There are two types of people in this world.
There are those who, when they realize they’re not enjoying a book, fling it against the wall or “lose” it on the subway or let it languish on a nightstand gathering dust. They don’t look back and consider life to short to waste on substandard reading experiences.
And there are those who, whether through guilt, optimism, or thriftiness, power through even the most excruciating of books and don’t feel at peace until they know how it ends. Even if they stopped caring somewhere around Page 5.
Which kind are you? Poll below, you’ll need to click through to see it if you’re in an RSS reader or reading by e-mail.
Me: I used to be a power through-er, but in my old age I’ve become a stopper.
christian yorke says
I'm grinding my way through Freedom (I enjoyed The Corrections though) which feels about 250 pages too long. However i will power on, assisted by starting The Rum Diaries as an antidote.
Brooke says
It depends.
I don't even think the idea of just stopping occurred to me until the last year or two. And once I realized I COULD stop, I did. Sometimes I return to the book. Usually I don't, especially if it's a dense book. I find fluffier books easier to power through.
Shannon Chamberlain says
I was a giver upper–until I got to grad school in English, where I'm forced on a more or less regular basis to read things I don't like. I've developed a strong tolerance. It's changed my pleasure reading habits: I'm very careful about what I pick up, because I'm pretty sure that habit will compel me not to put it down. I'm more attentive to the selection process. I don't read things just because they got reviewed in the New York Times (cf. "Freedom", which I was absolutely sure from the description I would powerfully dislike). Now it usually takes a recommendation from a friend, or a long history with an author. I'll read anything that Lionel Shriver writes.
Deb says
I'm a freelance line editor, so I'll edit just about any writer who pays me. I have to read a lot of bad manuscripts. I don't waste too much time with bad books, although I give them a good, fighting chance.
Juliette says
I actually threw a Buffy book against the wall once. It was a very small, light book. I can't remember what on earth was so awful about it.
Bryce Daniels says
Having just received a Kindle as a Christmas gift, I thought I was in nirvana when I stumbled across all the free downloads. Never has the adage "you get what you pay for" been more appropriate.
This really concerns me. Now, I am no Vonnegut or Cheaver, but sheesh, the fact that ANYONE can post an e-novel really bodes ill for the industry and our craft.
For me? The author gets two chapters, period. If I am not intrigued by either the character(s) or story by then, it's delete time.
Horserider says
If I hate a book by page five then I would put it aside and never return. But if, say, the pacing is too slow through the middle of the back or I hate one of the characters, then I'll power through.
Terry Towery says
I've also become a "stopper." Life is too short to read something I don't enjoy. The last one I stopped was "South of Broad" by Pat Conroy. I wanted to love it, but put it down about midway through and ended up sending it back to the library, unfinished.
And I love Pat Conroy. Sigh.
scruffy says
i've been both. Lately i'm more likely to give up on them due to a lack of reading time. i'm not going to waste what little i have on … um… mediocrity.
Becca says
Generally, I stop. But it usually depends on a few things. The voice, the plot, or where I think the book is going. There have been instances where I'm very glad I read all the way to the end, but there was usually that little something special towards where I wanted to put it down that told me to keep reading.
Very long sentence.
Anonymous says
Like Nathan. I once HAD to finish…for all of the aforementioned reasons and then some. Then it was, "Life's too short."
Now…I'm very selective about what I start (check: back blurb, first page, general skim of book and if it's looks well-written, but so depressing that it may lead to suicide I actually Check The Ending, which goes against everything I believe in…except for not killing onesself over the ending of The Awakening, etc.).
Fun question, Nathan. Thanks, I'm kinda in a funk. You guys often brighten my day.
Wendy Scott says
I used to be a "finish no matter what" reader, but I've gotten less indulgent as I've gotten older.
I don't decide to quit a book lightly, but generally, if I get 50-100 pages in and I'm having trouble coming up with good reasons not to put the book down, it's over.
I came across a recent post on Boxing the Octopus that talks about this issue and
The Rule of 50. Interesting idea.
Laura Martone says
Funny you should ask. I'm reading Wizard's First Rule right now – mostly because I loved the Legend of the Seeker television series and wanted to see what the books were like.
I know this is a beloved, bestselling fantasy series for some, but I have to admit… I'm really not enjoying this first book. I'm at the halfway point, though, and powering through it anyway, with the (futile) hope that it will in fact get better.
Laurie Boris says
I've thrown two books against the wall. Given up on dozens more. Stayed with some even though I hated the characters, just so I could see them get their due. Holy crow, I hope no one throws my book against a wall!!
KH says
I usually power through. There is something about putting down a book half read. I just can't do it.
