# I will not NOT finish a book!



## MalloryMoutinho (Aug 24, 2012)

Anybody else like me? Or is this some kind of bizarre OCD?

It does not matter how terrible a book is, or whether it's boring my eyeballs out of my sockets, I will not NOT finish a book.

If I started it...I'm committed to the end. It just feels like cheating to give up.

I have a feeling I'm in the minority here...


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## Iron Fist (Jan 21, 2012)

I'm not like you. I'd stop reading and never go back. It happened many times.


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## NogDog (May 1, 2009)

I give up on books, and seem to do so more and more as the years go by. I'm not sure how much of that is me getting pickier versus finding my reading time more valuable versus more chaff out there to sift through.


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## TheRiddler (Nov 11, 2010)

Once I've got a fair bit into it, I have to finish. However if after a few pages I'm not enjoying it, I give up on it. Too many books to read, too little time


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## anguabell (Jan 9, 2011)

I used to be like you but I had to learn to value my time (and my eyesight). Now I don't hesitate to give up. It is very liberating!!!


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## JumpingShip (Jun 3, 2010)

MalloryMoutinho said:


> Anybody else like me? Or is this some kind of bizarre OCD?
> 
> It does not matter how terrible a book is, or whether it's boring my eyeballs out of my sockets, I will not NOT finish a book.
> 
> ...


I don't know if you are in the minority, but I abandon books all the time. The books aren't necessarily bad, they just don't interest me at that moment. I might try them again later, but usually not. Otoh, if a book catches my interest, I have a hard time putting it down.


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## sheiler1963 (Nov 23, 2011)

If a book really sucks I will give up on it. Reading (for me) is supposed to be my escape and not another chore I have to slog through.


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## Atunah (Nov 20, 2008)

Because of the vetting I do before I read a book, I have a good chance I will not totally dislike a book. But I used to slog through stuff, just to get it over with. Now I think I would just stop. But I do have this ingrained a bit to finish. Don't know why though. 

I have 3 did not finish books on my goodreads shelf. I am only keeping record though since I have had a Kindle. So I have a low rate on them. I might have missed some. So I still finish some 1 star and 2 star books.


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## purplesmurf (Mar 20, 2012)

i usually tell myself that it will get better and I keep trying till i'm done, but on the rare occasion i'll put it down for a few months and then go back before finishing first.


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## gina1230 (Nov 29, 2009)

Once upon a time, I always finished a book no matter what.

Now, with a large TBR pile, I'm able to stop reading a book I don't enjoy, but I do feel a tad guilty though.


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## Meka (Sep 8, 2011)

sheiler1963 said:


> If a book really sucks I will give up on it. Reading (for me) is supposed to be my escape and not another chore I have to slog through.


+1

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2


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## MadCityWriter (Dec 8, 2011)

MalloryMoutinho said:


> Anybody else like me? Or is this some kind of bizarre OCD?
> 
> It does not matter how terrible a book is, or whether it's boring my eyeballs out of my sockets, I will not NOT finish a book.
> 
> ...


I am just like you. I've been known to read to the end in the hopes that the ending will have made the journey worth it, then am disappointed that I wasted my time. With me it's not an OCD thing, it's just...a thing.


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## Sam Kates (Aug 28, 2012)

Most of the time I'm like you and I've read one or two stinkers from cover to cover. I think it's some sort of inner compulsion to finish what I've started, however arduous. However, I have given on up on a few books out of sheer tedium, notably some well-known classics. Even to people like us, sometimes life's too short.


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## history_lover (Aug 9, 2010)

I used to be like that. The concept of making the choice to stop reading a book never even entered my head. But then my husband once said to me "Life is too short to read bad books". And I realized he was right - I've got 50+ books on my to-read list and I'm wasting time on a book I'm not even enjoying? Where's the sense in that? I do try to give every book a reasonable chance... but if I find myself dreading picking it up and avoiding my Kindle by doing other things, I think it's time to move on to something that I actually look forward to reading.


