compunction

非常に面白く、実際に役にも立ったHow To Succeed In Business Without A Harvard MBAとは違って、How To Talk About Books You haven't Readは私にとっては全く面白い本ではありませんでした。著者が飛ばし読み（book I have skimmed）をしたと言っている、夏目漱石の「我輩は猫である」のある個所を例にあげている部分がありました。その個所の全部を引用すると長くなり過ぎるので省略して、その後に私が覚えたいと思った単語が出てきた文のみ次に引用します。
If, in this first example, the artist makes up stories without compunction, the situation is slightly different in the next one he gives, which directly concerns our consideration of unread books.
この "compunction" を辞書で調べます。
・Collins Dictionary: a feeling of remorse, guilt, or regret: Hyde had had no compunction about stealing bread, dried meat, the donkey.
・Cambridge English Dictionary: a slight guilty feeling about something you have done or might do: I wouldn't have any compunction about telling him to leave.
・Vocabulary.com: When you feel compunction you feel very, very sorry, usually for something you did to hurt someone or mess something up. When you feel no compunction, you're not at all sorry.
The noun compunction comes from the Latin verb compungere, meaning “prick sharply.” When you feel compunction, you feel a sharp prick of your conscience. The word compunction is often used in the negative in phrases like “without compunction” or "no compunction." You might say that the burglar acted without compunction when he stole your baseball card collection.
なるほど "feel a sharp prick of your conscience" ですね。