Book freaks discussion

How far do you read into a book before you just have to break up with it? Are you like some people that can push through even if your not really enjoying it?

If I can I try to get at least halfway in. But if I just can not at all do it then I break off once I realize it.

Oh I usually push through till the bitter end. Or if I get to page 200, no matter how long it is (unless of course it doesn't have a pg 200) and I really can't stand it I just end my relationship, but only then, I'm dreadfully optomistic when it comes to reading.

Most of the time I'll suffer through the entire book, but there are a few times that I just couldn't do it and had to stop reading the book completely.

I have to say that before I made the pledge to review every book I finished (so I made that pledge to my friend who is like, tell me the books you don't like as well) then I would finish every book I started. Now, I will put a book down---doesn't happen very often but honestly it is my loophole LOL

If the book doesn't grab me by 1/4 of the way through, then it never will. I used to finish all my books, but now I don't feel obligated to finish every book. There are way too many good books out there to suffer through the bad ones.

Lolz I wish I could be like that. If a book is truly bad I feel it's my duty to suffer through it and save all my friends from the pain of reading it themselves, and if I've suffered through the whole thing, they can't counter with a "well you don't know it may have gotten better at the end"

That's funny Gorfo, I am usually the one who keeps reading the book because I think it's going to get better and then when done wonder why did I read all of that?

It's hard for me to determine when I really dislike a book. Usually, it's near the 70 page mark. I'll either skip through the book, will push through to the ending, or will put it down twenty pages later.

I use to finish everything I started. Then I had kids. Now I'll give up if I find myself putting a book down and having no urge whatsoever to get back to it.

I have not read many books that I haven't finished. The two I remember I stopped in the middle, and one after the first of three parts.

I am one of those people who hates to stop reading a book ... I'm the type that likes to finish what I read. But if I am not enjoy a book or stop. I actually just recently broke up with the Immortals Series by Alyson Noel. Stopped after "Shadowland". I was getting bored with it. Currently reading the spin-off series "Radiance". The first book was cute. Gonna keep going with it and I hope I don't have to break up with that series.

Nicky wrote: "Until recently I was the person who would force myself through to the end. But then I realized that there are so many books in the world I'd love and not enough time to read all of them- why waste ..."

I'm exactly the same. About 100 pages is cut-off. Seems to work well, BUT some of the books I persevered with in the past (before this 'rule') have stuck with me, and I've rated them higher as time's gone by.

Oh those books... That happened to me twice with the same book, somehow I couldn't finish. The first time I can't remember but the second time I had to travel for 2 months and when I was back I didn't want to read it again but I'll read it again and till the end!!! Even though Archipelago Gulag gave me a hard time I pushed through it and actually it turned out to be an excellent book but it's problem is how dense it is. Maybe I'll give a second shot to the Da Vinci code, I couldn't read past the second chapter. All in all I just keep going until the very end in general, it's like hurting my pride when I can't finish one.

I guess it is not so much a break up as as "we're just not working out right now, and maybe in the future we will" sort of thing. If I can't get into the book I put it asside and try again later.

If on the second try I can't be bothered I "call the whole thing off"

im like that too, i mean you have to at least try the book twice before you're done wiht it

Gorfo wrote: "Oh I usually push through till the bitter end. Or if I get to page 200, no matter how long it is (unless of course it doesn't have a pg 200) and I really can't stand it I just end my relationship, ..."

I'm with you on this one. But if it never gets any better, the book will be thrown in the recycle bin instead of donated because I feel nobody else should waste their time reading it.

i know right? i mean why keep a book that you will never read? clearly it can be given to someone else or it can be recycled.

I can only think of once that I've ever put down a book because I couldn't stand it and actually did not finish it. I still from time to time wonder what happens!

Other than then, though, I always push through. I think it's that I can't stand knowing that I put so much time into something that I didn't even finish.

There's only been once though, that I was very glad that I made myself push through. It was with , and it's because it didn't pick up the pace until 3/4 of the way through, which finally once it did, I loved the last 1/4 of it. With that one I feel like I couldn't just not finish the series.

I didn't finish The Dollmaker because, although it was beautifully written, it was the most depressing book I'd ever read in my life.

I really can't not finish a book, no matter how much I may dislike it. If I try, it'll hang around the corners of my brain, and I keep wondering if it might have worked out, if I'd only stick with it. The only book I've ever not finished was Twilight. I tried, but just couldn't do it.

Last book I tried so hard to read but had to drop it, was Beautiful Creatures. It was my "finish Tammsaare (father of Estonian lit)for school and you can start reading this". Tammsaare's books aren't for high-schoolers - usually they loathe it and few decades later realize the value of the books. But then I fell absolutely in love with Tammsaare and BC was just so pointless and boring next to it.