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## MariaESchneider (Aug 1, 2009)

I have been known to stop reading a bad book so fast I give it whiplash.  No problem stopping here.  I read a lot of samples and I'm totally bummed when the sample is the best part.  So if I get another 10 to 30 pages in and it's going downhill, I move on.


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## MalloryMoutinho (Aug 24, 2012)

I think I should also add...I do not have a "to be read" list.

I buy a book, then read it. But, I'm also a book/day person. (Realistically, I probably read 200 books/year)

I don't let myself buy the next book until I've finished what I have.

So, it's not like a waste A LOT of time on a bad book.


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## ElizabethBlake (Sep 21, 2012)

I used to drag myself through some dull, long winded books simply to feel closure. Unfortunately, there is more and more material on the market these days and spending too much time on a book I don't enjoy is stealing time I could spend reading those! I try to give each book a fair trial though.


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## BTackitt (Dec 15, 2008)

I tend to stick with a bad book until I just can't stand it another minute, am ready to throw it against a wall, then.. instead, deep breath.. and delete it from my Kindle.


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## lvhiggins (Aug 1, 2012)

NogDog said:


> I give up on books, and seem to do so more and more as the years go by. I'm not sure how much of that is me getting pickier versus finding my reading time more valuable versus more chaff out there to sift through.


I'm like NogDog. Once upon a time, I finished every book I picked up . . . now, more and more, I put a book down if it hasn't grabbed me in the first 50 pages or so. Mostly it's because of the time crunch, but also I think having a Kindle is a big part of that: So many books, so little time.


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## DomEagle (Sep 5, 2012)

TheRiddler said:


> Once I've got a fair bit into it, I have to finish. However if after a few pages I'm not enjoying it, I give up on it. Too many books to read, too little time


I'm exactly the same. If I make the decision in the first page or two that I like the book, I'll stick with it to the end; no matter what. Even if some parts seem a slog, I feel as if I leave the book, I'll forever have left something incomplete - for all I know, that book might have had an unfathomably incredible ending! 

However, if I dislike the first few pages of the book, that's it. I don't class my brief encounter with the beginning as having "properly read" the book, so I never look back.


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## tahliaN (Nov 6, 2011)

anguabell said:


> I used to be like you but I had to learn to value my time (and my eyesight). Now I don't hesitate to give up. It is very liberating!!!


I'm exactly the same, but a lot of the reason I can now stop reading is because ebooks are cheaper than the paper backs I was reading before, and I'm reading so much that I don't want to waste my time on something I don't like - especially when my kindle is full of goodies waiting for me


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## tahliaN (Nov 6, 2011)

history_lover said:


> I used to be like that. The concept of making the choice to stop reading a book never even entered my head. But then my husband once said to me "Life is too short to read bad books". And I realized he was right - I've got 50+ books on my to-read list and I'm wasting time on a book I'm not even enjoying? Where's the sense in that? I do try to give every book a reasonable chance... but if I find myself dreading picking it up and avoiding my Kindle by doing other things, I think it's time to move on to something that I actually look forward to reading.


Well said.


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## Tony Richards (Jul 6, 2011)

You're definitely in the minority, Mallory. If I think a book is really bad, I won't waste my time on it. There are too many good books out there still waiting to be read.


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## projectbk (Apr 12, 2012)

This is a fair example of irrational escalation. 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Escalation_of_commitment
Life is short. Don't waste time on things that aren't bringing you satisfaction


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## MalloryMoutinho (Aug 24, 2012)

projectbk said:


> This is a fair example of irrational escalation.
> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Escalation_of_commitment
> Life is short. Don't waste time on things that aren't bringing you satisfaction


Haha, this perfectly describes when I get pot-committed during poker games.

Ugh...one more personality flaw to work on...


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## Novel1 (Sep 16, 2012)

I tend to be that way with movies more than with books. And it depends how bad it is. A book that is borderline, I might try to finish to see if it gets better, but if it's really bad, I will put it down. I did that just last week. The book was poorly written in my opinion, even though it was picked up and published by a "Big 6" publisher, and had a great cover and synopsis. The author lost me after about 2 or 3 pages. Choppy sentences, no rhythm, an extremely vague prologue, unbelievable characters - the list goes on. I won't be reading that one.


