am frequently reaching message boards, blogs, various lists, etc., and none of this causes me any anxiety.But for some reason lately, when I try to sit down and read a book,I just get very nervous and anxious and am compelled to put it down.I think part of the reason for this is that when I start to read a novel, I automatically envision the characters a certain way, and my visualizations of them clash with the way the author describes them.Or sometimes I'll automatically, for some reason, imagine a character as a certain celebrity or perhaps even just someone that I know, or met one time.Of course that would only account for fiction, but like I said, I sometimes become nervous from textbooks etc too and I cant really pinpoint why.Can anyone relate to this!

I think it's normal to relate fiction to real life happenings and people you might know. Well, normal to people who have an active mind, but that might not really be normal.

I don't know why you'd be nervous. Maybe it's not the books themselves that are doing it.

I totally relate to this. I find fiction really stressful to read, for some reason. I think it might be that it is really hard for me to understand characters' motivations, and I just can't get myself to care about invented people.

Yes and I used to love reading, its just that I happened to be reading a book when it was announced my school was on lockdown then of course it turned out to be because of a psycho with a gun who shot someone. So yeah it triggers me to think about that.

I'm no bibliophobe - I like reading, and on many occasions, books have provided a means of escape and a refuge from real-world conflicts and the people that cause them.

No, I don't relate to this. Books (fiction and non) are one of the only things that don't make me nervous. I love getting lost in a book. I do avoid most fantasy books, though, because I can't imagine a world I've never seen, and can't relate to it. That's why it took me forever to read Harry Potter, which is now one of my obsessions (I watched all the movies first, then imagined the movie world while reading).

I only read non-fiction. So it is not a problem.

I love books. I don't get nervous when I read but I do have a definate anticipation and self imposed "pressure" to push myself to get to the end of a chapter before I put the book down. Also, if I'm very nar the end of a book I'm really enjoying I may feel a bit sad that it's going to be over soon. I also start fretting that I may not have something interesting to read once I finish the book. I like to have at least two or three backup books on my nightstand when I start a new book, in case I don't care for it.

When I start a new book, if I don't care for it, or it's boring, I will make myself read at least a few chapters before I put it away for good. I've found that sometimes a book will pick up in later chapters and I'll really enjoy it. "We Need To Talk About Kevin" was like that. It was horribly boring for the first few chapters, then it picked up and I couldn't put it down. I can also get into books that I normally wouldn't like that way too. I don't care for mysteries at all, but my mother loves them. She can't see to read anymore so she gave me all of her mysteries to put on BookMooch. I have about 150 mysteries in my laundry room pantry now. I ran completely out of something to read recently and went through them until I found one that I thought I could read. It was a pretty good book, actually. What helped me get through it was to imagine the police, coroner, FBI, etc as characters from crime shows I like. NCIS, Criminal Minds, the Law & Orders. I may look through them and find somthing else once I finish "Angels and Demons" which is another one that I didn't think I'd care for but ended up being really into.

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I'm giving it another shot. We will see.
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I love reading books, but I am a very slow reader and do not have time any more.
Writing make me very nervous as I have to convert images in to words.. Not very easy for me...

Also, I could not read well enough to read a whole book till I was in my late 30's.

Reading books writen before 1940 with the old writing style is too difficult.

A book at 9th grade reading level will take me about a month to read... as I can only read a paragraph or two at a setting. I get overloaded easily, as I read it is converted to pictures.
It I had to read a book in a certin time, the it would be too stressful and I'd be nervous.

My current job is in the tech field and I have to get certifications. The study books are impossible for me to read. Also, they make new words for something old and it confuses me. My next job will be labor..... I love working in samll town grocery stores.

When I was in my late teens I could read manuals becasue the were a buch of small ideas.

I identify with this very much, but it doesn't scare me away from books - I do way too much reading. If my imagination of a character clashes with an authors' description, I will just ignore the author's description and substitute it for the one I visualize. I primarily read fiction, as well. Often horror/dark fantasy.

Concentration issues are the only problem I have with books. Ask my family to describe me and they'll mention my bookwormishness.

Another thing I do often is listen to audiobooks. I find them very immersive if the reader is good at voice acting.

Only math books and emails with bad news, but I love fiction.