How much do you remember?

[angerball]

I find that a few weeks after finishing a book, I promptly forget all the details in it. :thud:I'm not talking about small details either, but major plot events.

 

I mean, I'll remember if I enjoyed a book, but if you were to ask me specifically what I enjoyed about it, I wouldn't be able to say much, except that I liked the story. More often than not, I wouldn't be able to comment on characters or events.

 

I find that I often have to re-read a book several times before the plot sticks in my head. It may have to do with the way I read. I tend to just read the words, but not allow them the time to sink in. Like after I read a chapter or a section, and I put the book down, I don't really sit there and think about it. Maybe that is why I don't remember a lot of what I read, as I'm not properly processing it? I'm starting to think that maybe instead of just tearing through a book, I should stop for a while and digest it. I dunno, but it really bugs me.

 

I'm wondering if anyone else has this problem as well? When you all read, do you have any tricks that help you remember what has gone on, once you've finished? Or are you like me - mind like a sieve?

[happyanddandy]

Yep - can't remember things quite soon after I have read a book - names go - the plot goes and I struggle to remember anything. Very frustrating

[Icecream]

Me too. I forget major things sometimes until I re-read the book. I also forget why I liked it and it makes it hard to write reviews. Maybe I should stick a notebook inside the front of each book I read.

[Echo]

Sometimes after finishing a book, I'm left with just a vague idea of the details and more of an overall impression of the book. I think that's why my American Lit teacher makes us keep reading journals...so we can write down important plot points and our feelings as we're reading.

[aromaannie]

Me too - I put it down to the amount of books I read now. At 14 -16 a month they do tend to blur a bit very soon afterwards

[Kylie]

My mind is like a sieve. I can remember the major plot but have trouble remembering the smaller events that lead up to the major ones, as well as minor characters' names.

 

If I don't do my review within a couple of days, I generally end up writing a very vague one I've bought a notebook that I carry around with me, but I usually only enter memorable quotes from the book, rather than reminders of plots and characters; should really look into doing that.

[Mbwun_Lily]

It depends.

 

If a book is just a good, mindless, read, then I'll probably forget most of it within a few days of reading it. If, on the other hand, it has effected me in a profound way, those parts of the plot that effected me will probably stick with me for the rest of my life.

 

How much a book has had an effect on me plays a very large role in just how much of the book I will remember after a time.

[Kylie]

Good point Mbwun_Lily. I think I'm much more likely to remember the smaller details of the books that have had a big impact on me, but with the 'so-so' books, I'm more likely to forget little details and only remember the broader plot. Although characters' names are always a problem for me, regardless of how good the book is/was.

 

I wish I could forget the details of the bad books I've read!

[Kell]

It depends on how much I loved/hated the book. If I have strong feelings about it, I'll remember it all for much longer (yes, that includes those I really hate too), but if it's somewhere in the middle, eventually things fade out until all I really remember is the title, author and a vague idea of what the book was about. one example of the latter is Haunted by James Herbert. I picked it up from the library a couple of years back and was almost finished it before I realised I'd read it a few years before that and hadn't thought much of it. I still don't think much of it (it's very bland, in my opinion), and only remember it now because of realising I'd read it before and since catching the film version (which is better) several times on TV.

 

Some books I'll read time and time again, such as The Stand by Stephen King, and find something fresh each time I read it, even though I know exactly what happens and to whom. There are always a few little bits here and there that I forget about till I'm reading it again - I must have read that book about 10 times by now and I still adore it.

[Oblomov]

I can usually remember the plot details of books that I have read quite well, even from over 30 years ago. I promise that I am not exaggerating or showing off - it is just a fact. For instance, I read most older James Hadley Chase titles between 1968 and 1975, and even today the plots, sequence of events and in some cases even the character names, are quite vivid in my mind.

 

I used to remember movie plots and the characters in the same way. I still do with classic movies - I can recall almost every scene in Gone With the Wind or Casablanca - but am beginning to forget many modern films after a few months.