Gregory Eaves


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## Amyshojai (May 3, 2010)

Gosh, it used to be a point of honor with me! Especially if I'd paid my hard-earned money for the dang thing. Then at one point I put myself on a book-buying diet and only borrowed from the library--and that seemed to give me permission to quit if it wasn't a good book. 

Like others have said, the older I get, the more precious becomes my time and I hate to squander it on something that feels like a waste of paper (virtual or otherwise).


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## JFHilborne (Jan 22, 2011)

I no longer force myself to finish a book that sucks. Once I start skimming, it's not usually long before I stop. I have too many books to read to waste the time.


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## hamerfan (Apr 24, 2011)

I need to preface this by saying it took me almost 100 pages before I got "into" One Flew Over The Cuckoo"s Nest, now one of my all-time favorites.
I used to, no matter what, finish every book I started. Now, though rarely, if a book hasn't grabbed me by 20% into it, it doesn't bother me at all to drop it.
Whatever works for you....


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## BTackitt (Dec 15, 2008)

hamerfan said:


> I need to preface this by saying it took me almost 100 pages before I got "into" One Flew Over The Cuckoo"s Nest...


That's frightening.. as I have to read this book for a class this semester.


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## Jonathan C. Gillespie (Aug 9, 2012)

One of the best things you can do is quit a book before you're done with it, if you don't enjoy it. I think too many people let themselves get intimidated into feeling like they simply must finish a book--particularly if it is a NYT best-seller or a "classic".

Nein. Your time is more valuable than that.


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## Radomir Djenadic (Aug 8, 2012)

Bad books are like bad relationships. Regardless of how much effort you put into them you will get nothing good back.

You need to learn how to let go. Life is too short for bad books (or bad relationships).


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## Groggy1 (Jun 21, 2010)

Bad books get deleted from the device.... My time and effort too valuable...


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## Lindafaye (Mar 29, 2012)

I like to finish books, but every now and then, one comes through and I just can't slog through it....the latest Jean Auel book is the the last book I bought and haven't finished....ugh....I keep telling myself that I will finish it, but I don't know.....


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## Mercius (Aug 28, 2010)

The worst is when I want to give up, but the plot twists keep pulling me along, even though every twist is another disappointment. I felt that way about Jude the Obscure by Thomas Hardy. The ending was the worst, but not because the writing was bad (it was Thomas Hardy after all). It was how depressing the entire story was. Thomas Hardy is not a big fan of the happy ending. Then there was George Eliot's The Mill On The Floss...I might just choke up...nevermind, I can't even go into it. Needless to say I finished them and I have acute paranoia about messing up my kid's heads and creating either psychopaths or suicidal drug addicts...my life would have been better if I walked away from those two books when I had the chance and continued my life in blissful ignorance. Don't become like me...walk away while you still can!


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## DYB (Aug 8, 2009)

I've only abandoned, like, 3 books in my entire life.  Don't know how to explain it either.  But I just feel like if I've started it, I have to finish it. For heaven's sake, I even finished "The DaVinci Code!"  That's how much of a loony tune I am about finishing books!

But as someone mentioned above, I tend to quite selective about what I start reading anyway, so chances of outright shock are low.  (But, again, there are exceptions to my vetting as evidenced by Dan Brown ending up on my list of books I started.)

BTW, "One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest" is really a fantastic novel.  Super depressing, but brilliant.

With Thomas Hardy, I read one novel; that really depressing one.  And it was so depressing that I decided that while I did enjoy it a lot, I just don't hate my life enough to read more of that sort of thing.


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## Terrence OBrien (Oct 21, 2010)

I rarely make a conscious decision not to finish. But history shows I have left hundreds of unfinished books behind. I simply lack the interest to pick them up again. They drift away in benign neglect. No regrets.


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## NancyHerkness (Aug 1, 2012)

In my younger days, I read every book to the end.  Perhaps my taste wasn't as highly developed or maybe I just had more time to read, but I never voluntarily quit on a story.

