What Makes You Put Down a Book?

I abandoned fifty shades as too repetitive and not my taste.
I had long boring descriptions of places -but usually read a book to the end.
do try mysterious master by isabella rose

Azure wrote: "Sadly, we could all be reading books right now, rather than whining about the books we won't read over and over, ad naeuseum, if you don't like it, don't read it, as simple as that, why belabor the point..."

And why belabor the point about belaboring the point?

If i give up on a book, it's because it feels like torture when i try to get myself to finish it. But i've only given up on two, even though i thought about it with mire. I read Krak by Christian Jungersen and it was so heavy! I thought about giving up many times. But when i finished it, i got it! Why i was so heavy! It's one of the greatest books i've ever read.

Hello all, Thanks your comments.
I'd like to seize this chance to invite you to read the following books:

a. "TWENTY-FOUR SEVEN" - How to run the race of life. available at www.createspace.com/4209536
b. "KINGDOM SEEDLINGS" - A Collection of Poems for Children. available at www.createspace.com/4231410
c. "PLAYING GAMES WITH THE HI VIRUS" - A Collection of Poems on the HI Virus. available at www.createspace.com/4220450

Below is a sampler poem:

SWIMMING WITH THE HI VIRUS

Tempting blue-green waters
Take a dip
And fall back;

Tentative test for warmth
Contemplate a move
Meditate on response
Take a deep breath
Plunge into the waters
Get caught up
In the waves
Salty water in your eyes;
Ouch!

Devise escape strategies:

Try free-style
Give up after a while;
Try breast stroke
To death you may choke;
Try back stroke
To break free from unequal yoke;

Try butterfly
To stay high
Above the waters;
Try froggie
Trash and thrust
In a confused rhythm;
Try duckie
Paddle, waddle, and fumble;

Try to back pedal
From the death canal;
Alas!
No escape from the HI Virus.

Ride the waves crest
Get transported by the surf
Deposited on shore
Rejected and dejected.

So much water,
Yet unfit
Your thirst to quench;

Drink water
From your own well
And stay alive.


Feedback shall be appreciated.
Thank you.
Best regards.
Biodun.

Azure wrote: "Seriously, J? Get a life then and don't read all the comments either, which I stopped doing after 50... ..."

Obviously, you're still reading comments and commenting about people commenting.

gabiiescobar wrote: "I used to read every single book I started, until a teacher told me that "life is too short to read a bad book. Put it down, and move on." I never forced myself to finish a book after that."

Good idea ! I shall follow that rule and not feel guilty anymore ! :)

I used to always finish a book no matter what, but now I have a kindle I find it easier to move on to another book - I tell myself I will go back to it, but in reality I probably won't.

I always make it a point to read the entire book. Sometimes I do know by the 20th page or so, how the book might turn out, but I still finish reading it. I might keep the book aside for a little while and then pick it up again. This mostly happens with Classics. Though I form an impression about the book by the time I have read the first few pages, I wait till the last page to form a concrete judgement. I guess I am a little strange like that.

Rae wrote: "I always make it a point to read the entire book. Sometimes I do know by the 20th page or so, how the book might turn out, but I still finish reading it. I might keep the book aside for a little wh..."

I do that a lot, I will keep coming back to a book. The only real exceptions to that that rule have been my two attempts at reading Henry James. I gave up on
The Ambassadors and The Europeans after a couple of chapters each. Turgid.

Tim wrote: "Rae wrote: "I always make it a point to read the entire book. Sometimes I do know by the 20th page or so, how the book might turn out, but I still finish reading it. I might keep the book aside for..."

Oh I have not read those books, yet. I guess there is always one book out there that will force you to abandon it, huh?

i abandoned heart in atlantis by king coz i didnt have knowledge of 60s beside i am not english man and i fond it very slow pacing though i loved the characters.

Catherine wrote: "BTW, is there a way to abandon a book on Goodreads without having it appear as finished or currently reading?" I don't know of an official way but I've seen a few people creating 'abandoned' shelves.

oh am not talking in goodreads. In physical form ya see. Papers.

I gave up on Dragon Tattoo because of the tedious beginning. I later returned to it and didn't worry if I understood the first 50 or so pages. Gradually, the book caught my interest and the plot my understanding. I ended up enjoying the entire series. Pride and Prejudice is a classic I keep trying to enjoy and keep giving up on. It's so tedious and confusing to me. I'm not fond of Austen's writing style even tho I know she is considered a great writer by many literary types. I have also given up on books when they angered me due to the writers' prejudices, though this has happened far less often.

the thing that makes me abandon a book is too many pages of boorrring.How many is too many pages...about 20.

