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

ccy · October 28, 2020, 7:44am

No, not every book is worth my time. If I read the first three chapters and I’m not engaged, I’m putting it down.

queenofthrills72 · October 29, 2020, 10:27pm

I try to finish them even putting it down for awhile & then going back to it just to be sure it’s not my current mood or frame of mind. But if I still don’t feel it after that I won’t, have way too many waiting to force myself if I’m not enjoying one.

gene · November 2, 2020, 6:29pm

I agree sometimes I have other things to do so put the book down and get back to it when I have time .

book-owl · November 3, 2020, 10:55pm

I suffer through it. If it’s really really awful I will…50 Shades of Gray and Outlander. Ugh.

jade_nsuch · November 4, 2020, 6:42am

I try my best to finish every book I start; I feel like the author spent their time telling the story, I should give them the justice of reading it. However, if I’ve managed to choke down 100 pages and still feel nothing, I have to admit defeat and love along. I absolutely hate not finishing a book, but I hate wasting valuable reading time more.

gotbookcitement · November 5, 2020, 10:44pm

Pretty much. I feel like if I start a book, I have to see it through to the end. There are some books that I’ve stopped reading, but I don’t consider them DNF’s because I plan on coming back to them at a later time. I like to give a book every chance to impress me, which I don’t feel like I can if I DNF it.

kassymac · November 9, 2020, 8:18pm

If I am more than 50% done, I will finish it. My DNF books are in the double digits at the end of the year. If I do not like it, why bother reading anymore of it. So I rarely have a book that I rate under a 3 star review because if under that, I do not finish it!

gene · December 7, 2020, 9:22pm

Yes I try to if I can .

dcraskst · December 9, 2020, 3:19pm

I can only think of one time that I didn’t finish a book. It’s been so long, or the book was so bad, that I can’t even remember the title.

aprilbluetx · December 14, 2020, 6:34pm

I probably finish 90% of the books I start. Very rarely will I completely DNF a book unless I tried to read it at least twice and couldn’t do it.

britt0727 · December 21, 2020, 6:56pm

I definately intend to finish all the books I start, sometimes I get distracted so it will just take me a little longer than usual.

elizabeth_silver_s_r · December 25, 2020, 2:52am

I used to finish every book, but lately if I am not “hooked” by Page 100, I stop.

There are too many books out there to read and enjoy.

gene · December 28, 2020, 11:23am

I try to. If i,m not into the characters no .

allysteinke · January 10, 2021, 6:59pm

I’ve been trying a lot harder to finish all books that I start. Mostly because sometimes a book gets better the longer in you go, and sometimes you just don’t have the feel for the book a short ways in. Of course DNFing happens sometimes though!

saraweather · January 15, 2021, 11:51pm

I heavily DNF books because I do not think every book I start is worth finishing. I think in the long run it helps me since reading through books I do not like can cause me reading slumps.

thestonedmason · January 16, 2021, 1:13am

I have two requirements for not finishing a book. I put that book in my Goodreads dnf shelf so I can reconsider it later in life, I may see the book differently then…

It doesn’t require a review, I think if get a book for free, the least I can do is get the whole picture before leaving a review (good or bad) although I have broken this rule on a few occasions solely because the book(s) were just not working for me no matter how hard I tried
By page 100, if the book isn’t working for me, chances are it will never work so I usually ditch it

Not every book I start is a winner, I judge a lot of books by the cover and synopsis, which doesn’t always work out

annie_in_red · January 16, 2021, 3:37pm

Yes. I even finish the ones I don’t like because it might get better. There is one book, American Dirt by by Jeanine Cummins, that I tried to read twice. I plan on trying again I think I have a problem following along because I am bad at any foreign languages so my library audio book I didn’t understand. Then I tried ebook but I got lost on who was who and what the happen so I would probably have to take notes like I did for Barkskin by by Annie Proulx. Whatever I don’t finish I try to go back to.

kozo89 · January 17, 2021, 4:13am

I always finish. I can’t remember ever not finishing one, no matter what I thought about it.

gene · January 18, 2021, 6:53pm

I try too but sometimes I forget .

allysteinke · January 23, 2021, 5:40am

Ah I have to admit that I just recently DNFed a book…I hope that I may go back to it at some point, but for now I moved on. I was going through it so much slower than I usually read books and pushed myself all the way to about 150 pages, but finally let my sister convince me to give it up if I didn’t like it and not waste my time. I’m now onto another book, and I’m glad I listened to some sound advice. (For those wondering the book was The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle - yes I know this one is quite popular, but it just wasn’t a hit for me)