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To read or not to read. That is the question.

I have tried to read a book sometimes and if I have not felt into it after the first chapter and my interest isn't sparked to read on then I have to give it up, having said that it can be my mood and another try on another day could prove a different outcome. If I try again and still feel the same then I give up on the book but not the author as some books I love by a certain author but others they have written don't hit the mark. I don't feel a failure if I give up on a book though its a very personal thing like art you either love a painting or you don't, I feel it is like that with books.
 
Well, For me it is a waste of time reading books at the start only and not reading it till the end. Anyway,the first two chapter might be boring, but as you go along each chapter,you'll get to know how exciting it is.
 
If I find I'm struggling to get through a book because it's not holding my interest I always try changing the situation in which I am reading. For example, if a book isn't working for me when I'm reading it in bed at night, I might have more success sitting up in a chair in the middle of the day with a cup of tea and some decent light. That helps me sometimes at least.
 
I really hate to do it, but as some people have already mentioned, sometimes it's just for the best. Like the book I just put down. It just sucked too bad. There are so many other great books out there, so to force myself to read a crappy one seems like a waste of time.

This book I gave 60 pages and just couldn't take it anymore. I knew by the tenth page that it was going ot be a struggle. It's called The Effects of Light written by a 25 year old woman. Her age is what sort of intrigued me and of course the ravings on the back cover, "wise beyond her years," yada yada. Painfully amateurish. Lots of struggling writers out there with ten times the talent who's novels never see the light the day, yet this gets published.
 
A book has to be unimaginably putrid for me to put it down. I've read through some real stinkers due to bulwark tolerance. Don't let it happen to you.
 
I do not understand the necessity to finish every book that is started. Can anyone explain? Is it the hope that a book will get better? Is it a sense of accomplishment that a bad book was finished or that all books started were finished? I see books like people. If I don't like them I do not force myself to hang around in hopes they will suddenly become interesting. I don't have enough hours left to learn everything I want to and am not about waste them on worthless text. Typically I give up at 1/3 if I picked the book myself and often at 1/2 if it was recommended by someone I respect.
 
Good question. First, I rarely just read a book on a whim. There are so many books out there that I want to read that before I begin reading any particular book I have usually read numerous reviews on the book first. Still, on occasion I disagree with the masses.

If I am truly not enjoying a book after 1/3 of the way through I will consider giving up on it. But even if it is bad I will likely persevere through it if it falls under one of the following categories:

1. Part of a series I enjoy. For example, I would likely read an entire Dresden Files book even if I disliked the whole thing just so I know the whole story.
2. If it is a classic. Even if I don't enjoy it I will likely finish it just so I can participate intelligently in the public discourse.
3. If it is by an author who has rarely let me down.

I don't have as much patience for a brand new author. I'll rarely give them more than 100 pages to get my attention.
 
Bob Magness said:
Good question. First, I rarely just read a book on a whim. There are so many books out there that I want to read that before I begin reading any particular book I have usually read numerous reviews on the book first. Still, on occasion I disagree with the masses.

If I am truly not enjoying a book after 1/3 of the way through I will consider giving up on it. But even if it is bad I will likely persevere through it if it falls under one of the following categories:

1. Part of a series I enjoy. For example, I would likely read an entire Dresden Files book even if I disliked the whole thing just so I know the whole story.
2. If it is a classic. Even if I don't enjoy it I will likely finish it just so I can participate intelligently in the public discourse.
3. If it is by an author who has rarely let me down.

I don't have as much patience for a brand new author. I'll rarely give them more than 100 pages to get my attention.
Click to expand...

I couldn't agree more on all counts.
 
Bob Magness said:
Good question. First, I rarely just read a book on a whim. There are so many books out there that I want to read that before I begin reading any particular book I have usually read numerous reviews on the book first. Still, on occasion I disagree with the masses.

If I am truly not enjoying a book after 1/3 of the way through I will consider giving up on it. But even if it is bad I will likely persevere through it if it falls under one of the following categories:

1. Part of a series I enjoy. For example, I would likely read an entire Dresden Files book even if I disliked the whole thing just so I know the whole story.
2. If it is a classic. Even if I don't enjoy it I will likely finish it just so I can participate intelligently in the public discourse.
3. If it is by an author who has rarely let me down.

I don't have as much patience for a brand new author. I'll rarely give them more than 100 pages to get my attention.
Click to expand...

Excellent explanation. Thanks. I believe I'd stick with a book if the situation agrees with your statements.
 
I start 7-8 books for every one I finish. The last book I remember finishing was Harry Potter 7 when it came out (I read all previous 6 also). I'm more than halfway through Arnold Schwarzenegger's "The Education of a Bodybuilder" and it still has my attention, so that might be the first I finish in a while. Also started Elie Wiesel's Night/Dawn/The Accidend today and I'm about 20 pages in and it has my interest... and the worst is yet to come, so I can't see leaving this one unfinished.
 
Dawn said:
I'm a very impatient reader. If a book does not hook me in the first two chapters or so, I usually give it up.

How about everyone else? How long will you stick with a book before deciding it's not worth the trouble?

To read or not. That is the question.
Click to expand...

I am about the same, or for a good 10 pages or so anyway.
 
I have what I call my "Ten Percent Rule".

If a book and I have not bonded during the first ten percent of its pages, I move on.

Life is too short to struggle with books I'm not enjoying.

Cheers,
dan :)
 
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