A friend of mine advises reading to page 50. If you are over 50 years old, subtract a page. So if you are 60, only read to page 40.
Brenna says
The only times I don't stop are when I'm more personally invested into it – i.e., it's something a close friend or family member read. Then I feel like I owe it to them to read it through . . . But I'll take my time about it if it's really bad.
8one6 says
If I'm not impressed within the first hundred pages of a book I'm going to move to something else. If the book is only 200 pages long I might stick with it but any longer it stops being worth it.
Elaine AM Smith says
I have to keep reading. If I park it on the shelf it sits there like a dirty little secret.
I've read with a book in one hand and a dictionary in the other or an atlas/photocopy of the map provided/scientific journals /physically acted out the scene to see how on earth it worked: I don't give up.
Lucy says
I stop. Reading time is too precious when you're a mom to young children.
Michele Stefanides says
It's rare for me to stop, even now when my pile of books just keeps getting taller and taller.
Don't really know why, but I will push through all but the most awful books!
Anonymous says
The thing about when you are younger is that "finishing" a book can be like an achievement or a marathon where making it to the end implies you are a winner, smart enough, educated, a person "who can complete things."
In addition, in high school, college, grad school, etc., we are given "required reading" whether we "like" it or not.
But eventually, we trust our own reading and we don't have to prove or achieve anything outside of our own interest, pleasure, understanding, etc.
Sort of like dating. You may not fall in love with everyone you go out to dinner with, however there comes a time when you don't date outside of what is, for you, "good material."
Darcy says
I usually power through, because it counts towards my Good Reads challenge!
Anonymous says
It's not like it used to be, Nathan. I used to plow through. However, nowadays you can't be sure what you're reading unless you do a thorough background check on the book, the publisher, and the author.
For example, I downloaded a book on my e-reader without checking it out first. The back cover copy looked interesting, but that's all I had to go by when I purchased.
The book was awful. And when I checked it out online two days later I found it was self-pubbed and I was basically reading throught the slush pile.
Like I said, it's different nowadays.
Roza M says
I've given up on two books. One because the first ten pages of the novel described the forest. I was like okay, I'm done. The second was the charcters doing the same thing over and over from one house to the next. I was like ummm seriously if it was the same results at the school and the first two homes why would the third be different?this is the definition of insanity and I think I am going insane reading this. Ugh. Then I was pissed I spent money on it knowing I won't finish it.
Anonymous says
I usually stop. There are so many books on my to-read list that I do not want to waste time on something I am not enjoying. I do give the author a generous amount of pages to try and entice me, but sometimes it just doesn't happen.
Holly says
I buy millions of paperbacks and skim them to see how the author set up the dialogue, pacing, etc. Very few grab me enough to read cover to cover.
Right now they're stacked in double and triple rows in my bookshelves. I'd like to give them to the public library, but the library throws books in the trash.
WritersBlockNZ says
There are far to many incredible books out there to read to bother with ones that don't catch my interest!
Remilda Graystone says
For me, it depends on what I dislike about the book and/or what I've heard about it. If the plot is boring or moving at a slow pace, but I've heard people say it gets better and is worth it, I'll power through. If the main character is aggravating me, I stop.
I've powered through books and thought the experience was worth it, and I've done the same and regretted every moment wasted on it. Other times, I powered through then decided the last forty pages couldn't possibly make up for what a miserable reading experience the 2-300 pages before it were. Then I go on to Amazon and see if I was the only one not feeling it, and I find out how it ended. There. Curiosity satisfied, time saved.
At the end of the day, there really are tons and tons of books that are/will be better then the one you currently don't like, so you have to decide which book(s) are worth your time and what you have to gain/lose from going on or quitting.
Most times, I quit, though.
Alicia says
I used to power through, but with so many books waiting to be jumped into on my nightstand, I have to admit I've been giving up on the ones that don't catch my interest with the first few chapters.
wendy says
There are very few fictional themes I'm prepared to take up. There needs to be something very original or sweet or with fantasy elements for me to enjoy it – preferably with all three. Even if a book has all three of these, there's no guarantee it will sit right. The Harry Potter books I couldn't get into and never finished the first one. The Twilight books I liked more but, again, never finished the first one. I prefer non-fiction, usually spiritual. Well, I've no trouble finishing them.
Wild Child says
I will admit that I could not get through Blindness. That was the first book that I let myself give up on. Just could not do it.
Adam Heine says
I used to power through until I realized that at my current reading speed I can only finish about 1,000 more books before I die. Do I really want to waste one of those slots on a Jack Higgins novel?
Anna Zagar says
I've walked away from books before, but I don't do it often. I give them a chance, just like I'd want my readers to give me one day.
