So little time…
Woman Reading a Book by Bulent Burgac, 1953,Turkey.
Have you ever put a book down without finishing it? I believe life is too short to read things that don’t interest me and struggling through a book I’m not enjoying isn’t something I do. I reach for the next one. It’s something about electronic books that I have enjoyed – the sample. WIth the first couple of chapters, (somethings the first few pages) I know if I’m in for the long haul or not.
One of these books was Eat Prey Love? I wanted to know what all the fuss was about and downloaded the sample. I didn’t get through the first chapter. I knew this was something that wasn’t for me. I’ve even put down a book by one of my favourite authors – China Mieville. Embassytown was one big yawn. Why read something that makes me yawn even if I felt guilty for letting him down.
I went though a chick lit phase and find it interesting that more than half of the samples I downloaded were not finished. The books simply where not interesting enough for me to go back to. Why are so many books about women getting their live together based in Paris?
Essential for any book I am reading
Are you someone who just has to finish it if you’re started or are you a discard and move on type of reader?
Posted on February 19, 2013, in Books, e-Reader and tagged China Mieville, Couldn't finish, Eat Pray Love, reading. Bookmark the permalink. 59 Comments.
I'm a single mum to a beautiful little boy and we live in Sydney, Australia, where the water laps at our feet. I'm a physician, a would be writer, and I'm in love with my best friend.
Got no time to read more than a paragraph. If it doesn’t grab me, I’m gone. I could be dead 10 minutes from now. Hate to have spent those 10 minutes reading a boring, bad book…
I give a book three chances. Put it down because I’m not feeling it, pick it up, put it down again, and then pick it up one last time.
Because sometimes, you’re just not in the mood for a particular kind of book.
Some people give themselves a page count, but if the first few pages are that much of a slog, why keep going?
I agree, I can’t keep going. I use to, I would often give a book way more time than I had, but now I’m a harder reader than I was.
I’m with you.
I’ve put books down before, yeah, if I get through a few chapters and still don’t care what happens.
To me, I think that’s one of the great things about ebooks, the ability to download samples of books. I’ve found a number of new authors that way and far more that I deleted without even considering buying the book.
I too have deleted far more than I have downloaded so it’s a plus for me to sample.
I do my own sampling. I read several snippets throughout the book to mine the prose. If I like that, I read the prologue or first chapter. From there, I am seldom wrong, My mistake with Embassytown was to download it first. I gave Mieville too much credit, and I do not fault myself for calling the book a dud. Hell, if the audience is not up to the novel, the novel’s useless. Thankfully, he redeemed himself with Railsea, which rocked. My core sampling technique has worked nearly every time I’ve employed it.
I sample 3D books in the same way I sample downloads, and if it doesn’t catch me I don’t read it, but there have been books where it’s lost me in the middle and I’ve not gone back.
I was willing to give anything Mieville wrote a go, probably still am
I have strict rules when it comes to reading: (1) read at least 10% in the first sitting; (2) if the books are really that boring, feel free to skim-read the endings; and (3) only review a book once you’ve finished it. As for e-readers and samples, if I’m ever without libraries, I’ll be sure to buy a Kindle.
If I could always get to a library and libraries are as well funded and stoked as staffed as they should be, I might not need one but I think they should be handed out to every cancer patient as treatment.
Excellent idea. Sometimes, the cheaper, simpler ‘treatments’ are overlooked. They could even pre-load it with books that were scientifically shown to improve recovery!
Great idea!
I totally agree with you, by the way—there are something like 12 million books ever published in English (that’s an underestimate). If we read one book every day throughout our adult lives, we can only read 0.18% of all the books ever written in English—maximum. We MUST be picky with books! We have to choose carefully
That’s a bit depressing.
I don’t think so. Interpret thus: no matter how much we read, there will still be people we encounter who’ve read a wholly different selection of books to ourselves. The world will always be interesting!
I sometimes find it difficult to stop reading a book that I’ve started, but then the book ends up dragging on for months before I tell myself I’m being ridiculous by forcing myself to read it. I have a friend who says that he always has to finish any book he starts because, even though he knows perfectly well it’s crazy, he feels like the characters can’t live out their lives unless he finishes reading about them! We all have our funny ways don’t we…
We sure do and I can respect his need to follow through on it. At this stage in my life I’m willing to let them go and find their own way.
a very interesting concept
It really is
With paper books ill give it a hundred pages to grab me, I haven’t read many Ebooks yet but I think I’d give it a third before giving up. For me its not just the story, I’ve got a book that I’ve been on and off reading for about three years now because the authors writing style I find hard going but the content is really interesting.
I’ve found with audiobooks that are released via podcast I am not as tolerant. I will give up quickly if I am not hooked in the first couple of episodes.
I don’t give it so much time now. I’m willing to give up much sooner.
I’m getting less patient, but if ive paid for something I want to give it a good chance lol
Yes, Totally
I’ve got to confess that I usually slog through once I’ve made a good start, although there are a few really worthy books (in the virtuous sense), which I have made it halfway through and stalled there. I’m sure I’ll get there one day – perhaps when I have completely forget what the first half was about!
I do know what you mean though, and am always thankful when someone spends the time to read something I’ve written. It’s the best compliment there is!
