# The book lovers delemma. What type are you? And why?



## Stephen T. Harper (Dec 20, 2010)

You're 20 pages into a new book, and nothing has happened yet.  The narrator is STILL telling you about the scenery and the weather and how the hero likes his toast in the morning... and you're thinking, "is this really important?  Is the toast going to play a crucial part in the murder we were promised on the cover?"  You keep turning pages and there is no murder in sight.  Only another thousand words about Autumn leaves, and a repetitive yet delicious sounding menu.  Now, you're getting hungry.  What do you do?  

It seems like the world is divided into two camps.  Those who always stick with it to the end, and those who drop the book and head to the kitchen for some toast.

My wife won't quit on a book.  Ever.  She reads about one book a week, and always finishes whether she enjoys it or not.  

When I ask, "is that a good book?"  Sometimes (fairly often, really) she answers, "not really, no."  This is just baffling to me.

For me, there is just too much to choose from and too little time to waste on the the last 250 pages of a 300 page book that I don't like.  I love to read a good book.  I love it even more if it's a great book.  But reading a book I don't like?  That's like going to the dentist for me.  Although, at least I like my dentist.

How about you?


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## MichelleR (Feb 21, 2009)

I suppose I bail, unless I have to read it, but I don't think of it in those terms. Even if I'm loving a book, I jump around between others depending on my mood. So, there's rarely a moment when I consciously think I'm done with a book. With the way I read, I'll just forget about it or see it and think, "Oh, I should finish that ... some day."


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## Stephen T. Harper (Dec 20, 2010)

Ah, I see.  So you're saying that the world isn't really divided into two camps, but my wife is just insane?  Gotta say, that really makes sense to me.  Now things are starting to get clear and long held suspicions confirmed.  Thanks!


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## Kathleen Valentine (Dec 10, 2009)

Life is too short to waste on lame books. If it doesn't hold my interest, on to the next one ... unless for some foolish reason I've committed to read it, like the author is my friend's boyfriend or kid or...

If I MUST read it I am a very unrepentant skimmer.


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## MichelleR (Feb 21, 2009)

Stephen T. Harper said:


> Ah, I see. So you're saying that the world isn't really divided into two camps, but my wife is just insane? Gotta say, that really makes sense to me. Now things are starting to get clear and long held suspicions confirmed. Thanks!


Like a lot of things, I think there's a lot of places people may fall between the two points. I bail, even if I don't think of it that way, because my interest jumps around a lot. If I had your wife's focus then it might be a different matter because I'd be less able to simply forget about a book. There's a lot to admire about the way she reads, because her experience is a complete one and she doesn't have leave a trail of abandoned books in her wake.


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## RobynB (Jan 4, 2011)

It depends. I might abandon it. But if it's a hyped, hyped book -- like _The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo_ -- I'll stick with it, just because I figure "It's got to get better, right?" This happened to me with Dragon Tattoo -- first 100 pages were painful for me, but then I enjoyed the rest of the story (mostly).


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## Stephen T. Harper (Dec 20, 2010)

MichelleR said:


> If I had your wife's focus then it might be a different matter...


Absolutely. I often wish I had that kind of focus too. I'm going to stick with thinking she's insane though, because that makes everything easier to understand.


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## PG4003 (Patricia) (Jan 30, 2010)

I never finish a book if it isn't holding my interest, life's too short to spend reading books I don't enjoy.  But I'm like Michelle, some of them I quit reading, thinking I'll come back to them but I never do.  I even have a shelf on Goodreads that I call "Abandoned".


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## Kathleen Valentine (Dec 10, 2009)

PG4003 (Patricia) said:


> I even have a shelf on Goodreads that I call "Abandoned".


LOL! I have one called Gave Up!


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## TaniaLT (Oct 16, 2010)

I would put it down, promising myself I'll come back to it.. but somehow, I never do...


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## EliRey (Sep 8, 2010)

TaniaLT said:


> I would put it down, promising myself I'll come back to it.. but somehow, I never do...


Same here. I never considered it abandoning a book. I guess because I always said I'd go back to it. In hindsight I guess I do bail. Just don't like to admit it to myself.


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## Elizabeth Black (Apr 8, 2011)

I used to read a book through to the end, even if I didn't like it. Then again, I was raised Catholic.  I've stopped doing that. Now, I only read a book if I enjoy it.


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## ADCole (Jan 31, 2011)

RobynB said:


> It depends. I might abandon it. But if it's a hyped, hyped book -- like _The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo_ -- I'll stick with it, just because I figure "It's got to get better, right?" This happened to me with Dragon Tattoo -- first 100 pages were painful for me, but then I enjoyed the rest of the story (mostly).


