How I Read Difficult Books

I'm back and ready to tackle challenging books.

I’m declaring 2026 the year I read books that intimidate me. While sometimes a book intimidates because I’m scared I won’t like it, it’s usually because it’s long, experimental, a classic, or a combo of the above. ‘Difficult’ can mean different things to different people, so for context here are a few examples of books I’ve read that I considered difficult for a variety of reasons:

• House of Leaves

• The Count of Monte Cristo (twice!)

• Journey to the End of the Night

• The Waves

• Ducks, Newburyport

• Infinite Jest

• The Unabridged Journals of Sylvia Plath

Here are few books I want to read, but haven’t yet because I perceive them as difficult:

• East of Eden

• Swann’s Way (currently reading)

• The Artist’s Way (currently reading)

• Lies and Sorcery

• 4 3 2 1

These are some ways I tackle challenging books to make them less intimidating:

1. Chunk the book into sections, and tackle each chunk.

   I treat each chunk as its own book for really long books (like The Count of Monte Cristo). I’ll use a page tab to mark out sections, and then view my progress that way. (Example: I’m halfway through the 5th section; I want to read 40 pages of section 2 by the weekend). It feels easier to tackle each section vs the entire book.

2. Commit to 10 pages a day.

   This is one of my favorite ways to make sure I prioritize a hard read. I commit to reading 10 pages a day. If I want to keep going after 10 pages, I will. If I want to stop after 10 pages, I will, but at least I made some amount of progress.

3. Read it with a friend.

   I love a buddy read! It helps keep you accountable and you can reward yourself by meeting up with your friend at certain parts (halfway through, etc.) and grabbing a coffee or dinner. I also stay more engaged when I know I am going to have someone to discuss details with later.

4. Take notes.

   These don’t need to be detailed. Sometimes I just keep a running list of character names and 1-2 words reminding me who they are (Example: John - dad, accountant). Other times I will take actual notes on the plot, just depends on the book! It’s nice to be able to reference things or people I get confused by.

5. Find resources online.

   The Infinite Jest Wiki saved my life when I read it. Nothing wrong with a little help, and these can be helpful for really complex books. No amount of personal notes would help me keep the Infinite Jest characters straight.

   

   I also referenced this character map a lot

6. Read other books at the same time.

   I like having easy to read, palate cleanser books that I can read on the side.

7. Research the author and the book’s cultural impact.

   I appreciate having background on the author, and understanding the impact of the book helps me recognize themes of importance.

8. Just read it.

   Sometimes I just tell myself to get over it and read it. If I want to read it, I should, and I shouldn’t let myself get intimidated.

I hope this was helpful! Let me know what tips you have for challenging books, and which ones are worth adding to my tbr!

Happy Reading!