What Should I Read Next?

Ep 515: I can't read all the books, and that's okay

February 24, 2026

Key Takeaways Copied to clipboard!

  • The central theme of the episode, driven by guest Holly Dyer's mantra, is accepting the reality that one cannot read every book, which necessitates making intentional choices about how to spend finite reading time. 
  • Holly Dyer is actively seeking strategies to combat 'bookish decision fatigue' and reduce the frequency of DNFing books by better vetting titles before committing to them. 
  • Holly's reading goals for 2026 involve a shift toward quality over quantity: reading fewer books, spending more time with each title, exploring longer works, and incorporating more rereads. 

Segments

Introduction and Book Club Plug
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(00:00:17)
  • Key Takeaway: The Modern Mrs. Darcy Book Club offers a buffet of events, including monthly author chats like the upcoming one with Jesse Q. Sutanto, and member-led community picks.
  • Summary: The episode opens by promoting the Modern Mrs. Darcy Book Club, highlighting recent reads like Vera Wong’s Unsolicited Advice for Murderers. Members participate in various events, such as Reader’s Day and author talks, and can select titles for smaller group reads called community picks. Membership details are available at modernmrsdarcy.com/club.
Guest Introduction and Background
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(00:05:10)
  • Key Takeaway: Guest Holly Dyer, a classical musician and mother from Massachusetts, is experiencing reading overwhelm and aims to read fewer, deeper books, including rereads.
  • Summary: Holly Dyer, an active member of the podcast’s book club and Patreon communities, is feeling stressed by the volume of books she feels she should read. Her 2026 goals include reading fewer titles, spending more time with them, exploring longer books, and dedicating time to rereading favorites. Anne Bogle plans to help Holly vet titles and pare down her reading goals.
Holly’s Reading Journey and Identity
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(00:06:30)
  • Key Takeaway: Holly rediscovered reading as an adult during the exhaustion of new motherhood, finding it a relaxing activity for naps, after having previously felt burned out by required reading in school.
  • Summary: Holly lives near Boston, works in college admissions, and is a cellist. She previously stopped reading for nearly a decade due to burnout from required texts and feeling inadequate about literary interpretations. Reading returned as an enjoyable, recharging activity when she sought something to do while her baby napped, leading her to become a voracious reader across fiction, classics, and nonfiction genres like sociology and psychology.
The Overwhelm and Mantra Adoption
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(00:13:39)
  • Key Takeaway: Inspired by Oliver Berkman’s 4,000 Weeks, Holly adopted the mantra, ‘I can’t read all the books, and that’s okay,’ to combat the pressure to consume every book.
  • Summary: Holly is currently rereading 4,000 Weeks by Oliver Berkman, which emphasizes the finiteness of time, prompting her to realize she cannot read every book. This realization led to her mantra, which she uses to justify choosing books she genuinely wants to read over those she feels pressured to read. This shift is also reflected in her high rate of DNFs (six so far in January) as she stops reading books that do not immediately resonate.
Vetting Strategies and Decision Fatigue
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(00:20:17)
  • Key Takeaway: To combat decision fatigue and poor choices, Anne Bogle suggests specific vetting techniques, including examining the cover, blurbs, epigraph, first paragraph, and a random page deep into the book.
  • Summary: Holly is experiencing exhaustion from constantly deciding what to read next, especially after several DNFs. Anne recommends her Book School session on vetting, which covers physical inspection cues like the cover and blurbs, and textual inspection cues like reading the first five pages or a page in the middle to gauge prose quality. She also advises considering the source of the recommendation and imagining the desired reading experience before committing.
Favorite Books Showcase
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(00:24:16)
  • Key Takeaway: Holly’s favorite books highlight her interest in narratives that deeply explore complex human conditions, such as mental health (More or Less Maddie), systemic issues (Invisible Child), and representation in the arts (Symphony of Secrets).
  • Summary: Holly shared three favorites: More or Less Maddie by Lisa Genova, which compellingly portrays bipolar disorder; Symphony of Secrets by Brendan Slocum, which addresses representation in classical music; and Invisible Child by Andrea Elliott, an investigative journalism piece detailing systemic poverty through one family’s decade-long story. Her disliked book was Not Quite Dead Yet by Holly Jackson, which she found too simple in its writing style, feeling like YA masquerading as adult fiction.
Recommendations for Speculative Fiction
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(00:45:49)
  • Key Takeaway: To satisfy Holly’s desire for literary speculative fiction and short stories, Anne recommended The Light Pirate (climate change dystopia), Bliss Montage (weird, playful short stories), and Stories from the Tenants Downstairs (interconnected NYC stories).
  • Summary: Anne suggested The Light Pirate by Lily Brooks Dalton, a climate change speculative novel about a girl named Wanda growing up as Florida’s landscape becomes precarious. Bliss Montage by Ling Ma offers bite-sized, weird, and clever short stories dealing with serious themes like grief and broken trust. Stories from the Tenants Downstairs by Sadiq Fofana is a collection of eight interconnected stories set in one New York City apartment building grappling with gentrification.