Do you finish your okay books? And please help me find what I like to read

[Rebecca]

At what point do you decide a book is not worth finishing? It normally only takes me a day to read a 300 page book. I have been trying for 3 weeks to read Caraval. I am 155 pages in in and trying the decide if I am too far committed or if I just give up. I don’t hate the book, I just find it really forgettable. I pick it up and read a few pages but then I just don’t care enough to keep reading! It is really slowing down my reading goal for the year.

I am twelve months past my PhD submission and have recently come out of the “midlife crisis” where I have no idea who I am without my project. I don’t have friends or hobbies. Other than reading I am not sure I ever actually had hobbies (or friends TBH). It has taken almost the whole twelve months to even begin to be ready to read for fun. I pretty much didn’t read anything other than academic literature between 2017 and 2023. I would always feel guilty for picking up a book because if I had time to read for fun, then I had time to read for my thesis. Now that I am ready, I have discovered that pre and post PhD me, DO NOT like the same things. Booktok emerged somewhere in the middle of my PhD and the ones I have picked up from there have been enjoyable but obviously I missed a lot of books and would love your advice on what books are absolutely essential reads!

What books could you not put down? Have read multiple times? keep thinking about after you finished?

If you got this far in my long post then thanks in advance for your suggestions :)

[ᯓ★raquel]

Wow, Caraval for me was a life-changer. I suggest you read other fantasy books, or maybe the genre is not your cup of tea; try taking your taste in films to the books you pick. I don't know what else you can try besides reading every existing genre and sticking to the ones you like the most

[faye]

i’ve started to just stop reading books when i start to not enjoy them and it has changed my life!! my advice is don’t make yourself read anything you’re struggling with, for me it sucks the joy out of reading and then once i had finished the book i wouldn’t really be looking forward to read anything else. sometimes it can just be your mood too, like i’ve had books i could not get through my first try, then come back to them months later only to fall in love with them!

for books i could not put down, i would recommend six of crows (if you haven’t already read it) or anything else by leigh bardugo if you like fantasy. otherwise i loved if we were villains and the secret history for a more dark academia vibe. what types of books do you normally go for?

[Jessica]

Yes, unfortunately. my most recent read that I was thinking of DNF-ing was Book Lovers by Emily Henry at 37%! but I still went through with it (thus the very bad headache I currently have) the only time in my life I DNF a book was Anne Rice's The Witching Hour. it was about 1000+ pages! (I guess, I'm exaggerating). I decided to drop it coz I got lost haha.

[liv !!]

i only stop reading if i haven't picked it up in a while, even if it's a good book

[Melissa]

I wish I could stop reading the books I dont like. If I notice at the beginning that it's not mine, I try to give the book a chance, but usually I know after 150 pages at the latest whether it's mine or not. But then I can't stop, I always have to finish the books. No idea why, because it takes up a lot of time that could be spent with good books.

[alicia]

I'm exactly like you guys, I always feel that I have to finish what I started you know. But I have realized that it's not worth it. If I don't like a book I should not finish it and it's like a new year's resolution I have to myself (:

[Yamini]

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[Jeremy]

I second Zip's recommendation (Six of Crows). It might take a few chapters to get into, but it'll be worth it. It has a sequel (Crooked Kingdom). I've read them twice. I also recommend Mort by Terry Pratchett.

Ask yourself, "Why am I reading?" It's for entertainment, right? Well, if a book's not entertaining you, then it's fine to stop reading it. Give it a decent chance, of course, but your brain will tell you when to stop. I DNF'd 2 books in a row before my current one, and I don't regret those decisions. There are lots of other good books out there!

[angeline]

if I'm really bored, I might skip through them. However, generally, when I'm not enjoying a book I DNF it