Have you ever Do Not Finish (DNF) a book?

[Hajar Y,]

I had an interesting discussion with an old friend yesterday regarding to this topic. He mentioned that he could left a book unfinished without a flinch, which is something that is against my principle. Some might say that a reader shouldn't waste time on books that they couldn't enjoy. However, I personally think that there is joy in figuring out why certain book doesn't work for you as well; something that you can do justly after reading the content cover to cover.

So,
Do you set any criteria before DNF a book?
Does DNF a book make you feel guilty?
Do you plan to revisit the same book again in the future?

Let's discuss :D

[★ Belle The Bibliophile ★]

I do set few criterias before I DNF a book. I mostly read romance books so #1 turn off for me is cheating. If there's cheating in the book I'm reading then I'm immediately gone. And #2, amateurish writing. Huge turn off. #3, Immature hero/heroines.

Do I feel guilty for DNF'ing books? No way. I'd rather spend my time reading books I genuinely like than spend time reading something that I find horrid. There's so many amazing books out there for me to discover. Haha.

[Azbaqiyah]

I had one. And I left it till it get dusty. Reason is I'm trying to try something new by reading a different genre and it just happen and I abandon it. I still haven't read it until now.

I do feel guilty since we all know how much a prize for a book especially from overseas.

I need the courage to read it. ;p

[Shahirah]

I definitely have abandoned some reads, heck I even have a shelf "Abandoned" on my Goodreads haha.

I try very, very HARD to finish whatever book I'm currently reading, but will only deem a book DNF-worthy IF they meet the following criteria:

1. I have at least read 50 pages or more of the book, yet feel a sense of emptiness while reading
2. Allowing at least a period of 7-days to achieve #1 (otherwise I feel like I prefer reading something more grasping)
3. Read positive reviews and try to remember them as I return to the book
4. Even after the 50-page mark, I sometimes push for 100-pages, and if I'm not connecting to the book, I DNF it.

I do feel guilty if I DNF a book! It's like I failed to understand what the author wanted to present to me. But I also know, like humans, we can't like them all. Haha. I'm always ambitious in revisiting the book, but in reality I have MOVED ON.

P/S: sorry for the caps lock!

[Kamalia]

I don't really have criterias when it comes to DNF-ing a book, it mostly depends on whether i feel like wasting more time half-heartedly reading a book or not.

I do feel guilty, especially if it's a book everyone says is really good. An example of one i DNF is The Book Thief. It was just too slow that i never really got into it even when i read it halfway(over the span of 2 weeks though).

Most of the time no, i don't try to read the book again. But then again its quite rare for me to ditch a book so perhaps someday i still might :)

[Nur Raihan]

I agree with Kamalia (lol ok, that was awkward). I don't have any criterias on DNF-ing a book because I never really actually DNF any book. I did once, and now not anymore. I'd rather just read at a really slow pace rather than DNF-ing it (unless it really bores me to death then yes, I'm definitely dnf-ing that particular book!)

P/S: How many times do I have to write DNF? xD

[lisa]

ah, to DNF or not to DNF, that is the q.

i see your point, Shy, about figuring out what doesn't work for you in a book. that's why i rarely DNF books too (& by DNF here, i mean actually marking them as DNF on Goodreads), but the ones i did, it's usually books with writings i can't get into, stories that are too boring, and/or characters that grate on my nerves too many times. it's rare that i revisit them to try again, and i don't feel guilty about it.

however, i do more often than not abandon/put books on hold, especially during my reading slumps. i know in my heart that there's nothing specifically wrong with those books, but sometimes you just can't bring yourself to read. i've probably got 4? 5? books right now that i just...stopped reading, lol, but i'm gonna pick them up and restart soon hopefully.

anyway, sorry to hijack your post, Shy but i gotta raise another question just out of curiosity:

do you rate the books you DNF-ed? why/why not?

for me i usually don't rate them unless i've read them at least halfway, or it's really, really bad from the getgo.

