Friday Question #40: Do you finish every book you start?

Sometimes but not always I put aside sometimes

I used to finish every book I started, until I realized that it weighed down my reading life and kept me stuck in books I did not enjoy (and subsequently kept me from books I could be enjoying!). I believe in giving a book a fair chance, but once it starts to feel like assigned reading I “have to do” I DNF. I don’t have a set page number, but I do aim to read at least 1/4 or 1/3 of a book before giving up on it. I give audiobooks 1-2 hours.

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98% of the time, I do. I feel that if I have invested my time in the book, I should finish it. But there have been a few, that were so bad, that I couldn’t.

Same! If it feels like a school assignment, I’m out.

I can count on one hand how many books I DNF. I feel too committed once I start! But I have definitely thought about quitting multiple books. It just nags at me that once I quit it’s going to get good and be worth it, but usually that’s not the case.

No, I don’t always finish every book that I started but, I do want to finish all of the books that I have accidentally DNFed.

I definitely have a DNF shelf. BUT, I often come back to the shelf & finish books that I started but never finished & regularly finish some of them. There are also others that I probably won’t ever finish but I make sure to give every book a fair chance & read at least close to 100 pages.

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I always finish them just not always with my 2 day read time. Sometimes it is a month or two later because I have to read with the type of book it is with my mood.

I finish every book. I have to go clear to the end to decide if it was good. Sometimes the ending can completely change my feelings about the book!

No, I don’t finish every book I start. I do finish most, but if a book can’t hold my interest, I won’t force myself to finish it. One exception is if it was part of a series and I’ve read the other books.

I try to finish most books, but honestly? Life’s too short, and my book stack too large! Sometimes you just have to move on when a book isn’t holding your attention.

I seldom do not finish a book. Coincidently, though, I just shelved abook as COULD NOT FINISH a few days ago: THE UNBEARABLE LIGHTNESS OF BEING.

I try very hard to finish every book I start, unless I really can’t get into it

I try to for the most part cause I really hate not finishing things, I think there’s only been a couple books that were too paint to get through so I didn’t finish

I always intend to finish every book, but that honestly doesn’t happen.

Sometimes I think I’m going to love the book, but then some content comes up and I have to stop.

I used to feel compelled to finish every book I started. But then a very good friend of mine, a retired librarian, said that life was too short to read books I didn’t like. She suggested that I subtract my age from 100 and read that number of pages. If I don’t like it, then set it aside. The joy of being over 55 is setting books aside much sooner. I might, periodically, pick a DNF book back up for a second try. If I don’t make it past 100 pages on the second read, then it remains a DNF. (The only books I strive to complete are my book group reads.)
Another friend said she couldn’t use that formula because she was 93 years old and she’d never read anything. Sadly, she’s no longer with us, but I’ll always remember her saying that and smile.

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Since I get most of my books as review copies at NetGalley, I feel an obligation to finish each and every one. Most of the time it’s a pleasure; only once do I recall getting one so truly awful that I just couldn’t justify wasting the time.

Rarely do I not finish a book. I really try to finish a book but there have been 4 books this year (out of 102 that I’ve read) that I just couldn’t finish. I usually set the book aside and try to read it again but that usually doesn’t work.

I always finish a book good or bad. However, if I really cannot take it then I will DNF it. So far, only three :flushed:

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If I’m bored early on, I’ll put it aside and try it later. If I’m bored and am sure it’s not for me, I don’t bother with it again. Too many books, so little time.

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