Back in 2012, there was a time when I didn’t have a blog and was only putting book reviews up on Goodreads. Most of the time, those “reviews” were just a sentence or two about my feelings for a book. When I transferred all my reviews off Goodreads to a private location, and later to this blog, I didn’t bother moving those. They weren’t even mini-reviews.
In the years since, I’ve regretted my laziness in not reviewing those books. I’ve regretted not taking the time to write down some real thoughts. And yet recently, I’ve found myself in a similar mindset to where I was four years ago. I have a blog, but my brain isn’t really reading books in a way that lends itself to discussion. Ever since July, with all the construction and moving going on, I’ve been reading far more shallowly, to entertain myself or even just to take up time. Sometimes I really do have nothing more to say than “I liked this one” or “this book didn’t work for me.” Because I know I’ll kick myself later if I don’t, I’ve been forcing myself to write reviews most of the time. I can’t remember the last time I wrote an in-depth review, though. Early August, maybe? Perhaps even further back.
The thing is, I’ve really liked some of these books. I’ve enjoyed the brain-candy books and reveled in the meatier books and swooned over the romantic books. I’m in brainmelt mode, though, so even when there is something thicker and more interesting to think about and discuss, I’m not really feeling/seeing/processing it. And after awhile, I get tired of writing reviews that say “I don’t really have anything to say about this one.” Because that’s pretty much all books right now, good or bad, shallow or deep. I don’t really have much to say about books, period.
Maybe that’ll change, now that I’m in my own place. Maybe it’ll change once I settle down into a new rhythm and routine. I’ll keep writing my next-to-nothing semi-reviews in the meantime, because I don’t want to kick myself a couple years down the road, but I don’t know when my brainmelt will be over and I’ll be back to really thinking about what I’m reading again.
The Zen Leaf 
I understand a little bit of what you’re feeling — I’ve just now started blogging again after months off (and probably nobody is even reading my blog anymore). There’s nothing wrong with taking time off. Or what about roundups of mini-reviews? People will still want to read what you think, and sometimes it’s fun to change things every so often.
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Yeah, I’ve been doing minis just as a short option. I worry I’m going to be mad at myself later even for those!
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I think mini-reviews are a great way to write down your thoughts for those times when we just cannot summon up the energy or brainwaves to write more. I use them frequently when I am particularly out of energy, so keep at it! You will get back to a regular routine soon enough.
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I really hope so. Having a house again helps! Now to just get it all organized and such!
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I felt very similarly, which is why I really tried to start being more in depth about six months ago. Which led me to bringing back my blog after a couple of years. In my case, having two babies in two years really knocked me out. I definitely think moving multiple times like you have would have the same effect. For me, it’s harder for myself when I force it so I just really tried not to pressure myself and eventually the urge to write reviews and read with more purpose came back to me. Good luck!
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I understand that – I had three babies in 3.5 years and it totally knocked me out for a long time!!
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