Too many books; too little time!
So I did something today that I normally never do... I returned a book to the library without actually reading it all. I used to not really understand it when people said they couldn't get into a book and never finished it. I certainly understand not being too interested in a book, but I always wanted to find out what happened at the end. I felt that if I got to a certain point, I might as well finish it and at least I could say I'd read it!
But now, the books are piling up on my nightstand and on my list of things to read, and frankly, there's just no time to trudge along through something I have zero interest in. I also noticed that when I'm reading something I don't really like, I feel like I have no time to read, but if I'm reading something absorbing (like Tourists - see yesterday's post), all of a sudden, I'm reading that over my breakfast cereal instead of the paper or propping it up on a couch cushion while feeding my daughter her bottle.
So, I think I'm going to adopt that 50-page rule that some have... if it's not interesting within 50 pages, forget it. How about yourself? Do you tend to like to finish a book or do you leave it if it's not interesting to you? Take our poll above and let us know your thoughts!
2 comments:
I understand completely! I used to feel guilty if I couldn't finish a book within a 'reasonable' amount of time, thinking that I was cheating myself out of learning something wonderful: a new/imagined land, great characters that I wished were real people I could meet, an experience foreign to me but that could teach me a thing or two about the human spirit, etc. But in the last few years, I've created a 50/50 rule. I'll try to get through half of the book (to "give it half a chance"), and if it doesn't grab me, I won't invest my time in reading the other half. I think it's enough of an opportunity to let the author convince me that I'll be the better person for finishing his or her great work. But hey, I won't read it forever if I can't get into it...
That sounds like a good rule - I like the "giving it half a chance" idea.
Post a Comment