What makes you not finish a book?
Preface: NO, this is not about “not finishing” a manuscript, project, career, or life goal. Oh, that’s a great post for another day…
Since my computer has been hijacked by aliens, I figured it was time to write my monthly blog post! My website works at least while I wait to chat with my computer-savvy brother for his help with what is probably a minor issue.
Have I mentioned before my ineptitude with computers?
Computers + Jean = oil + water
But I digress.
Many readers are familiar with the term TBR pile. It’s our To Be Read pile of books hanging out on our desk, coffee table, or nightstand, in our car, or loaded in our e-reader or audiobook apps. TBR piles are fun! They’re good. We look forward to reading. I know it makes some of us fret, too. We look at them and feel, “Oh my gosh, I have so much to catch up on! I’ll never read them all.” But for some it’s a game of how many they can read in a week/month/year.
Now, on to the DNF pile, or the Did Not Finish pile, the lesser known sibling to TBR piles.
Oi. Did. Not. Finish.
It happens to us all. It’s the pile we don’t like to talk about. The one we push under the rug. Some of us see every dang book through to the painful ending, and do not enjoy it for whatever reason. We finish out of obligation, compulsion, hope, or something else…
Reading is subjective, after all. But some of us give up part way in. (btw, I am here to say THAT IS OKAY!) We might be disappointed with the story (for a whole slew of reasons), or with ourselves, perfectionist and conscientious to a fault. It could be the storyline or flawed plot, a trope, an ending, a character, a writing style, the point of view, grammar issues, overused clichés, words, the narrator if it’s an audiobook…there are a hundred reasons for us to not finish a book. We might want to throw it at a wall (yeah, I know you’re out there, book-throwers.)
Are you a power through and regret it later person?
Or…
Are you a, nope, gave it until x number/percent of pages, and said
Bye Bye Bye?
For me, it depends. If I promised to read it or got an ARC copy or signed up to review it, I will finish it. Always. If I’m reading for pure enjoyment, then I will give up by 20-35% if it’s not doing it for me, for whatever reason. Do I still review the book? If I finished, yes, but I focus on the positives and do my best to give an honest review and rating. If it is a DNF, then no. Never. Why? In my opinion, it’s not fair to the author or readers. If you read say the first chapter and hate it, how can you review the entire book? It might get better (or it might not). We all bring our own life experiences to a reading session. Sometimes it’s just not our cup of tea but may be for someone else. However, it could be a hopelessly flawed book, but how do we know unless we read the entire thing?
What prompted this blog post?
Well…I just gave up on a book about 35% of the way in. It was getting better, but also getting worse. (Yeah, figure that one out!). I just couldn’t anymore. It was a deeply tragic, sad, dark, twisted story. My heart was not able to keep going. Sometimes I need lighter. Sometimes I am cool with darker. Oh yeah, it was also a bestseller with a gazillion Amazon and Goodreads reviews, most of them glowing.
And when this happens, I go to the reviews and see if I’m not irrational with my thoughts (there is always somebody who feels the same), and yes, I read the spoilers because I DO want to know how it plays out. I was glad I made the decision to pull the plug on it.
Also recently on my DNF list: a book by a hugely successful bestselling author (I love her other books, but this one and I were just not hitting it off), and I tried a few different books by another bestselling author, and I just couldn’t get into them. I tried several! She came highly recommended, too. Is there something wrong with me? Why can’t I LOVE some of the “bestsellers”? Eh. Preference. My inner author critic. My own life experience. And it’s okay. There may be one plot point that hits a trigger so off to the DNF pile it goes.
What do you think about DNF piles?
Do you review the book anyway?
Do you regret the investment of time you put in?
Do you try another book by the same author? (I do. I like to give them another chance)
Do you tell everyone you know how much you hated the book?
Do you just toss the book aside, not stewing over the time lost, and move on to the next one in the TBR pile?