I read books I would rather abandon because as a writer I like to analyze what the author included or left out that made it a difficult read. If the book is obviously grossly unedited, I will not persevere. Writers, especially in this age of self publishing, much use the eyes of others to catch stuff. It is hard to continue if I don't like the characters, or care, or think they are insipid or border on stupidity. And once a book falls into my abandoned pile, I will not return unless someone I trust says the perseverance is worth it ... as in "The Art of Racing In The Rain." And I am glad I picked it up again and finished it. Foreign places, worlds, names and multiple characters throw my retention and if I am committed to the book, I have to make lists!

Marion,
Would love to have you take a look at my most recent novel, She Rides with Genghis Khan. You won't be disappointed!
Enjoy the Ride!
-- pam

Pam, I would so love to have the time to read your novel. I just finished reading one for a friend, and she appreciated my take on it. I wasn't sure I would be an asset to her, but she claims I helped a lot. She is a published author, Pam Beason, so it was a bit scary for me!

I am struggling with time issues and developing a writing discipline, plus learning to say no. Tomorrow I begin an on-line character class at Margie Lawson Writer's Academy. Usually on-line classes usually usurp quite a bit of time. In addition I am moving into a 'downtown' office 20 miles away, tomorrow. Gets me away from the household duties that call to one of my generation. I recently attended ECWC in Bellevue WA and have spent the time since then locking in the information I valued. Egad, social networking. I want to be prepared for marketing once I am ready to publish. If I don't review and try the things I learned they don't stay with me.

What is your time schedule? Is your book already published? If so, and my reading it is not urgent, I will put it on my to be read list.

Thanks for the contact.

Kate wrote: "It takes an awful lot to make me put a book down; I am a compulsive plate-cleaner because I have to find out WHAT HAPPENS. At a minimum, I trust the author to have a good sense of Story, even if he..."

I abandoned A Time to Kill and Wicked. I really disliked them. A lot.

I thought that 'Wicked' was SO boring!

April wrote: "I've will stick out just about every book I start, even if it becomes a chore. Sometimes I'll put it down and go back to it, some times I push to finish it on the first go. So far there has only be..."

I used to as well - but Needful Things by Stephen King broke me of that. A book like that usually takes me 1-2 days to read, but it took me 3 1/2 weeks. I finished, but it was then I realized that I did not have to finish a book just because I happened to pick it up.

I rarely abandon books, I only do if they are so bad that I can't bear to waste my time on them. and even then, sometimes.

When I was younger I never did that..now I'm older and pickier.

Now I stop reading if the writer is to naive, inconsistent, ignorant, events and actions are consistently not plausible.

If it is lacking in knowledge, humor and heart.

If the writer makes godlike uber characters.. then realizes it and starts downplaying them.

If it is boring or extremely harsh..

I have put down books very seldomly. When I have, it was because an author's treatment of women vs. men offended me (Bob Green's All Summer Long); the book became a job, not a pleasure, to read even after more than 100 pages (Pride and Prejudice, and yes, I know it's a great novel that many love.) or just turned me off (Zombie, which deals with cannibalism and is a well-done book, just not what I want to read now). I have started and stopped a book but returned to it later and thoroughly enjoyed it. Examples include: The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo and The End of Your Life Book Club.

Okay, life's too short to finish a bad book. Sure. Whatever. But Catch-22 is an incredible book. Why are so many people putting that one down?

Loved it! So informative :)

Why waste time on a book that you do not like? I have never been able to get the point of that. There are so many, many books from which to chose that it seems almost criminal to spend time with one I do not like.

Allen wrote: "Okay, life's too short to finish a bad book. Sure. Whatever. But Catch-22 is an incredible book. Why are so many people putting that one down?"

Because it isn't for everyone. Some people like vanilla while some people like chocolate

I found the comments interesting. I rarely abandon a book entirely, but I do skip ahead. I love John Grisham and have read most of his books,but with Sycamore Row it was so wordy and drawn out in the middle, I skipped ahead to the actual trial. The jury selection process in the novel was drawn out and tedious.

Nancy wrote: "I found the comments interesting. I rarely abandon a book entirely, but I do skip ahead. I love John Grisham and have read most of his books,but with Sycamore Row it was so wordy and drawn out in t..."

I think this was the first Grisham book I've ever had to work to finish. Usually I can't put his books down until the last page is read!

