What’s Your Reading Guilty Pleasure?
We all have guilty pleasures... Things that we know we shouldn’t do, that we know may not be good for us, but we just can’t seem to help ourselves. When it comes to reading, we can’t all be reading snobs who only read Shakespeare all the time. (If you are that type of person… prop to you!). No matter how pretentious of a reader someone thinks that they are, I guarantee that when no one is looking, they read trash. By “trash” I don’t necessarily mean reading something bad, but there are books out there that are written for a specific purpose and are not trying to be proclaimed as a great piece of modern literature. We’ve all heard of the “book snob”, someone who claims they only read the classics and other highly esteemed works of literature. And while yes, I do believe that there are many classic stories that everyone should read at least once in their lifetime… I also believe that reading should sometimes just be fun. If reading wasn’t fun, less people would do it, and that would be a bad thing. Here are some of my reading guilty pleasures - books that I read purely for fun and/or interest.
Trashy Romance Novels
First, let me be clear that not all romance novels are trashy. There are plenty of romance novels out there that are beautifully written, have amazing characters, and touching love stories. That is not what I’m talking about here. What I mean, is romance novels that are only written for one thing and one thing only, steamy love scenes! I’m talking corny, poorly written, cheesy, sexy books. Let’s be honest, there’s only one reason to read these types of books, to hopefully get a cheap thrill out of a sexy love scene. These types of books usually tend to be short, and get straight to the point. Who doesn’t love to curl up with a comfy sexy book? Think 50 Shades of Grey…. not a great book by typical standards, but boy oh boy did I enjoy reading it! Did I cringe and roll my eyes and some of the writing? Absolutely! Did I also run out and buy the other 2 books? Heck yeah. Gimme a good trashy sexy romance novel any day!
Young Reader Mysteries
Sometimes, I just want to read something nice and easy. Sometimes, I don’t want to have to think about complex life questions. As an almost 40 year old woman (I won’t tell you how close I am to that lol), books for Young Readers are the perfect escape for me. By “Young Readers” I’m referring to books that are meant for Middle School age children (12 years old). While there are of course a wide range of books for Young Readers, mysteries specifically are the ones that I seek out for my guilty pleasure reading. Just like adult mysteries, young reader mysteries typically have entertaining plots, cute characters, and are just fun! These types of books are the perfect quick escape I sometimes need. I have such fond memories of these types of books that I used to read back when I was that age…. Nancy Drew, Babysitters Club, Goosebumps, etc. Nostalgia might have something to do with it, but mostly these books are just fun, and funny. When I need a laugh, these books are what I go to.
Rock Bios
Full disclosure… I have never actually purchased a Rock Bio….. or any bio really. Reading biographies is just not something that I typically learn towards. BUT… the hubby happens to be a HUGE rock n’ roll fan, so he loves reading books about his favorite rock stars. And sometimes… I do too! Anyone who lives to become a huge rock star must have an interesting story right? The lifestyles of rock stars are basically like real life fantasies, and if you know me at all, you know I love me some fantasy! Rock Bios are just fantasies with more sex, more drugs, and more rock n’ roll. Hearing crazy stories about crazy lifestyles that are actually true? Some of these groups and their members have done awful things with their money and fame, and their stories are crazy fascinating to me. So, every time the hubby says “Here, read this one”, I don’t question it, I sit back and let the crazy world of rock and roll wash over me.
Japanese Schoolgirl Manga
Again, I am not a teenager anymore, so most manga is not really written for my age group. There are however plenty of comic books out there that are specifically targeted to adults, and a lot of them are great! But sometimes, all I want is something nostalgic and nothing is more nostalgic to me than Japanese schoolgirl manga. If you’ve been following me on Instagram, it should come as no surprise that I am a HUGE Sailor Moon fan. Sailor Moon features young high school girls who fight evil, and basically helped to launch the whole pretty girl/schoolgirl genre. Now there are many stories out there about young girls who fight evil and every time I read one it brings me back to my childhood. Whether it’s Sailor Moon, Card Captor Sakura, Oh My Goddess or Magic Knight Rayearth, when I need something nostalgic, this will be the first genre that I’ll go to.
Religious Apocalypse
I don’t consider myself a religious person. I was raised Catholic, but I don’t practice anymore in my everyday life. As much as I was raised in the Church, there is still so much I don’t know about Catholic lore. I love learning about the lore of religion, especially different ones. Religious lore does often have a lot in common with fantasy, which is maybe why it seems so interesting to me. If you are at all familiar with the Bible, think about the Book of Revelations… the rapture, the Anti-Christ, end times… like wow… who thought this stuff up? Any book that deals with religious end times I just find super interesting. There are many people out there in the world that really believe in their religion’s lore, and who knows… they might be right. Only time will tell. Until then, I’ll pick up a religious apocalypse story to educate myself more about what other people believe, and what we may have to deal with in the future. If you haven’t read these types of stories before, they are fascinating!
All of the types of books mentioned above are not in my regular reading rotation. My YA and Adult fantasies take up much of my reading time. Every once in a while though, depending on how I’m feeling, one of the guilty pleasures listed above will find it’s way into my reading stack. Sexy, Funny, Crazy, Nostalgic, or Fascinating, and sometimes all of these together, I love reading all of my guilty pleasures. We all have them! What are your reading guilty pleasures? Let me know in the comment section below, and then come follow me on Instagram or Facebook to continue the conversation. As always, Happy Reading!
