Did you know that urbandictionary.com has an entry for book hangover? B/c it totally does. Several, in fact. Not that being defined by Urban Dictionary is the stick by which the legitimacy of random bookish terms is measured, but I still think it’s cool.
SO. Book Hangover as defined by Urban Dictionary:
1. The inability to start a new book because you are still living in the old book’s world.
2. The inability to function at work/school because you were up all night binge-reading.
I rarely suffer from the latter version, but the former? We’re old frenemies.
When I’m in the midst of a full-on book hangover, I am good for absolutely nothing. In conversations with real people, I confuse incidents from the book with incidents that have actually happened.
Me: Hey, remember that time you did the thing and stuff happened, OMG that was sooooooo funneh.
You: That never happened.
Me: Yeah, it did. You were all blah something blah and shut down Cool Guy like a rockstar. It was ah-maze-ing!
You: I have no idea what you’re talking about. Stop calling me Kate.
Me: O_____O
Attempts to be productive are thwarted by daydreams where I relive specific events, speculate about the motivations of characters, stress about unresolved conflicts and/or impending doom, etc.
When the series is unfinished, I might be plagued by a hollowness reminiscent of that brought on by misunderstandings in adolescent relationships.
If the book hangover is bad enough, it can spawn a book funk.
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Book hangovers are Nasty. And there’s really no way to combat them. You just have to ride them out. #firstworldproblems
What about you? What book/series sparked your worst book hangover?
My name is Jessica and I live in Chattanooga, Tennessee. I’m trying my hand at writing, but mostly I read. My favorite genres are Fantasy, Paranormal Romance, Science Fiction, Urban Fantasy, and the YA versions of those genres, but if there is a book of a different color getting lots of buzz, I’ll read it too, just to be informed. If I’m not reading or writing, I’m probably on Goodreads or Pinterest or baking blueberry pies because I love them.
There have been a few books that have caused book hangovers. I laughed so hard at confusing book events with things in the real world. I do that all the time. People look at me like I’m nuts, but it is SO real in my head. I catch myself wanting to tell non-readers about stories my “friends” did or said. Hard for my head to get out of the book sometimes. Once it’s done I want to continue to live in that world.
Exactly! It is wonderful to read a new book that draws you in so completely, but the flip side is that it is sooo hard to move on to the next book on your list or simply nothing else you are supposed to read looks good anymore. Even if you re-read the awesome book again, it is still doesn’t make it easier to walk away. 🙁 Only Book People understand that feeling.
It has been so loooong since I experienced a book hangover (probably because my reading burn-out lasted for 2 freaking years), and I am actually really eagerly awaiting this nasty hangover. XD This post was adorable, Jessica! <3
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I experienced like a 5 month book hang over while I’ve been on hiatus for the last 7 from my own blog, then in the fall I had a good two weeks where it seems like I got my reading mojo back and read everything I oculd get my hands on. Things have slowed again but I’m still reading. Your mojo will come back.
*stop calling me Kate* Bwahahaha, that totally made me laugh out loud, Jessica! I know exactly what you mean, and I sometimes suffer from both parts of the book hangover – even at the same time! It’s awful. But also kind of expected, I guess 🙂
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