[Suraya (thesuraya)]

ok reading most of you guys' comments, I suddenly feel bad because I DNF a LOT of books, Almost 90% of the books i DNF are the romance/new adult genre. Its my favorite genre of all but sometimes i cant stand a few thing which simultaneously leads me to DNF them. They have either

1) immature and annoying characters, which I really cant tolerate
2) stories which are too cliche/repetitive
3) writing styles thats either immature or isnt my cup of tea

basically the same as syuhadah, and on the on-hold part, im with kak lisa. there are some books that i know i would love given a perfect mood and timing, so if i find myself losing interest midst reading these kind of books, i'll put them on hold and reread them when the time comes.

i dont rate dnf books tho. Its a bit unfair to rate books without finishing them, dont u think ? like I don't even spare them some time to explain themselves so to judge them outright feels a bit wrong lol what analogy is this

[lisa]

Suraya wrote: "i dont rate dnf books tho. Its a bit unfair to rate books without finishing them, dont u think ? like I don't even spare them some time to explain themselves so to judge them outright feels a bit wrong lol what analogy is this "

lol i agree! it seems kind of unfair to rate them.

[Hajar Y,]

Thank you for responding, ladies. I really had fun reading your comments :D It goes to show how different one reader is to the other!

To date, I still haven't left any book unfinished (well, unless you count Fifty Shades of Grey. I tested the first chapter but I didn't feel like it's something I'd like to continue reading). This is the reason I prefer to read two or three books from different genres at one particular time. That way, I wouldn't feel forced to finish the slow book quickly, just so that I can move on to the other books that are more interesting. Certain stories can't be read in a rush, anyway, so such method has been working wonderfully for me thus far.
________________________

Syuhadah wrote: "I mostly read romance books so #1 turn off for me is cheating. If there's cheating in the book I'm reading then I'm immediately gone. And #2, amateurish writing. Huge turn off. #3, Immature hero/heroines."

When it comes to romance, my major pet peeve would be the love triangle. I try to avoid books with this element altogether, unless it comes highly recommended from those people whose judgement I trust.

Shahirah wrote: "I do feel guilty if I DNF a book!"

I would as well. Heck, I used to feel guilty abandoning series halfway, but I've finally gotten through that stage, haha. The "Series Graveyard" shelf was created just to group together those series that I'm not intended to see through to its final book.

Kamalia wrote: "An example of one i DNF is The Book Thief."

I'm quite surprise to hear that! Do you end up watching its adaptation?

Lisa wrote: "...however, i do more often than not abandon/put books on hold, especially during my reading slumps... do you rate the books you DNF-ed? why/why not?"

Ah, the dreaded Reading Slump Bug! I think inability to get through a book during this period is totally understandable. And to answer your question, I also think that it wouldn't be fair to rate unless you have a very strong reason as to why you dislike the book.

[Najwa]

okay tbh guys, I DNF a LOT of books. hahah

Well to me, the books I tend to abandon is when it is slow paced and I got bored reading it. ie; the scorch trials (idk when in the world imma finish the series) eventhough it is highly rated and how good the reviews are. but somehow like shahirah has said earlier, i tried so hard to keep in mind the positive feedback from other people about the book so that the interest in reading it could come back. but it's really really hard to do that when we ourselves cant get inside the book and feel something.

i do feel guilty when i DNF books because when i see the books up on the shelf it's like they are looking at you with puppy dog eyes, saying "how dare you for not finishing me" lol smth like that

but in the future, i guess when there is no other books in my tbr list(i really doubt that) maybe i can give my DNF books another shot :)

[AmeliaaXavier]

I never DNF books before in my life.. For me, that's just impolite and disrespectful. That's how it is for me and I don't mind if other have their own criteria or say to this..

But, I DNF 1 book because the title & description deceived me and I cannot stand the writing and the plot was literally everywhere. I don't think I'm gonna revisit it again tho

Actually, I tried very hard to push myself to finish a book because just like Shy said, maybe that certain book didn't work out for you but it's a joy to find out why. I also did not rate DNF books bc to me it's a bit unfair to rate it when you're not going to finish it.