I read Immortal books, too. Friend lent me first 4 books. I flew through them and loved them (apart from the 1st book). Then, as I started to read the 5th book from my laptop, I just.... idk. It turned pointless.

I also tried to read House of Night series too, as they're so popular. Got through first 4 or 5 books, don't remember well. Idea was great but writing so terrible, I just couldn't force myself reading it any further. And then I lost interest in it, too.

When I was younger I always finished any book I started. Now I have less time (or more of a sense of my time limitations) and if a book doesn't grab me in the first few chapters I put it down. I used to think I had a responsibility to the author to finish the book. Now that I've written novels myself I realize that it's the other way around, the author has a responsibility to make me want to keep reading.

It depends I always try to push through to the end because maybe the ending will be amazing. However if I have another book I really want to read I leave the other book.

Sille wrote: "Last book I tried so hard to read but had to drop it, was Beautiful Creatures. It was my "finish Tammsaare (father of Estonian lit)for school and you can start reading this". Tammsaa..."


I agree with you about the House of Night series. The first few books I really enjoyed it. But after that I started to get sick of them in a way. I just wanted the series to be over already. My main beef with the series was

1) The authors kept reminding readers about what the characters looked liked, especialy the twins skin color which came off sort of racist. Even after the third book. I think after the 3rd book , we get what the characters are like. By doing that the authors wasted paper on telling her readers what they already knew.

2) The boy drama. Now I don't mind a little boy drama. But in this series it just seem a little over the top to me. It was taking away from the main story in my opinion.

However I do plan to finish the series. I've gone this far, why stop now. The last book was good, especially now the boy drama has calmed down significantly.

You think I should give it another try? :D Is it worth it? :D
The boy drama was... ugh. :D But then again, refreshing. :D You can't find many books where the protagonist is as... slutty isn't the word, but yeah. :D And I felt respect for the authors at the end of the 3rd? book. (When they had the courage to totally fuck up Zoey's life.)
This reminding is necessary sometimes, but how people look like and reading all over again after every 20 or so pages how twins really aren't twins but managed to finish each other's sentences... ugh. This was a bit over the top.

Erin wrote: "I really can't not finish a book, no matter how much I may dislike it. If I try, it'll hang around the corners of my brain, and I keep wondering if it might have worked out, if I'd only stick with ..."

What I have noticed is that people either LOVE twilight and cant put it down or couldn't finish it; there doesn't seem to be a lot of middle ground

Shantaram is another one like that - people seem to love it or detest it.

Nevena wrote: "What I have noticed is that people either LOVE twilight and cant put it down or couldn't finish it; there doesn't seem to be a lot of middle ground."


That does seem to be the case. If nothing else, it's a polarizing series that does get people talking!

I try to read the book until the end but yeah, it gives me massive headaches afterwards. If the book was really awful, I try to rest for a few days then read a new one.

if i dont like abook from the beginning itself, i usuall y read through atleast 50 pages before breaking up with it. but if i'm reading a book like that unwillingly, i seem to drag it on, like i read it less frequently.

There is only one book I ever remember "breaking up" with. When I was in middle school we were assigned The Red Badge of Courage. For some reason I could never get through it. In order to get an acceptable grade on the assignments for that book I ended up getting the cliff notes.

Over the years I've considered trying to get through it but every time I try I end up putting it back on the shelf to collect dust.

the only book i couldn't go through was Anna Karenina, dunno if i'll ever try it again

nada wrote: "the only book i couldn't go through was Anna Karenina, dunno if i'll ever try it again"

I am reading the enhanced version of Anna Karenina, you could try that one. It's called Android Karenina

The only book I've broken up with was Arabian Nights. It's WAY too long and confusing for me xD. Every time I tried to read it from the start I would get lost and stop reading it. I will try to read it this year though...

I broke up with and it was because I found it ignorant and insulting to all women. Cannot believe this was even made into a movie.

Valeria wrote: "nada wrote: "the only book i couldn't go through was Anna Karenina, dunno if i'll ever try it again"

I am reading the enhanced version of Anna Karenina, you could try that one. It's called Android..."

interesting, i may give it a try.

If it hasn't caught my interest by the end of the 1st chapter than i know it won't, but that doesn't happen very often thankfully x x

I can count on one hand my unfinished books, and none of them I read recently. Now even if I don't like it, I'm gonna keep up with it, just because I think I have to read a whole book to be able to form a proper opinion about it.

I read until my eyes are sore then take a break.

I give a book 100 pages to interest me. If it can't achieve that, I give up on it and try a new one.