It must be the weather because I don’t really understand what else could be the reason behind my inability to read these days. I just can’t seem to concentrate. This generally does not happen to me and I’ve noticed that when it does, it’s usually when my body can’t adjust to the changing climate. I’m uncomfortable and unable to focus.

But I also can’t not be reading. It’s something that grounds me and without a book to keep me company, I feel lost and I’m more likely to be irritated. So when I occasionally hit a reading slump, I find myself gravitating towards certain kinds of books. These are usually light visual reads, or books that I have loved in the past. Picking these up fills me with a sense of nostalgia and takes my mind off things. Here are three of my favorite things to pick up when I’m unable to read long works of fiction.

Archie comics

I was a voracious reader of the Archie comics series when I was in school. Ekta Bookstore used to stock them, and I found myself picking up a new one every time I went there with my parents to buy school books and stationeries. I still have all of them (easily over a hundred volumes), though they are battered and bruised with age. It’s a goofy series about a bunch of American teenagers and their high school antics. The characters are varied and you are bound to have a favorite. I pick up a random comic whenever I find myself unable to read and I’m transported to a delightful world of easy friendships and heartwarming connections.

Spy X Family 

This manga series about a fake family that includes a spy, an assassin, and a telepath is outrageous and fun. There are 15 volumes in the series and I guarantee you will be binge reading them once you start. The storytelling and illustrations by Tatsuya Endo follows Loid Forger who has to build a fake family for a mission he has been given. But the daughter he adopts turns out to be a telepath and he has no idea that the meek woman he has chosen for his wife is actually an assassin. There’s an anime television adaptation of the series as well. I recommend reading the books and watching the series simultaneously as it makes for a really wholesome experience.

Aesop’s fables

These are a collection of short stories that teach moral lessons. The children’s stories come in slim illustrated volumes and feature animals as narrators. Most of us have heard the stories of the hare and the tortoise and the fox and the grapes. The Greek storyteller Aesop tells many other such stories that impart wisdom and teach you the value of kindness, patience, love, and faith among others. You can find most of these stories online and they make great short reads. I would highly recommend these stories when you are in need of some guidance in life.