What's the appropriate amount of time to spend reading a book that you already don't like ? How many pages are enough to have given it a fair shake ?
I really hate abandoning books in the middle - especially books that have won bunches of awards - but I'm working on one right now that just seems to get dumber and dumber by the page. And I find myself seeking out reviews of it to see if anyone else felt the same way. So far, no - everyone loved it. Which makes me think SF readers are stupid - cause it can't be me....
I have no problem with abandoning a book in the middle — even if I’m liking the book I may put it down in the middle and do something else for a while, on the theory that when i come back to it I will like it better — if people I respect like a book and it is not clicking for me, just letting it gestate for a while often makes it work better. And then if I end up not getting back to it, well, no particular harm done.
hmm. never tried that.
eg. — and Blindness is one of my very favorite books.
I’m wondering what book this is.
Just skip to the end, read the last two pages and write a scathing review.
Is it Dune? It’s Dune isn’t it… man, I’ve tried reading it three times but find it a total yawnfest.
I have just discovered iBooks and have downloaded a bunch of free classics – currently reading Bram Stoker’s Dracula and can’t believe I’ve never given it a go before, because it’s fantastic.
no, not Dune :) it’s a new book.
i think i’m gonna have to put it down for a while (pause to hum a few bars of Zep’s “I Can’t Quit You Babe”). everybody on the web seems to love this book, and nobody even mentions the things that make me roll my eyes at it.
ah… what the hell: it’s “The Windup Girl“
Hey, I’m in the middle of it now! We’re talking genehacking & White Shirts, dontcha know.
But I’m not going to be able to read it all in one fell swoop. Alternating between it and a book on Darwin.
Hey, I’m in the middle of it now!
yipe :)
i’ll say no more!
I used to be this way, having to slug through the book no matter what. But as I get older and have kids and less time, I figure my reading time is precious so I try not to waste it on things I am just not into.
And it does help to put it down, leave the bookmark in it, and come back later. I read Stephenson’s Baroque Cycle this way. Took me two years but I got it down (I love his writing but I got seriously bogged down in that second book, which I have a signed copy of BTW).
If it’ll make you feel better, I’ve encountered some negative opinions of it on the Internet. Among others, someone who’s contributed to tor.com was less than thrilled with it (I’m too lazy to Google). I’ve avoided it because although I’ve enjoyed some of PB’s short fiction, I’m not convinced that I could take a whole novelfull of his style, and the description makes me go “This guy had a checklist.” If I’m going back to ___punk, I’ll pick up Cherie Priest’s latest instead.