Now I'm much pickier.  Even books for my book club I won't finish if the book doesn't have some redeeming element.  We have a rule that you must slog through 100 pages and then you can give up without shame.

However, I will stop even sooner if: a) the book is poorly written, b) there's not at least one character with some redeeming quality, or c) the characters all whine.  (I have children; I don't need more whining in my life!)

My reading time is limited and there are an awful lot of terrific books I know are waiting for me out there.  So a bad book isn't worth wasting my most valuable resource on.


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## balaspa (Dec 27, 2009)

Most of the time I will give it the ol' college try and really make an effort to get to the end even if the book is bad.  But there have been a few that I have just given up on.  Somehow I have found it easier to do with my Kindle than when I bought books in print.


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## FrankZubek (Aug 31, 2010)

Nope not me
at 56 life is just too short
If I start skipping pages or even chapters than nine times out of ten I dump it despite the amount of money I laid down

I do try to spend a bit of time on reading comments (in amazon) and there have been times I actually weigh the amount of one stars against the amount of five stars ( and of course reading a few pages from each of those)

I find that I rarely need to slog through more than 3 pages of comments before making up my mind 

A bad job or even a bad relationship, well, sometimes you have to bite the bullet and compromise on those.
But a bad book?
It's easy as breathing once you get into the habit because again- there are too many potential unread books out there that WILL capture my attention and make me sit there two or three days straight turning pages that I will enjoy- but only if I have the time to find them, which I can't do if I am trying to be unreasonably fauthful to the one author who wrote one book that doesn't feel as comfortable to me all because I already spent 2.99 or even 34.99 on the book

And with Kindle there is the option of cancelling it if you start reading it right away and with paper books most people have a good used bookstore nearby and you can just trade up

Last resort is just dropping it off at the library- they take all books and there's always someone there who will find the time to read it


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## vikiana (Oct 5, 2012)

When I started first read I was exactly like that. I sit somewhere and start reading. But my eyelids were falling down no matter of fact what I'm reading. It was impossible to finish a decent book and i was desperate! But after a while I have decided to be more stubborn and continue to read a lot. I have tried to choose books which were exactly for my age or taste for best interest on them. It helped me a lot to improve myself. I also read not more than 10-20 pages a day and I increased the number with the time. Step by step it worked very well for me.



NogDog said:


> I give up on books, and seem to do so more and more as the years go by. I'm not sure how much of that is me getting pickier versus finding my reading time more valuable versus more chaff out there to sift through.


Never going back to a book could sometimes denude you from god books which time is just not come yet!



NancyHerkness said:


> In my younger days, I read every book to the end. Perhaps my taste wasn't as highly developed or maybe I just had more time to read, but I never voluntarily quit on a story.
> 
> Now I'm much pickier. Even books for my book club I won't finish if the book doesn't have some redeeming element. We have a rule that you must slog through 100 pages and then you can give up without shame.
> 
> ...





NogDog said:


> I give up on books, and seem to do so more and more as the years go by. I'm not sure how much of that is me getting pickier versus finding my reading time more valuable versus more chaff out there to sift through.


I'm absolutely agree with you. There would be so many other books you can choose if you don't like the last one you have started. So it is just a matter of choosing and looking around for something realy worthwhile.



TheRiddler said:


> Once I've got a fair bit into it, I have to finish. However if after a few pages I'm not enjoying it, I give up on it. Too many books to read, too little time


 If you take an e-book reader you can not imagine how much time you can save travelling in the tube or in the train,or in the car,bus and so on. You can open your book until you are waiting for something and etc. This is the best way of saving time for reading. In this way I have succeeded to read more than 200 books for the last half an year and I can dare to say they ere not too tiny...


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## Lee Donoghue (Sep 13, 2012)

Terrence OBrien said:


> I rarely make a conscious decision not to finish. But history shows I have left hundreds of unfinished books behind. I simply lack the interest to pick them up again. They drift away in benign neglect. No regrets.


Yes - I know just what you mean. I generally try to finish books I have started. More than once I have persevered with a book to find that it wasn't too bad after all, although I do find myself in the middle of reading many books at once - a new one attracts my attention and I start it before finishing the last one! I guess some of the older ones are starting to drift away in benign neglect for me as well.