Linda wrote: "I'm having that problem with The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo right now. I'm on page 59 and am just forcing myself to keep on. It must get better at some point. I've read a lot of great books that..."

I had that problem with Dragon Tattoo. It eventually got much better - close to halfway through, but I think it was worth it. I really liked The Girl Who Played With Fire, but haven't been able to get into Hornet's Nest... I have the same problem with the Wallander books.

Jacki wrote: "I thought that 'Wicked' was SO boring!"

It's better than the sequel, "Son of a Witch".

I cannot imagine how so many people will finish a bad book. I can understand the plate cleaners not wanting to waste, but abandoning a bad book is eliminating a huge waste of time.

I abandon about 1/10 of the books that I start and that is a lot of books because I typically have 5-10 going at any given moment.

I almost never abandon a book after 50 pages. By then I know whether I want to finish it or not.

The only of the 5 above that I ever started was Wicked, because the play was awesome. And I tried to get into the book, probably made it to about page 80, but agree with the graphic. It is not the play and it was a huge let down.

For me, writing style can make a huge difference. Some books have a really great premise, well thought-out characters and a clever plot, only to have it all hopelessly bogged down with a ponderous voice. This strikes me as one of the saddest possible reasons to give up on a book; there was definitely something there but it just didn't come out.

I like the one reason for abandoning a book: "when the author is committed to doing something I hate" As much as I wanted to read The Book Thief, I couldn't deal with the author's little game.

Too long and too drawn out are good reasons to just flip through a book....to the ending..

Kim, Do you object to "I stole a kiss?" You missed a wonderful book by missing the whole point when you decided not to read "The Book Thief".

Norma, I objected to the interruptions of the 3rd party in the middle of every other paragraph. I know what the point was, I just detested the writing style. Sorry.

Kim wrote: "I like the one reason for abandoning a book: "when the author is committed to doing something I hate" As much as I wanted to read The Book Thief, I couldn't deal with the author's little game."
Yes, this was the reason why I uncharacteristically failed to complete a Goodreads review pool book.

I've abandoned Casual Vacancy, by JK Rowling, and it was not because it wasn't like HP. Actually, I started reading it because it wasn't like Harry Potter. I love HP, but I would love to read a book written by JK in wich I could see her pulling myself into a diverse universe. But that didn't happen this time.
I don't know, I believe the book has to be interesting because we're on the exact moment to read it.
Maybe it's not my time to read Casual Vacancy. But it will be there, waiting till I'm ready for it.

Kim, My bad. I misinterpreted your comment from the get-go. I thought you were making reference to the word "Theif" in the title. What can I say, except Duh?? Now that I finally woke up, I see your point exactly.

:) thanks

A book can be slow-moving as long as the characters interest me and I can deal with not so well-developed characters if the action is good, but I cannot handle plain old bad writing or editing. It also makes me downright angry to commit to a whole book, even if it's mediocre, and find out the ending sucks. (Allegiant)

I always stop reading after a couple chapters if the book is bad or really boring. There are so many good books out there I'd like to read, that I'd rather not waste time on the bad ones.

Kim wrote: "Norma, I objected to the interruptions of the 3rd party in the middle of every other paragraph. I know what the point was, I just detested the writing style. Sorry."

God, me too. I hate gimmicky stuff like that. But I forced myself to finish it and gave it 2 stars.

Camila wrote: "I've abandoned Casual Vacancy, by JK Rowling, and it was not because it wasn't like HP. Actually, I started reading it because it wasn't like Harry Potter. I love HP, but I would love to read a boo..."

This is why I created a category "Wrong Time" where I put titles I started reading, but couldn't get into at the time, but think I will like later.

I try to convince all of my students to complete at least 3 chapters before giving up on a book - it helps them get past the 'slow start' & 'hard to get into' complaints. A few will still quit, but more will continue on. HOWEVER, if they are reading for enjoyment and not enjoying after 3 chapters, it is time to try to find something that they WILL like!

Good idea for students. when I was in school (think 1938 if you can imagine that far back) finishing a book assignment was not an "option". It was read it, or else. But I had a mom who read to me every single day and bought books for my brother and I with every nickel she could pull together. As a result, we both learned to love reading better than almost anything else. So today, at past 80, I stick to my rule: if I don't like it after a couple of chapters, bye bye book, and on to another. I will never have time for all the good books out there. Maybe heaven is a well stocked library!

Norma--I like your thinking!!

Fortunately, so do I!