Are You a Slow Reader?

Something occurred to me the other day…

I am, in fact, a slow reader. What does that mean exactly? How can somebody be “slow” at reading?

For me, it means that I take forever to finish a book; partly because I have trouble finding the time to actually sit down and read it, and partly because I have to make sure that when I’m reading, I am absorbing the words and processing them correctly. I blame ADD for that.

I have been reading the same book, A Little Life for more than a year and a half. Granted, it’s somewhat dense and it has 814 pages, but still. Shouldn’t I have finished it by now? And what about my new book? It’s only 300 or so pages, but I’m on month two of reading it.

When reading, I sometimes find myself getting distracted, or worse, I think I could and should be doing a million other things than reading. The clothes need folding, the floors need sweeping, I should be posting on social media like it’s my job (because it is our job), the lawn needs to be mowed, our room is a mess, and so on and so on. I have to remind myself from time to time that reading is a form of self-care for me and that I need to prioritize that more. I’m working on it.

But, I have a question: What does it mean when you’re a slow reader?

Rading slowly isn’t a bad thing, nor is it a sign of low intelligence. Deborah Schneider, PhD, says that:

“Reading is a uniquely demanding cognitive task, and it relies upon a very complex network of neural pathways to be performed. Some individuals, such as those with dyslexia (specific learning disorder in reading), have cognitive differences that hamper the development and coordination of these pathways; however, their other cognitive abilities remain intact (and not infrequently superior with respect to those of other more neurotypical individuals).”

So at the end of the day, it (usually) doesn’t mean anything other than a little frustration here and there. I think for me, the most important thing is that I just finish the damn book, no matter how long it takes me.