How do you all feel about this in relation to a series - will you finish a series if one of the books starts to go downhill, or will you give up on it? It takes quite a lot for me to abandon a series. I have found some to get better, when after the first book it was 50/50 on whether I would continue.


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## vikiana (Oct 5, 2012)

anguabell said:


> I used to be like you but I had to learn to value my time (and my eyesight). Now I don't hesitate to give up. It is very liberating!!!


 I never can not feel this feeling of liberation because I'm going to wonder all the time - "What if I was continue...?"



balaspa said:


> Most of the time I will give it the ol' college try and really make an effort to get to the end even if the book is bad. But there have been a few that I have just given up on. Somehow I have found it easier to do with my Kindle than when I bought books in print.





TheRiddler said:


> Once I've got a fair bit into it, I have to finish. However if after a few pages I'm not enjoying it, I give up on it. Too many books to read, too little time


It is easier to read on e-book reader . It saves you lots of troubles caring paper books with you and at the same time it is fast and saving time method!


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## cork_dork_mom (Mar 24, 2011)

In the wise words of one of my Senior Ladies Book Club members... "I only have 10 years of reading left & I don't want to waste them [on crap like this]"  She was referring to a horrible book I chose for the book club that I moderate. It was said with a smile on her face. She gives herself permission to not finish a book and that was so liberating that I now do the same. The Book Police have not come looking for me so I figure I'm safe. 

Life is short, there are a LOT of great books out there, do don't spend the precious time wading through a crummy one!


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## lvhiggins (Aug 1, 2012)

Radomir Djenadic said:


> Bad books are like bad relationships. Regardless of how much effort you put into them you will get nothing good back.
> 
> You need to learn how to let go. Life is too short for bad books (or bad relationships).


Okay, talk about bad relationships, I'm halfway through Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet and it's just not grabbing me. But it was so highly recommended by a friend whose opinion I usually share that I feel I have to finish it. It's been a heck of a slog.


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## MalloryMoutinho (Aug 24, 2012)

lvhiggins said:


> Okay, talk about bad relationships, I'm halfway through Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet and it's just not grabbing me. But it was so highly recommended by a friend whose opinion I usually share that I feel I have to finish it. It's been a heck of a slog.


Ugh, this has got to be the worst-case scenario...wanting to quit, but feeling obliged to someone else to continue.


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## Christopher Bunn (Oct 26, 2010)

I'm getting too old to waste time on books that I don't like. I used to finish 'em in my younger days, but now I hastily stop reading, hit delete, and move on. I find myself doing that more and more. Particularly with free books. 

I'm also finding that I'm getting suckered by samples more and more these days. I think writers are putting a lot of effort into the beginning of a story. Clever little beasties.


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## Suz Ferrell (Jan 29, 2012)

If it's a book by a favorite author, I tend to keep reading, trusting them to make the journey worth the effort. Most of the time I'm not disappointed. If it's a new author, I will give them up to 100 pages. If by then it's sucking wind, then yep, it goes to the used book bag for donations. Too many books to tolerate bad story telling.


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## Cuechick (Oct 28, 2008)

I agree with Christopher, life is too short. I use to feel bad if I did not finish a book but no longer. I created a "shelve" on my goodreads 
profile called "Stuck Like Muck" and now that's where they go.


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## courtyoung (Dec 4, 2012)

When it comes to books, I am like the fat kid in the buffet line who has a mother that makes you clear your plate. But, I am the mother and the fat kid in the scenario. 

I force myself to finish books, even if I don't really enjoy it and if it takes me months to get through. -Since I chose the food book, I have to eat read it-.
There were several e-books, paperbacks, and audiobooks I struggled through this year. On the flip side, there were tons of books I loved. I am glad I finished the audio book that I had an issue with though, reason being, the first chapter to a book was at the end. Because it was so well performed by the voice actor and sounded intriguing, I purchased the audio book and now that author is on my FAVORITE EVER list. If I wouldn't have continued listening, I would have never found said author. It made struggling through worth it!