Tura Lura says
I voted that I stop reading, because I usually do.
But, if it's a book for which I had a review requested, I plow through. (Often while voicing my displease who anyone who will listen.)
stephen matlock says
I'm actually going to modify my answer.
If it's a book I made the decision to buy/rent/borrow, then I stop. I don't owe the author anything; it was my mistake to pick it up. (I don't usually blame the author; it's usually just that the book isn't for me.)
If it's a gift, then I plough through. I need to see what someone thought I'd like, so I can consider whether to delete their number from my cell phone.
Jenn says
I give almost every book until its halfway point. If I'm still not into it, its chance is lost. There's only one book that thoroughly bored me before the halfway point, and I did my best to give it a several-chapter go. It was sad day.
The only time a crap book gets a full read is if I've read previous works by the author and have enjoyed them. It's like listening to your friend's really boring story just because she's your friend. Most times, even though the book probably still sucks at the end, I'm happy to have supported my beloved author with the purchase and reading of their book.
Jeffrey says
I stop and don't look back because I usually have tons of other books that I really want to read so I won't waste time.
The exception is, if I sort of like a book but am not in the mood for that genre (if I start a fantasy but am in the mood for a mystery) then I will put it down and come back later.
Claire Dawn says
I only stop if it's too hard to continue. If the book's boring me senseless, or if I have to wade through too much description or fluff or the writing style to get to the story.
Jacqueline says
I need option 3. 🙂
I used to always read to the end of a book. I saw it as a personal challenge, and hoped it would get better.
I still continue to read on, hoping it will get better, but in some cases I will eventually give up.
The first book I ever 'shelved' I loaned to a friend. I think she took it as a challenge, since she'd never heard of me putting down a book unfinished. She made it to the end. It didn't get any better.
Jessie says
I plough through. Especially if the book was a gift. Even if I don't end up liking the book, I feel like I learn something from every book I read. Sometimes reading a "bad" book can teach you what not to do in your writing.
Sara says
I started to drop books when I started to trust my taste.
In my youth, I finished everything because I was learning the difference between good, bad, and what I like.
After many years of reading, I have more of a clue. I'm relieved to drop a frustrating book and move on to a fresh hope.
I find I learn the most as a writer from bogglingly excellent books. Mediocre ones drag me down.
If a book is clearly good but not working for me, I will persist a lot longer, trying to figure out why, and whether I just need to push my boundaries. This pays off occasionally.
Bika says
I used to power through because I was young and thirsty for words, but I've learned that my time is worth more than I'm willing to waste.
On the plus side, my friends are awesome and recommend a lot of winners for my reading list. I haven't had to abandon a book in ages.
Becky says
I power through only if it's already a favorite author and can trust that it'll get better–I love Dean Koontz, and have read nearly everything he's done, and although I powered through Odd Thomas, I really wish I had that time back.
Beth Kemp says
I usually quit. There are too many books in the world for me to read, so why waste time on one I'm not enjoying? The only time I don't follow that is when someone's chosen a book for me, or given me a book that means something to them (especially a student – I'm an English teacher to 16-19 yr olds so books are a thoughtful thank-you/parting gift).
Anonymous says
no, if it doesnt interest me right away, it goes back to the library. Too much junk being published now to waste my time. I used to think that one had to read the whole thing now, not so much
Carol Newman Cronin says
I still remember the incredible rush of power when (a few months after college graduation) i realized I didn't have to finish the book I was reading! What a concept, not-reading for pleasure!
Bryan Thompson says
I'm a stopper. Like you, I used to be a power-through-er, but I just don't have that kind of time. If I've absorbed most of the meat from it, that's one thing.
Honestly, though, I'm more of an audiobook junkie as I don't have as much time to read anymore (3 small kids at home so there's NEVER down time). I can listen to audiobooks in the car and finish a book a week up. Sometimes it's harder to just stop those because they're more expensive. 🙂
Donna says
If a book is difficult but intriguing, I continue.
If it's incompetent, trite, or lame, I quit.
Curiosity is the key.
Ishta Mercurio says
I said I stop, but there's a caveat: if it's a mega-selling blockbuster of a book, I power through to see what people are so excited about.
Emily Wenstrom says
I power through. I picked it up for a reason … a good review, a recommendation from a friend, knowing I liked something else the author wrote. And for that reason, I want to finish. Even if it’s just so I can legitimately get in an argument with whoever told me to read it over how awful it was. Sometimes it takes me forever and I pick up a second (better) read, but I finish.
The only exception to this is library books. If a library book reaches its due date and it’s not good enough to check out again, I sadly let it go. But this has only happened a couple times.