What’s your book “nyet” factor?
Posted: under Reading.
Tags: boring books, good book/bad book
How long do you read into a book before deciding to give up on it? Or do you “suffer” all the way to the end? Don’t laugh – if Amazon reviews are any indication, there are tons of reviewers who force themselves to read those terrible books they give 0-1 stars to.
I ask because I recently picked up a new book at the library, a novel I’ve heard good things about. I’m barely 40 pages into it, and wonder at the wisdom of plunging in any further. Maybe I’m put off by the daunting size – almost 800 pages. Or maybe I’m used to the Hero’s Journey style of storywriting. This book has no gripping hook or invitation to the other world, and I haven’t related to the myriad characters introduced so far.
I once read you should use the following formula in determining how many pages you should read before giving up : 100 minus your age. I think that’s about right. There are too many good books out there that are more worthy of my time. Goodness knows, I have lists and lists of them, not to mention my TBR pile (currently outweighed by my discard pile.)
What is your book “nyet” factor?
Comments (1)
Sep 01 2009