I ask because I tend to jump off a book if It’s not grabbing me, which at times limits me with regards to what I’m reading.
Does it matter? Is it something I should try to push past or am I overthinking this and should just enjoy what I enjoy?
Huge fan of Do Not Finish. There are too many good books out there to waste time with mediocre ones. I’ve noped out of books by my favorite authors. Finishing a book you started because you started it is the perfect example of the sunk cost fallacy.
Why would you read a book you don’t want to?
Personally, because I’ve spent long enough reading it and I want to just finish it if I’m like two thirds of the way through.
In reality, I spend a week thinking “I need to finish that” and then forget about it completely.
If I’m in that situation where I really hate the book but also really want to finish, then it’s usually because there’s that nagging mental thread of something left undone.
But I don’t want to read it. I just want to be done with it.
What I need is closure, which means knowing how the key points wrap up and what happens at the end.
And so knowing that, I commit a crime against literature - I skim.
Normally I’d never skim, but it’s far preferable to never finishing at all, and it ties off that unpleasant dangling thread, letting me be free and move on to something I might actually enjoy.
You don’t. Just pick something else. Reading should be pleasant, not a torture.
Not exclusively, I have occasionally finished things that were challenging more than enjoyable. But I’m thinking about the content, not that they were just poorly written. Eg books on fgm, holocaust, etc.
Don’t. Life’s too short.
If you’re enjoying it but it’s a hard read take a break and try again. If you’re just not enjoying it sack it.
I say don’t force yourself. Why force yourself to do a leisure time activity you aren’t enjoying? Sometimes stuff we learn from is boring, sure, but there are endless things to learn. You’ll also learn more if you’re enjoying the topic.
Enjoy what you enjoy—life’s too short and there are too many other books out there to waste time on what you don’t enjoy! I have no qualms about not finishing a book, no matter how far along I’ve gotten. I’ve been known to skip to the last chapter or last few pages just to see how it ends, then move on.
On the other hand, for books that you have to read (for school, e.g.) set a goal of X pages per day, and reward yourself when you make the goal. I also find it helps to read more interactively: take notes, argue with the author, think about what you read and whether it’s total b.s. or whether there was anything, however small, of value in it.
I don’t.
I’ve even read philosophical works that go against what I think and feel and spend the entire time arguing with someone who has probably been dead for hundreds of years.
But I enjoy that from time to time to keep my mind sharp.
No point in reading something that doesn’t grab you and resonate with you. Life is too short to put myself through that.
I don’t. When I’m clearly not enjoying a book and don’t feel like finishing it, I stop and move on. Unless I have a pressing reason, I see no point in pushing myself to do something I hate. Reading is for me is fun and interesting, it is not something I do to torture myself. Sometimes it’s hard to “give up” on a book, but in the end life is too short.
Do what you enjoy the way that works for you, there are no rules.
Not every book will be enjoyed by every reader. I DNF once I realize the book is just not my cup of tea. I just checked and of the 15 books I started this year, I dropped 4 at some point. Sometimes I hate-read a book. That happens when I find the book annoying, but it still has something to keep me going on. I am enjoying it to some degree, while also being angry at it.
In any case, if reading the book feels like a drag, close it and open another book. Maybe you abandon the book forever, maybe you pick it up a year from now and plow through it. Both are fine.
I don’t. There are so many books, if I’m not into it I drop it. If I know it should be good I am more likely to stick with it or pick it back up later. Neal Stephenson’s Quicksilver took me two false starts over five years to finally reach a place where I could see it through.
I have a hard time making time for reading, so I want that time to count. I don’t let myself get caught up in a sunk cost fallacy and will just move onto another book.
I don’t. There way to many books that I want to read and oh so little time.
If it doesn’t grab you and you are truly not enjoying it, just DNF the book and move on.
If that doesn’t work for you, you could try to make a “goal”. Like “read 60-70 pages before DNF”.
I don’t. DNF that bitch and move on!
I usually just stop reading it. My problem is with books I’m liking, but not vibing with at the moment. I used to keep going, but realized that by doing this I’d give it “bad review” because I wasn’t feeling it at the time. Now I just put it aside and come back later. Even if many months or years later
I skip to the last chapter, and if I don’t understand it, keep skipping back until I do. Or just put it down for a couple of weeks.