That's exactly the example I was thinking of. The sequel was even worse. "She went into the convenience store. She bought two frozen pizzas, a 2 liter of Coke, a pack of gum, batteries, scotch tape, and a pack of cigarettes. It was 3:15 p.m." Okay, that's not really in there...but it reads like that for the first part of the book. I would normally bail. It's my policy, in fact. You've got 50 pages to grab me. If it hasn't happened by then, I'm done. Life's too short. But Dragon Tattoo was a worthy exception. Plus, most of those details turn out to actually have a purpose.

The last book I bailed on was The Historian. I had such high hopes, but I just couldn't get into it.


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## mooshie78 (Jul 15, 2010)

I've very seldom bailed on books.  I'm pretty good about reading the sample and knowing if I'll like it or not.

A book has to be very bad for me to bail on it, like super painful, not enjoying it at all.  Life's too short to finish those.  But I seldom start those as I'm pretty selective about what I start reading since I read a fraction of as many books as most here.


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## Joseph Robert Lewis (Oct 31, 2010)

I used to be the sort who would read the whole book, no matter what. 

But in the last few years, I've switched sides. Life is too short to force myself to read something I'm not enjoying for no good reason.


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## Carol (was Dara) (Feb 19, 2011)

If I've paid for a book I'll read at least the first 1/3 to see if it ever gets good. If it was free (library) and I have a stack of others waiting for me...well, I'll only give it about 3 chapters to hook me. Life is too short to read books I'm not enjoying.


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## gina1230 (Nov 29, 2009)

I'll give the story a 100 pages to become interesting before I call it quits.


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## susan67 (Mar 18, 2011)

I read everything and anything except romance novels and for me a book has got to be REALLY bad for me to give up. There have been a few but not many.


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## Mike D. aka jmiked (Oct 28, 2008)

Kathleen Valentine said:


> Life is too short to waste on lame books. If it doesn't hold my interest, on to the next one ... unless for some foolish reason I've committed to read it, like the author is my friend's boyfriend or kid or...
> 
> If I MUST read it I am a very unrepentant skimmer.


Yep. My attitude exactly.

Mike


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## laphillips52 (Apr 16, 2011)

I'm a book blogger. If I'm reading the book for my own pleasure then forcing my way to the end doesn't happen...for example, John Grisham's latest, as with his last few, just wasn't up to snuff, he's definitely slipping. I was reading this one for me but felt I had to say what I felt on GoodReads where I gave it only a 3 and one line review.

The only time I push my way to the end of a book is if I'm reviewing it either for my blog or another site. In this case people need to know not to waste their time.


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## arshield (Nov 17, 2008)

I don't quit many books.  But I do have a "gave up" shelf on my goodreads list too.  I always read several books at a time and most of the time I just need some distance and will come back.  But if it takes me a couple months and I am still not done, I usually give up.


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## Bunny Hugger (Jan 7, 2011)

I'm a skimmer as well if I don't like a book.  Even if it's bad I HAVE to know how it ends.  The only book I walked away from was The Lovely Bones.  I tried to read it about 8-9 years ago and stopped, I remember thinking that it was TERRIBLE.  Fast forward to about 2 months ago it was sitting on my shelf and I decided to give it another go & really enjoyed it.


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## Mjaydakid (Apr 3, 2011)

I am more inclined to read a DTB to the end than an ebook.  I have returned to horrid DTBs months after I abandoned it to continue where I left off.  It could be because I can see it sitting there daring me to finish it.  ... Like a dirty Harry threat.  
Ebooks are hidden on the web site bookshelf.  I only see them when I go to the site so I am not tempted to finish them.  I have a number of 'experimental' ebook reads I abandoned and never returned to just because they are out of sight, out of mind.  
Also, It is harder for me to discard a DTB than an ebook.


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## Christine Kersey (Feb 13, 2011)

I'll give a book about 50 pages. If it's a library book, back it goes. If I bought it, I might try it again in the future.


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## mscottwriter (Nov 5, 2010)

> Life is too short to waste on lame books.


Amen! And amen to whoever said it depended on if she paid money for it. I used to muscle my way to the end of every book until I realized that I wasn't getting any younger, and there are only so many books I'll be able to read in my lifetime. Now I'll flat-out quit a book if I don't like it, but if I'm close to the end, I'll just skim until I finish it.


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## Cindy Borgne (Mar 21, 2011)

I'll give it a good try before I give up, but any book that has several scenes that don't move the plot...well that's a bad sign.


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## jherrick (Apr 1, 2011)

I used to force myself to finish. Nowadays I try to give the benefit of the doubt, but if I get halfway through and nothing has happened, I'll let it go. It's a shame when you see potential in the story!


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## Michelle Muto (Feb 1, 2011)

I used to stick with it and finish the book. No more. If the writing isn't there, I bail in under 10. If the writing is there, but the story isn't and the characters are cardboard? I'm gone in under 20. But, if overall, the book isn't doing it for me by page 50, I walk away from it.


