Seriousness are you a finisher or a forsaker?

lumpynose · 04-10-2019, 11:07 PM

You can put people into two camps, those who finish a book that they've started and those who will put a book down if the book "doesn't work" for them.

Which are you? Can things change your usual behavior? For example, if your a forsaker are you less likely to put the book down if you bought it? Or if you're a finisher can a book be so truly awful that you can't finish it?

cromag · 04-11-2019, 12:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lumpynose

...Or if you're a finisher can a book be so truly awful that you can't finish it?

It's a pretty high (low?) bar, but there have been a few books that I set aside without finishing. The problems have to be severe, but there have been a few.

timebug · 04-11-2019, 04:42 AM

I read a couple of books per week; I generally give them around fifty pages or so, and if I am not entirely grabbed by those pages,I abandon the book without a backward glance! It's the equivalent of TV/Films,I give them ten to fifteen minutes.No interest,away they go!

library addict · 04-11-2019, 05:28 AM

I used to read every book I started.

But life is too short and my TBR mountain too high, so I stopped.

That said, if I am just not feeling a book at the moment I will set it aside to try again later. Often times I will enjoy it when I am a different reading mood.

But I feel no guilt over truly DNF-ing and deleting awful books even though I paid for them. I read for mostly entertainment and don't need to feel as if I'm doing homework just to finish a book.

Deskisamess · 04-11-2019, 08:42 AM

If I'm reading book that isn't catching my interest, I'll usually set it aside and try it again in a few months. I've tried to read A Spool of Blue Thread twice now, because I have an aversion to not finishing Anne Tyler.

If I stop reading a book because it is poorly written, or full of errors, I might jump to the last few pages to read the end. But some have been so bad, that I didn't care. The one that springs to mind is the one where a doctor in 1865 or so was giving antibiotic injections, and contained the worst dialog I've ever read.

Life is too short to slog through bad writing. (Or bad lighting, remembering Baba Wawa from SNL)

badgoodDeb · 04-11-2019, 03:36 PM

Years ago, I heard this formula: "100 minus your age = number of pages you ought to read, before deciding to Not Finish a book". I don't often abandon a book, but I have on a few of them. Some are "try again later" books, though sometimes "later" never gets here.

BetterRed · 04-11-2019, 06:51 PM

Normally I read 2-4 four books concurrently, so I finish most books - eventually. FX: I've been reading Judt's Postwar for more than a year.

Reading a single book from cover to cover to the exclusion of all others is a rarity for me. Unless it's a skinny book that I can read in a few hours.

BR

Tarana · 04-11-2019, 11:56 PM

If I paid for the book, I will likely finish it. I'm fairly selective of what I buy. I will often set it aside and pick it up later.

I don't hesitate to dump free books if they don't get my interest early on. They were free to get you interested in the author/series. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't.

HarryT · 04-12-2019, 01:51 AM

I finish every book I start reading.

DiapDealer · 04-12-2019, 11:30 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by badgoodDeb

Years ago, I heard this formula: "100 minus your age = number of pages you ought to read, before deciding to Not Finish a book".

I know a fairly spry centenarian who would never be able to start a book ever again if she used that formula!

I used to force myself to finish every book I started, but I'm not into self-inflicted punishment any more. It still takes quite a bit for me to abandon a book altogether, but I don't hesitate to do so if I'm just turning pages to get nearer to the end and getting nothing out of it.

ekbell · 04-12-2019, 11:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BetterRed

Normally I read 2-4 four books concurrently, so I finish most books - eventually. FX: I've been reading Judt's Postwar for more than a year.

Reading a single book from cover to cover to the exclusion of all others is a rarity for me. Unless it's a skinny book that I can read in a few hours.

BR

There's a book that I'm expecting to finish about 3 years from now.
But that's because I'm expecting it to take that long to move from the NeoBabylon empire to the end of the twentieth century given all the other books I've managed to accumulate.

Catlady · 04-13-2019, 11:41 AM

If I choose the book myself, I always finish it. If I commit myself to reading a book (e.g., book club selection), I force myself to finish it.

There are certain books that were assigned in high school or college that I abandoned and have periodically restarted and again abandoned (e.g., Anna Karenina), but they are the only exceptions.

pdurrant · 04-15-2019, 03:36 AM

I abandon really bad books. Maybe 2% of the books I read?

HarryT · 04-15-2019, 03:43 AM

The number of books I've read which started out poorly but finished well greatly outnumbers those which remained poor to the end, so I've no regrets about sticking with books. Often I think it just takes me a while to get used to a writer's style.

04-10-2019, 11:07 PM	#1
lumpynose Wizard Posts: 1,086 Karma: 6719822 Join Date: Jul 2012 Device: Palm Pilot M105	are you a finisher or a forsaker? You can put people into two camps, those who finish a book that they've started and those who will put a book down if the book "doesn't work" for them. Which are you? Can things change your usual behavior? For example, if your a forsaker are you less likely to put the book down if you bought it? Or if you're a finisher can a book be so truly awful that you can't finish it?