[Shahirah]

Amelia wrote: "I never DNF books before in my life.. For me, that's just impolite and disrespectful. That's how it is for me and I don't mind if other have their own criteria or say to this..

But, I DNF 1 book because the title & description deceived me and I cannot stand the writing and the plot was literally everywhere"

Amelia your two sentences are contradicting haha. u say you've never done it before and yet you've DNF 1 book xD

[AmeliaaXavier]

Shahirah wrote: "Amelia wrote: "I never DNF books before in my life.. For me, that's just impolite and disrespectful. That's how it is for me and I don't mind if other have their own criteria or say to this..

But,..."

*oops, perhaps my words are kinda jumbled there. but seriously tho..

For 20 years of my life, I never done it until that 1 book I read last month bc it simply was awful.. it seems like a 13 y/0 girl who wrote it with a lot of sex and no world building and the plot was literally everywhere and I was actually kinda sad when I stop reading it bc the premise was interesting but I'm at the level when I cannot push myself to even continue reading it *sighs..

[nabilahwashere]

I can't force myself to finish a book I don't like so yes there have been times when I didn't complete a book but I always try to push myself a few more chapters before completely abandoning the book. Usually the reasons for me ditching a book are: writing style, characters, storyline (hardly this one because I usually choose my books based on the storyline so I already know what I'm getting myself into)

And its not the fact that I didn't finish it that would bother me or make me feel guilty if I abandoned a book, its more of the fact that I spent money to buy that specific book when I could've bought another wonderful book that I could have loved instead HAHA :p

[Shahirah]

Amelia wrote: "*oops, perhaps my words are kinda jumbled there. but seriously tho.."

Haha it's alright, you will eventually stumble across books that won't 'click' with you. It will make you frustrated to have wasted all that time, but it's all in the experience no?

[AmeliaaXavier]

Shahirah wrote: "Amelia wrote: "*oops, perhaps my words are kinda jumbled there. but seriously tho.."

Haha it's alright, you will eventually stumble across books that won't 'click' with you. It will make you frust..."

definitely.. maybe I've been avoiding certain books that doesn't have the appeal to me until this moment.. I'll be looking forward to discover more books that didn't work out for me just for the experience and discussion :)

[IzzyBreazy]

I did it a lot of time tho :(

I guess it's because I have a very short attention span and I only DNF a book when I read it and it no longer make sense to me haha

In my opinion, if the book could not preserve my excitedness throughout all the pages, I should not waste any more time reading it as I could read new books that might be more interesting :p

[Regina]

So far I've DNF-ed 8 books out of 147 books read (records on Goodreads), so I guess that number is considered low.

Here are some of the circumstances which I'll DNF a book:
1) Couldn't get me into the story in first 3 chapters.
2) Writing is dull and too descriptive.
3) Not motivated enough to continue reading it once I put it down.

Usually, I won't try to re-read a book which I abandoned due to any of the reasons stated above but with one exception - The Lord of the Rings. Even though I abandoned reading The Two Towers, I always wanted to re-read the trilogy. At least I must do it once in my life.

[Arfa]

To me, when i feel like it's draggy/slowing my reading pace, i'd automatically turn it down, and pick up another book. I mostly judge a book based on the rating on Goodreads, so if the rating goes the opposite as to what I have felt when i read it before i turned it down, i will most probably try to read it in the future.

i used to stop Abandon and left it for a month because i thought it was a draggy novel but when i picked it up again, i unexpectedly loved it! so, whenever i abandon a DNF book, i'll try to give it another chance :)

[Nur]

I DNF a couple of books a few years back. I went to BBW sale and bought a lot of books but I end up reading 1/2 books only.. Mostly the reason why I DNF some of my books is because
1) I'm having a reading slump. I hate this feeling so much. You know that feeling when you feel so lazy and make one thousand and one excuses not read that book. do you guys feel this way like I do?
2) it is because i have no more interest to continue the book. I'm this type of person who loves to buy book according to their covers cause some of the books have seriously beautiful cover but I'm glad I don't have that habit anymore cause its a waste of money and books heh