I’m not legally allowed to consume alcohol in the United States, but that doesn’t mean I’m not hungover right now. Yes, that’s right, I’m currently suffering from a bookish hangover. You know, the ones you get after you read a particularly good (or sometimes bad) book that you can’t get over. When all you can do is think about that book and its characters. When nothing else is interesting or nice and bright and shiny as that book. Yeah, that. So how do you deal with it?
Reread
If your hangover doesn’t let you read anything else, just read that book again. And again. And again… And just keep that hangover alive. ?
Read its sequel
If you’re lucky, the book that caused your hangover is part of a series (and not the last book in it). You could try to quell the effects of your hangover by keeping the characters alive (in your head) and finishing the series they belong to.
Find a new read
The problem with this “solution” is that it is easier said than done. Finding an adequate new read while in suffering from a book-induced hangover is hard. But you gotta try.
Find some recommendations
I’m sure at least one list of “How to Get Over Your Hangover” exists. Following this logic, I’m also pretty certain a post like “5 Book to Cure Your Reading Hangover” exists too. Those suggestions might be worth a shot…
Take a break
Isn’t that what people do when they become hungover from alcohol? Sleep? Take the hangover (and the inevitable reading slump that follows) like a champ and let it run its course. It’ll be over eventually. Eventually.
Complain, complain, complain
There has to be a doctor (or witch or someone) that knows how to cure a book hangover. Maybe if you complain enough (and loud enough), he/she/it might hear you and offer a valid solution. Kind of like what I’m doing. No, I’m not really saying any of my solutions are very helpful (they’re pretty obvious, in my opinion). But I mean like how I’m kind of complaining about my bookish hangover and hoping someone will be nice enough to cure it for me in the comments. *cough cough wink ?*
So what do you do to get over a bookish hangover?
I typically just don’t get over them. I’ll push on and read other things since I have so many books I want to get to. That doesn’t stop me from constantly thinking about certain characters or amazing narratives. Or even compounding it by getting caught up in another book. I just soldier on.