After iOS 15 update Apple Books + screen reader stopped working: How to fix?

After iOS 15 update to my iPhone(s), I've been in trouble with the screen reader (an accessibility feature allowing iPhone to read to me what's on the screen) when using it with Apple Books.

Previously the screen reader read a book in Apple Books more or less continuously from page to page, changing to the next page automatically with only a slight delay.

After iOS 15 upgrade every page change takes several seconds, often up to 10 or more, and more often than not the screen reader simply stops at the end of a page.

For a visually impaired this makes it nearly impossible to listen a book, because now I spend my time starting the screen reader again for almost every page -- and on iPhone every page is just a couple paragraphs.

Is there any way to make the Apple Books and screen reader work like they used to: Page is changed automatically until I stop the screen reader and the screen reader does not stop after every page?

Last time they took away 1.1x speed for reader, which already made my favorite reading speed disappear. And now this ... I'm lost without a device I've been relying for over 5 years in my day-to-day life ...