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## Krystal Wade (Dec 3, 2012)

MalloryMoutinho said:


> Anybody else like me? Or is this some kind of bizarre OCD?
> 
> It does not matter how terrible a book is, or whether it's boring my eyeballs out of my sockets, I will not NOT finish a book.
> 
> ...


Well, I used to be this way, but sometimes not anymore. If I download a free ebook on my Kindle, and the book turns out to be horribly written, boring, or whatever, I refuse to finish it. I will usually finish a book I pay for though. Odd. I know.


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## Tony Richards (Jul 6, 2011)

MalloryMoutinho said:


> It does not matter how terrible a book is, or whether it's boring my eyeballs out of my sockets, I will not NOT finish a book.
> 
> If I started it...I'm committed to the end. It just feels like cheating to give up.


Sorry, no. There are far too many good books out there, and I don't want to waste reading time on something that I'm not enjoying. Having said which, I have been known to go back and give a book that I've put down a second chance. I actually didn't think much of _Interview With The Vampire_ when I first had a look at it, for instance, but returned to it a year later and started realizing about page 70 that it was a considerably better novel than I had first thought.


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## timskorn (Nov 7, 2012)

I've finished a handful of books I should have stopped reading, in hindsight. East of Eden, for example. I enjoyed Grapes of Wrath, but I had more enjoyment falling asleep at the end of a chapter than reading East of Eden. I only wonder what I would have done with it if I knew it wasn't Steinbeck, and I hadn't paid for it...would I have stopped earlier? I felt like I had to finish because it was Steinbeck, and considered a literary classic, and that somehow I would find enjoyment in the story once it was over. Newsflash: *If I'm not enjoying it while I read it, it won't be any more enjoyable at the end.*

When I was younger, and as my tastes changed, I realized I was reading some really bad storytelling in a series called "In the Ashes" (Or something...there were a bunch of books, clearly written by a hard nosed Republican). I finished a bunch, but stopped once I realized I was reading the same Neoconservative-fantasy over and over, just in different locales, killing different kinds of people. The Left Behind Series was another that I stopped. I certainly don't miss whatever may have happened in the books I didn't read!

It's certainly a reader's choice these days with all the books available now, free or not, so I imagine there are a lot more books being dropped/deleted before being finished.


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## MarcYvesLane (Dec 6, 2012)

I had two childhood experiences:
1. Never reading the book for my book review in 3rd grade (so age about 9); and
2. Never finishing Rudyard Kipling's *Kim* (about the same age).
I was so angry with myself that I swore never to not finish a book again.

So far, I have only about a dozen books in stasis (ie not finished, but not dropped), and only one book that I will not finish - Joyce's _Ulysees_, which bored me to tears, because it felt like a profound intellectual wank. Conversely, _War and Peace_ has to be one of my favourite endurance books, since you only really get locked into the characters in the second half, but from there, the story is powerful and captivating.


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## JRTomlin (Jan 18, 2011)

I occasionally don't finish a book. I don't make some rule that I have to finish a book I'm hating, but I also tend to buy books that I have at least some reason to think I'll like, so it doesn't happen that often.


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## Low Kay Hwa (Jun 15, 2012)

It's normal. It's just like a relationship: the beginning might be sweet, but halfway through, it might not be as sweet as you thought it would be.

HA. I've always told my readers during talks about this mismatch between readers and the reading material!


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## Carry Lada (Oct 30, 2012)

I was like that in the past, but now I move on if I am not enjoying what I am reading.


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## Robena (Jan 19, 2013)

Sometimes it's just a matter of the book itchys. You want a certain something and no book is giving it to you so you put what you've chosen aside. Some months later you might pick it up (in a completely different mindset) and you can't believe you never finished it on the first try. You LOVE the book!   At least, that's what happens to me.


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## testarda (Jan 25, 2013)

I used to feel like I should finish every book I read no matter what.  Sometimes books start out slow and it takes a chapter or two before you can get into them. But then one year I didn't finished one.  And over the years I found more and more that I just couldn't be bothered to finish. I wonder if it's not an aging thing.  The older one gets the picker one gets.  These days, if I can't get interested after a chapter I often give up unless I find the writing good.