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## kCopeseeley (Mar 15, 2011)

Where I'll stop in a book depends on each book.  I don't have a set number, but I do have what I like to thing of a little tolerance meter inside my brain.  If a book is just NOT doing for me, the tolerance meter goes red really fast.  If the book is good enough to get me about halfway through the book, then it takes me longer to hit my tolerance limit.  Any book that I've gotten 2/3s of the way through is hard for me to walk away from, but I've walked away from a lot of books in the first couple of chapters.

Just read The Princetta, as an example.  Got about halfway through the book and despite some weirdness and shallow characters, I skimmed the rest of it to see what happened.  Although, after getting to the end, it was so bad that I wish I HAD walked away.


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## Stephen T. Harper (Dec 20, 2010)

Michelle Muto said:


> If the writing isn't there, I bail in under 10. If the writing is there, but the story isn't and the characters are cardboard? I'm gone in under 20. But, if overall, the book isn't doing it for me by page 50, I walk away from it.


Yep. For me it comes down to the writing. And writing generally comes down to two things. One is telling the story with a good balance of character/setting building and PACE. Can you make the necessary background information feel like a vital part of the story instead of an info-dump? But the second, more important aspect comes from the characters themselves. I'm reading a book right now with a great premise, but the characters don't feel real to me at all. A good writer needs to know and convey how real people would behave in any situation, even a "fantastic" situation. That's the difference between a cool premise and a good bookl. Every character beat the writer misses, pulls me further from the groove he's trying to set up. I'm actually half way through this book now. Lots of good stuff in it. But I'm still fighting to buy into the characters. And I'm less and less compelled to read it each night.


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## Skate (Jan 23, 2011)

If I can't get into a book, I must admit I'll skip ahead and read what happens further into the story. If nothing seems to have improved, I'll give up on it. I've got better things to do.


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## Tess St John (Feb 1, 2011)

My hubby will not quit on a book, but I'll spot read, then read the ending...just to see if I missed anything important or if anything great happened. If I think it did, I'll go back and see if I can get through it again, but that rarely happens.


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## joanhallhovey (Nov 7, 2010)

Hi,
I'll generally give a book at least 50 pages before I put it down.  And sometimes I'll even pick it up again, on the chance it might yet draw me in.  Some that are slow to start turn out to be great books. But that's it.  As someone else said, life is too short.  And, you know, a couple of those books were big prize winners, including a Pulitzer.  But it just didn't do it for me.  One I felt had little story and was too self-indulgent.  To another reader, it was a masterpiece.  I think Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen was a masterpiece.  Also David Wroblewski's The Edgar Sawtelle Story.  Aren't we lucky to have so many great books to choose from.

Happy Reading!

Joan Hall Hovey


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## Annette Fix (Apr 22, 2011)

In college, I had to read whatever was assigned, so I came away conditioned to keep reading whether I liked the book or not. But about 10 years ago, I switched sides. I walked into a bookstore one day and realized I would never have enough time in my life to read all the books that appealed to me, so now, I only stick with the books that draw me into the story. The last book I put down and didn't finish was _The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time_. It took several days to get to page 70 and I realized I was forcing myself to read it.


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## drenfrow (Jan 27, 2010)

Stephen T. Harper said:


> My wife won't quit on a book. Ever. She reads about one book a week, and always finishes whether she enjoys it or not.


Tell your wife to give me a call and we can support each other!  I think I have quit on a book maybe 5 times in my life. It just feels like a commitment. I will say that I read fast and that has gotten me through some lame books. But I think I'm also fairly choosy about what I read, I don't just pick up any random book thinking "Oh, I'll just check it out and quit if I don't like it". And I know for a fact that I have read many books that have had a slow beginning but have turned out to be wonderful, 5 star reads, and I would have missed out on them if I had given up.

As for people who skip to the end of a book, y'all are from some other planet and I put that topic in the same category as politics and religion.


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## JRTomlin (Jan 18, 2011)

It depends on how bad or painful I'm finding the novel. If it's only so-so or maybe moderately bad, I will probably keep going. If I really hate it, I'll stop. I've finished some lame books, but I am a very fast reader so reading a book isn't a huge time commitment to me. Only one book a week. I'm more like a one book per day person. 

I don't think the world is in two camps. Like most things there is probably a continuum.


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## R. M. Reed (Nov 11, 2009)

Before Kindle, when I bought a paperback I wanted to get my money's worth and probably couldn't afford another one right away so I would read it all. Now, well, I still don't like to abandon a book but I do it more often.


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## Dee Ernst (Jan 10, 2011)

Now that I can sample a book, I'm more likely to give it a toss right away.  There's something about paying for a book that makes me give it more of a chance.  I don't know of that's good or bad, because I'm sure there were books out there that I was glad I finished even though they were slow starters, but now that I sample I'm a total book snob - I won't even spend the $.99 if I'm not impressed.