[LittleLijah]

I'd agree with aromaannie and put it down to the amount of reading that I do but also with Kell that I do remember plots for various reasons whether that's because I loved them or hated them.

[Janet]

I find I tend to forget the details very quickly too - unless a book has made a major impression on me. If I reread a book I find it coming back to me though!

 

Me too. I forget major things sometimes until I re-read the book. I also forget why I liked it and it makes it hard to write reviews. Maybe I should stick a notebook inside the front of each book I read.

That's why I keep a book LJ about all the books I've read (well, since I started it in January 2006) - it's nice to look back on it and read my comments.

 

I started copying it all into a lovely notebook, but soon got bored with that! I ought to do it as soon as I finish - I have about 25 books to write up if I'm going to catch up!

[carm]

i tend to forget things too... unless i really, really really enjoyed the book- carm

[Laramie]

I have a memory like a sieve, but books I remember very well. I'm not sure why or how, I just do.

[Angel]

I tend to remember the books that I read. I generally have to leave a very long time between rereads

[JudyB]

I forget a lot about a book once I've read it. I've introduced one of my ladies to The Kite Runner and she keeps discussing it with me - only problem is I read it about 2-3 years ago and can only remember that it was good and little else.

 

I do however find that if a description is evocative or a situation particularily poignant or there is a well described dramatic moment then that will stick in my mind. With Dickens, for example, I can't always remember the plot but can recall clearly a particular scene - possibly because it has played on my senses.

[Icecream]

Intresting point Judy. I read Dickens' Great Expectations in school, and have a copy of Oliver. Particular scenes always play out when I think about them, for the same reason you say.

[JudyB]

I had Great Expectations in mind when I wrote that - I was particularly thinking about the scene at the beginning on the marshes and the one when he leaves to go to London and it's misty. It's a truly atmospheric novel.

[Icecream]

Strange - the marsh scene where the guy appears and the going into London are exactly what I was thinking of.

[JudyB]

I did wonder whether that would be the case . Must be something about them.

[jenmck]

Oh I am SO glad I'm not the only one who does this. The great thing is that I can reread books again.

 

I even have books that I reread at least once a year, because I may remember the gist of the book, but the pleasure is in the details.

 

"Gaudy Night" by Dorothy L. Sayers is one like that.

[Icecream]

My sentiments exactly jenmck

[angerball]

Glad to see I'm not the only one who can't remember. Sometimes, I'll see a comment on a book here that I've read, and I'll want to respond, but I find I can't say anything except "I read that, and really enjoyed it."

 

I'm thinking of writing a small review for each book I read, or just making some kind of note about important plot points, so that it helps me remember. I mean, some books are easily forgotten, but it bothers me when I know I have really enjoyed something, but I can't for the life of me, remember why.

 

If, on the other hand, it has effected me in a profound way, those parts of the plot that effected me will probably stick with me for the rest of my life.

 

True, true. Some easy thrillers are forgotten as soon as I put the book down, but a book that really shocks me will stay with me - maybe not the whole book, but definitely the important parts of it.

 

I read an article some years ago, on people's memories and how they are getting worse and worse as people are relying more and more on technology to remember things for them. It certainly seems relevant in my case. I'm sure I had a much better memory when I was younger (no quips about aging, please ), and didn't use a computer to store all my info.

[Kylie]

The most forgettable book I ever read was The Da Vinci Code. I think I enjoyed it while I was reading it, but as soon as I finished, I could remember absolutely nothing of what had happened. I remembered a vague plot and that was it. Shortly after that the movie came out and when I saw it, I had quite a few 'oh yeah, now I remember' moments.

 

Comparing that book to all others I've read, maybe I generally have a better memory that I thought!

[babypinkcandygirl]

i often experience that with jilly cooper novels (i usually only remember the naughty bits ) but i must admit i have lots of fun re-reading her... im tempted spend my whole saturday morning in bed with the man who made husbands jealous. bliss!