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## Andre Jute (Dec 18, 2010)

MalloryMoutinho said:


> It does not matter how terrible a book is, or whether it's boring my eyeballs out of my sockets, I will not NOT finish a book.


Life's too short to waste on incompetents or writers whose characters you don't like or even good books that someone else thinks you must read, for any reason, including that someone has decided they're "classics". You wouldn't let a bore impose on you in real life, would you? What makes the same bore a better companion inside your Kindle?


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## Libby13 (Jul 31, 2011)

I used to be same way, but no more.  I did that with movies too.  Now, unless the book comes highly recommended from sources I respect, I will not force myself to finish it.  To quote someone smarter than myself, "They got my money, they're not getting my time."


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## Geoffrey (Jun 20, 2009)

There are times I start a book and, while well written, it just doesn't work for me.  If I think it's just a timing thing, I'll set it aside and try again later.  But if it's just boring or poorly written, I have no qualms about putting it aside.  When I try to force myself to read something I don't care for, I find every excuse there is to not read and, in the end, just delay getting on to something good.  On the upside, I get more gaming done ....


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## 31842 (Jan 11, 2011)

I was exactly like you, but it has been interesting how owning a Kindle changed my behavior.  When I used to buy books, it was because I had specifically gone to the store, poured over the shelves, and ponied up six or ten dollars or twenty dollars in cash.  Then the book would sit there on the shelf, occupying real space, reminding me every time I looked at it that I hadn't finished it...  But with my Kindle, why, I just open up another book!  No harm, no foul!  Download!  Delete!  Just a press of the buttons!  Mind you, I tend to purchase the less expensive books.  If I was buying $10 books on my Kindle, I would finish that thing come rain or flood.  But with these free books or the 99-cent books, my loyalty extends as much as a can of soda.  If it tastes good, I will gulp the whole thing down.  If it is flat, I'll toss it and go for something more refreshing.


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## kayandersensmith (Jan 4, 2013)

I'm going to admit that sometimes I do this. I got stuck on one of the better of the Fever series, and found that I couldn't finish it. Call me weird, but it was almost like, as long as I didn't finish it, everything was "paused" at a good point for Mac and Barrons.

I suppose it's almost like not wanting to finish the last few bites of a decadent meal, and wanting instead to freeze time, so that you're never forced to deal with the completion of something truly amazing.

Does that make any sense, or am I just an oddball?


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## Natasha Holme (May 26, 2012)

MalloryMoutinho said:


> I will not NOT finish a book.


You've never tried Jean-Paul Satre's Nausea, have you? It's like a word vomit with no clues. You might as well read a Japanese phone directory.


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## Geemont (Nov 18, 2008)

I have no problems giving up on a book.  I don't have the time left to read books that don't interest me.  A moderator of as book club once said you should give a book 100 pages minus you age before throwing in the towel.  The older you get gives you more leeway to call it quits.


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## Robena (Jan 19, 2013)

Geemont said:


> 100 pages minus you age before throwing in the towel. The older you get gives you more leeway to call it quits.


Ha ha, Geemont. So I'm good for about a chapter and a half.


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## Anotherdreamer (Jan 21, 2013)

Once I start skimming, I know the end is near. If I like the writer's style, I'll usually read it, even if the plot and storyline are weak. If the style is bad, I can't seem to hold on long.


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## dkrauss (Oct 13, 2012)

I've got a fifty-page threshhold, too, like some others here have mentioned. If it hasn't grabbed me by then, across the room it is tossed. But, right now, I am reading a very annoying book with every intention of finishing it, even if it gives me an aneurysm. Why? I want to see if there's an ounce of redemption in it. That's not masochism; that's optimism.


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## Sweetwriter (Feb 1, 2013)

Life is much too short to spend time on books I don't enjoy. And it seems there are more of those all the time. But in between, there are some very fine reads that I truly savor.


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## Jeanne Lynn (Nov 19, 2012)

If the first chapter isn't good, I usually don't go any further. There are too many good books out there that I can read.


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