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## Jon Olson (Dec 10, 2010)

Stephen T. Harper said:


> You're 20 pages into a new book, and nothing has happened yet. The narrator is STILL telling you about the scenery and the weather and how the hero likes his toast in the morning... and you're thinking, "is this really important? Is the toast going to play a crucial part in the murder we were promised on the cover?"
> It seems like the world is divided into two camps. Those who always stick with it to the end, and those who drop the book and head to the kitchen for some toast.


I try pretty hard to finish, but sometimes I'll find myself picking up magazines instead of the book I should be reading.

About scenery openings, I like what Elmore Leonard said: Just skip the stuff people don't read.


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## Tara Maya (Nov 4, 2010)

I used to put down an uninteresting book, but now, if I decide for some reason, that there is a novel I *need* to read, I will do it. I learned from nonfiction how to keep reading even if I found the beginning less than stellar. I just skim until I reach a part that engages me. This is helpful in reading genres outside my comfort zone. If I only relied on my gut reaction, I'd put that book down, but sometimes it is worth it to push past my initial discomfort. Other times, I finish the book and it's a reminder why I still prefer other kinds of books.


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## rayhensley (Apr 16, 2011)

I really can not get through a book I can't stand. Why should I waste my time? It doesn't make me any more of a man if I finish it. So I just put it down and write my own. Or pick up Fear & Loathing in Las Vegas.


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## patrisha w. (Oct 28, 2008)

Kathleen Valentine said:


> LOL! I have one called Gave Up!


And I have a collection on my Kindle called "Trash These!"


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## apbschmitz (Apr 22, 2011)

Recently I've found myself giving up on Portrait of a Marriage by Sándor Márai, the guy who wrote the great novel, Embers. Paragraph by paragraph, Portrait of a Marriage is profound. It's just that it doesn't go anywhere. I flogged myself to page 100 then hung it up.


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## Rin (Apr 25, 2011)

I'm fickle, I will toss a book after say...50-100 pages if it hasn't grabbed me. It doesn't take much for me to keep going - and I'm finding that this is even truer for ebooks: I'm buying and sampling books I wouldn't look twice at in a book store. 

If it frustrates me, I'll put it aside and read something else, though I may keep it on the shelf if I like the cover. 

There is the car crash exception though - sometimes it's so horrible that I can't look way, those are usually the times I end up with a block of chocolate and do a running commentary while my partner goes "yep, yep, really?" in the background.


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## Julia444 (Feb 24, 2011)

Unless a book is offensive in some way, I try to finish it.  I guess I feel like it's a little agreement I have with the author to follow through to the end.

Having said that, though, there are books I've deserted because they were too boring.  

I do tend to read more than one book at a time--maybe three or so spread around the house.  When I'm in that room, I read that book.

Julia


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## jonathanmoeller (Apr 19, 2011)

I very rarely bail on books. But I have done it - maybe 20 or 30 in the last four years. Usually it only happens when a book annoys me to the point of reaching critical mass. Boring alone won't do it - I've read books I thought were boring that I later decided I liked. A book has to be _actively freaking annoying_. Political strawmen or nonsensical gender stereotypes usually do the trick.

Then I take the book and donate it to the local thrift shop.

-JM


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## pickin_grinnin (Apr 28, 2011)

I used to keep reading until I finished bad books, but these days I don't.  There is just too much I want to read, and too little time to do it in.


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## Tamara Rose Blodgett (Apr 1, 2011)

I give the book a 30-page test, which means, if I am trying to slog through a book and look at the clock[before the 30 pages are finished] to see what time it is or similar, I will dump the book. Time is too valuable to waste on a read that you're forcing yourself to finish. Especially with the plethora of .99 cent titles now! Recent great reads were: Trapped by J A Konrath and Wish List by John Locke. And for the record, I try to write like what I want to read, interesting and fast-paced.


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## julieannfelicity (Jun 28, 2010)

I try to finish a book even if I'm banging my head against a wall trying to numb the pain from how awful it is. Why? Because I always have the hope it'll get better. I even make the sad mistake of finishing up series too, just so that I know what happened. *shakes head hopelessly* 

Steig Larsson's books scare me. I've heard so many reviews state it's slow and takes well past the first 100 pages to pick up before it gets exciting. I don't know if I can hold on through 100 pages of description ... a book really has to draw me in; it's really got to play out like a movie.


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## Anna Elliott (Apr 24, 2011)

Dara England said:


> If I've paid for a book I'll read at least the first 1/3 to see if it ever gets good. If it was free (library) and I have a stack of others waiting for me...well, I'll only give it about 3 chapters to hook me. Life is too short to read books I'm not enjoying.


That's exactly how I am, too. I have 2 tiny kids and my reading time is SO limited. I just have no desire to waste it on books I'm not loving.


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