Benable — create shareable lists of things you recommend!
E.g., products you love, local businesses, travel recs - you can add anything to a Benable list!

Books for Getting Your Reading Attention Span Back with a Distracted Reading Brain

Closed Book emoji 21 items
This take on books for getting your reading attention span back begins with the unglamorous details: measurements, cleanup, storage, replacement parts, and who will actually use each item. Planning for getting a distracted reading brain back makes pr...
Sections
5
 
 
 
 
 

Novels That Start Quickly

It helps to examine novels that start quickly separately, since these products have different care, sizing and storage demands from the neighboring sections. Compare Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin, Yellowface by R.F. Kuang, and...

 
Nadia Marisca profile picture
Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus could remove some friction from novels that start quickly. The deciding detail is whether the voice, pacing and subject are the kind of commitment the reader wants from the next book, not which product page looks...
Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus
 
Nadia Marisca profile picture
Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt is the option I would inspect first here. Check that the voice, pacing and subject are the kind of commitment the reader wants from the next book, then compare the upkeep with The Seven Husbands of Evely...
Remarkably Bright Creatures: A Novel
 
Nadia Marisca profile picture
For this part of books for getting your reading attention span back, I would not buy The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett in isolation. Compare it with Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt and check whether the voice, pacing and subject are t...
The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett
 
Nadia Marisca profile picture
Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin could remove some friction from novels that start quickly. The deciding detail is whether the voice, pacing and subject are the kind of commitment the reader wants from the next book, not which pr...
Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin
 
Nadia Marisca profile picture
The case for Yellowface by R.F. Kuang depends on everyday handling. For novels that start quickly, confirm that the voice, pacing and subject are the kind of commitment the reader wants from the next book and compare the same detail on The Vanishing ...
Yellowface by R.F. Kuang
 
Nadia Marisca profile picture
Start with the specifications for The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid, especially whether the voice, pacing and subject are the kind of commitment the reader wants from the next book. Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus is a us...
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Memoir without the Polished Edges

It helps to examine memoir without the polished edges separately, since these products have different care, sizing and storage demands from the neighboring sections. The useful contrast is between I'm Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy, Know My Name by Chanel Miller, and Just Kids by Patti Smith, especially once you ask whether the voice, pacing and subject are the kind of commitment the reader wants from the next book.

 
Nadia Marisca profile picture
For this part of books for getting your reading attention span back, I would not buy The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls in isolation. Compare it with Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain and check whether the voice, pacing and subject are the ki...
The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls
 
Nadia Marisca profile picture
Just Kids by Patti Smith earns this spot for a clear reason: memoir without the polished edges. I would still verify that the voice, pacing and subject are the kind of commitment the reader wants from the next book before buying.
Just Kids by Patti Smith
 
Nadia Marisca profile picture
I would compare I'm Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy with Know My Name by Chanel Miller for memoir without the polished edges. The useful test is whether the voice, pacing and subject are the kind of commitment the reader wants from the next book...
I'm Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy
 
Nadia Marisca profile picture
Know My Name by Chanel Miller earns this spot for a clear reason: memoir without the polished edges. I would still verify that the voice, pacing and subject are the kind of commitment the reader wants from the next book before buying.
Know My Name by Chanel Miller
 
Nadia Marisca profile picture
Born a Crime by Trevor Noah earns this spot for a clear reason: memoir without the polished edges. I would still verify that the voice, pacing and subject are the kind of commitment the reader wants from the next book before buying.
born-a-crime-trevor-noah.pdf
placeholder

Ideas That Follow You Home

It helps to examine ideas that follow you home separately, since these products have different care, sizing and storage demands from the neighboring sections. Compare On Writing by Stephen King, The Creative Act by Rick Rubin, and Maybe You Should Ta...

 
Nadia Marisca profile picture
The interesting comparison is The Anthropocene Reviewed by John Green versus On Writing by Stephen King. I would choose between them by checking whether the voice, pacing and subject are the kind of commitment the reader wants from the next book.
John Green
 
Nadia Marisca profile picture
The interesting comparison is Maybe You Should Talk to Someone by Lori Gottlieb versus Quiet by Susan Cain. I would choose between them by checking whether the voice, pacing and subject are the kind of commitment the reader wants from the next book.
Maybe You Should Talk to Someone: A Therapist, Her ...
 
Nadia Marisca profile picture
The interesting comparison is The Creative Act by Rick Rubin versus Maybe You Should Talk to Someone by Lori Gottlieb. I would choose between them by checking whether the voice, pacing and subject are the kind of commitment the reader wants from the ...
The Creative Act: A Way of Being by Rubin

Cookbooks with Weeknight Range

For cookbooks with weeknight range, the best option is rarely the one with the longest feature list; it is the one whose everyday tradeoffs are easiest to live with. Before choosing among Cook This Book by Molly Baz, Start Here by Sohla El Waylly, an...

 
Nadia Marisca profile picture
Start with the specifications for Six Seasons by Joshua McFadden, especially whether the voice, pacing and subject are the kind of commitment the reader wants from the next book. Cook This Book by Molly Baz is a useful reality check at the same step.
Six Seasons by Joshua McFadden
 
Nadia Marisca profile picture
The interesting comparison is Salt Fat Acid Heat by Samin Nosrat versus Six Seasons by Joshua McFadden. I would choose between them by checking whether the voice, pacing and subject are the kind of commitment the reader wants from the next book.
Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat: Mastering Cooking
 
Nadia Marisca profile picture
Put Cook This Book by Molly Baz beside Start Here by Sohla El Waylly before choosing. What matters for cookbooks with weeknight range is whether the voice, pacing and subject are the kind of commitment the reader wants from the next book.
Cook This Book: Techniques & Recipes

Reading Tools That Remove Friction

For reading tools that remove friction, the best option is rarely the one with the longest feature list; it is the one whose everyday tradeoffs are easiest to live with. Product pages make Thumb Thing Page Holder, Gimble Book Holder, and Kobo Clara C...

 
Nadia Marisca profile picture
I like Post it Transparent Notes as a candidate for reading tools that remove friction, but fit comes first. Confirm that the voice, pacing and subject are the kind of commitment the reader wants from the next book and skip it if the routine says oth...
Post-it® Transparent Notes, Assorted Colors, 2.8 in. x 2 .8 ...
 
Nadia Marisca profile picture
I would compare Gimble Book Holder with Kobo Clara Colour E Reader for reading tools that remove friction. The useful test is whether the voice, pacing and subject are the kind of commitment the reader wants from the next book.
gimble adjustable book holder
 
Nadia Marisca profile picture
The interesting comparison is Thumb Thing Page Holder versus Gimble Book Holder. I would choose between them by checking whether the voice, pacing and subject are the kind of commitment the reader wants from the next book.
Thumb Thing Book Page Holder and Bookmark
 
Nadia Marisca profile picture
For this part of books for getting your reading attention span back, I would not buy Kobo Clara Colour E Reader in isolation. Compare it with Amazon Kindle Paperwhite and check whether the voice, pacing and subject are the kind of commitment the read...
Kobo Clara Colour | Rakuten Kobo eReader Store United ...