It’s a great compliment and thank you for reading me
I think with all the books in the world I can no longer commit to finishing what doesn’t grab me and I hope the author doesn’t find out. LOL
I am like you – life is too short to finish a book I do not enjoy
I’m afraid it is now. A few years ago I would have finished and been rather miserable in doing it.
me too
I completely agree and often coach friends to put down a book and move on! Life is way too short to read a bad book, I say.
I do find that during the holidays, especially, and when my life becomes overly full and a bit overwhelming, I can’t concentrate on any book. I give myself some leeway on that… I pick up a bunch of magazines and read short articles for about a week. Even if it’s a great book, I probably won’t be able to concentrate and enjoy it.
That’s a great point. There is a difference between a book you’re not enjoying and a book you can’t concentrate on.
Absolutely I am right with you! I have so many books I have not finished. I agree, why waste your time trying to finish a book you don’t like. There are too many wonderful books out there and not all of them are for everyone.
I had towers of books I had not begun and when I moved I had to give them away. It felt liberating. The chains they had on me, the guilt of having not read them when I walked past them was gone and it opened up new possibilities of books.
I used to feel compelled to finish any book I started but asked myself, “Why?” I don’t have enough time to read all the books I want to read, why read something I’m not enjoying? I have no patience for books that waste my time.
Definitely not enough time, I agree. There is a reader for every book, but it doesn’t have to be me.
Definitely discard it. sometimes I just read a paragraph or two in the middle of the book.
Sometimes I feel guiltly, like I should appreciate the author, or my friends’ recommendations more, show respect, but if it doesn’t interest me, there’s almost no chance I’ll finish it.
I’m a fully fledged discarder now. Still finding my discarding legs.
I’ve gotten much better about this. I used to think I had to finish a book–felt guilty if I didn’t. Now I don’t. But I still scan the ending to see what happened. The exception are books I read by my blogging buds. I always read those all the way through.
For the record, I was not a fan of Eat Prey Love either, though I did muddle through it.
Me too. The guilt in it, but that has gone now that I have moved. I know I have not time or space for something I’m not enjoying.
There are only a few books where I’ve started and not finished. I’m not a prolific reader anyway, but most of the time when I start, I finish.
Since, I bought my Kindle, I have downloaded the sample. There were a couple that I’ve read the sample and not downloaded the full book. Saved me a few quid and time for other reading
I think samples have saved me a lot of time too
Samples are great, because otherwise I try hard not to choose a book I don’t think I will enjoy as I hate abandoning. My worst abandon last year was Hilary Mantel’s A Place of Greater Safety. I gave up after 400 pages! Maybe one day I will go back and read the other 400, but I was losing weeks and worried I would lose my reading mojo completely.
Generally, I am a finisher, so I choose carefully and now I can sample too.
That’s the thing. I choose carefully and then I hope I’m not left at page 400, which is a huge investment. HIlary is hit and miss with me. Sometimes I like her, sometimes not.
As others have said, there’s not enough time in our lives today to finish a book that doesn’t interest us. Sometimes I’ll stick with a book if I think it will help me see what NOT to do in my writing.
It seems to be the consensus too. Not enough time to do things we don’t enjoy.
I remember coming to the realization in my late teens, that even if I did nothing but read books and watch movies all day, there’s no way I could watch and read everything I wanted to. There’s too much great stuff around and we keep getting more of it. So I think your sentiment is spot on. Life is definitely too short to waste on something we’re not engaged in. There are a few things I’ll finish for reasons other than enjoyment, but for the most part if I just can’t get into it, there’s too many other things I could be watching/reading instead and I’d rather fill my time with those instead. Insightful post.
You’ve hit the nail. We do so many things out of duty, why should reading be one of them when it should be our great pleasure.
Amen!
I’m pretty harsh when it comes to books because my time is too precious to read a book I don’t like. You’re certainly not alone in putting a book down if it has the yawn factor
Yes, me too. I am getting harsher as I go along
I liked Eat, Pray, Love. But I wasn’t doing anything else at the time.
I agree life is too short for uninteresting books. Chic Lit is the most likely sort of book to be read for more than a few chapters and not completed. Other books I either like or instantly dislike whereas chic lit I find my opinion more based on the plot. If the plot isn’t interesting I’ll give up.
Me too. Chick hit really as to be good to keep my attention. Something about it, can’t seem to hold me in the middle.
I’ve not finished less than a handful of books in my life-time. I started a book yesterday, I’m ready to stomp on but am still trying to find its saving grace. I believe this one will be chucked.
What is it?
Oh, I’ve abandoned more than my fair share of books in my lifetime.
Nothing drives me crazier than that book that has an amazing first three chapters — followed by 300 more pages of meh.
Isn’t that worthy of driving you nuts. It starts of great and you’re all excited and then it crashes.
I agree, life is too short to read rubbish
I like chick-lit, but I am very fussy. My favourite author is Marian Keyes as she is able to blend serious issues with humour and great story-telling. In my opinion.
I am writing my first novel, which is chick-lit (or contemporary women’s fiction as they like to call it these days). It does not involve friends finding themselves in Paris
I’m looking forward to knowing more about it.
I can’t put a book down without finishing it. If I leave it unfinished it always returns to haunt me one way or another, so I usually just slog through to the end… unless the book is too risque, then I definitely drop it. Chick-lit is a favourite genre of mine – have you tried books by Sophie Kinsella? She’s fantastic.
Great post, Kate.
I am really guilty of getting part way through a book – sometimes really enjoying it – and giving up on it for no particular reason! 