04-11-2019, 08:42 AM	#5
Deskisamess Wizard Posts: 2,609 Karma: 42697471 Join Date: Sep 2012 Location: Ohio Device: iPhone 7+, iPad mini, 2021 iPad Pro 12.9",Paperwhite 6.8"	If I'm reading book that isn't catching my interest, I'll usually set it aside and try it again in a few months. I've tried to read A Spool of Blue Thread twice now, because I have an aversion to not finishing Anne Tyler. If I stop reading a book because it is poorly written, or full of errors, I might jump to the last few pages to read the end. But some have been so bad, that I didn't care. The one that springs to mind is the one where a doctor in 1865 or so was giving antibiotic injections, and contained the worst dialog I've ever read. Life is too short to slog through bad writing. (Or bad lighting, remembering Baba Wawa from SNL) Last edited by Deskisamess; 04-11-2019 at 04:52 PM.

04-11-2019, 04:42 AM	#3
timebug Ancient Sage Posts: 14,585 Karma: 15493448 Join Date: Oct 2015 Location: Derby U.K. Device: Kobo Reader	I read a couple of books per week; I generally give them around fifty pages or so, and if I am not entirely grabbed by those pages,I abandon the book without a backward glance! It's the equivalent of TV/Films,I give them ten to fifteen minutes.No interest,away they go!

04-11-2019, 05:28 AM	#4
library addict Grand Sorcerer Posts: 12,883 Karma: 35535698 Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: USA Device: Nexus 7 2, Samsung Galaxy Tab A 8" (retired=Sony PRS650, Kobo Mini)	I used to read every book I started. But life is too short and my TBR mountain too high, so I stopped. That said, if I am just not feeling a book at the moment I will set it aside to try again later. Often times I will enjoy it when I am a different reading mood. But I feel no guilt over truly DNF-ing and deleting awful books even though I paid for them. I read for mostly entertainment and don't need to feel as if I'm doing homework just to finish a book.

04-11-2019, 03:36 PM	#6
badgoodDeb Grand Sorcerer Posts: 8,501 Karma: 64095689 Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Harrisburg outskirts Device: Palms, K1-4s, iPads, iPhones, KV, KO1	Years ago, I heard this formula: "100 minus your age = number of pages you ought to read, before deciding to Not Finish a book". I don't often abandon a book, but I have on a few of them. Some are "try again later" books, though sometimes "later" never gets here.

04-11-2019, 06:51 PM	#7
BetterRed null operator (he/him) Posts: 20,570 Karma: 26954694 Join Date: Mar 2012 Location: Sydney Australia Device: none	Normally I read 2-4 four books concurrently, so I finish most books - eventually. FX: I've been reading Judt's Postwar for more than a year. Reading a single book from cover to cover to the exclusion of all others is a rarity for me. Unless it's a skinny book that I can read in a few hours. BR

04-11-2019, 11:56 PM	#8
Tarana Wizard Posts: 3,980 Karma: 38840460 Join Date: Sep 2012 Location: Minneapolis Device: PWSE, Voyage, K3, HDX, KBasic 7 & 8, Nook Glo3, Echos, Nanos	If I paid for the book, I will likely finish it. I'm fairly selective of what I buy. I will often set it aside and pick it up later. I don't hesitate to dump free books if they don't get my interest early on. They were free to get you interested in the author/series. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't.

04-12-2019, 01:51 AM	#9
HarryT eBook Enthusiast Posts: 85,544 Karma: 93383043 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: UK Device: Kindle Oasis 2, iPad Pro 10.5", iPhone 6	I finish every book I start reading.

04-13-2019, 11:41 AM	#12
Catlady Grand Sorcerer Posts: 7,345 Karma: 52398889 Join Date: Oct 2010 Device: Kindle Fire, Kindle Paperwhite, AGPTek Bluetooth Clip	If I choose the book myself, I always finish it. If I commit myself to reading a book (e.g., book club selection), I force myself to finish it. There are certain books that were assigned in high school or college that I abandoned and have periodically restarted and again abandoned (e.g., Anna Karenina), but they are the only exceptions.

04-15-2019, 03:36 AM	#13
pdurrant The Grand Mouse 高貴的老鼠 Posts: 71,506 Karma: 306214458 Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Norfolk, England Device: Kindle Voyage	I abandon really bad books. Maybe 2% of the books I read?

04-15-2019, 03:43 AM	#14
HarryT eBook Enthusiast Posts: 85,544 Karma: 93383043 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: UK Device: Kindle Oasis 2, iPad Pro 10.5", iPhone 6	The number of books I've read which started out poorly but finished well greatly outnumbers those which remained poor to the end, so I've no regrets about sticking with books. Often I think it just takes me a while to get used to a writer's style.