What's Your Commitment Point - when do you quit on a book?

[Stephen Christopher 1]

I've been reading a book (I won't name it) that was a Book of the Day months ago; it had a great review and sounded ok. But I'm just over halfway through it, and I'm struggling to complete it. I find the characters are one-dimensional, the storyline has drifted far away from the original plot, and I'm not enjoying it anymore.

But! As I'm over halfway through, I feel obligated to finish it, as I've come this far, so it would be a shame to give up now. I'm not reading it to review it; it's purely for reading pleasure(?). Should I keep going?

How about you? At what point do you keep reading, or when do you decide (if ever) to quit on the book?

[Moddesser Elahi]

Most likely I would have quit reading the book by now!

[Stephen Christopher 1]

Most likely I would have quit reading the book by now!

I think I'm going to have to lol, I want to move on to better ones

[Moddesser Elahi]

[MesfnKalu]

Most likely I would have quit reading the book by now!

[Kaylyn_Marie]

If the book hasn't captured my attention or sparked my interest by about 100 pages, I will give up.

I used to be that reader that would NEVER DNF a book, but now that I'm grown I simply don't have time for nonsense or to read things that don't interest me. Depending on the size of the book I may wait until about the halfway point to give up.

[Angie Fernandez]

I usually give the book a few chapters, and if my interest has not been piqued by then . . . adios! My time is too precious to spend trying to drum up enthusiasm for something that is clearly not for me.

[Stephen Christopher 1]

So, in the end, I stopped reading and moved it to my 2-star shelf! Time to move on to more exciting reading

[devtastic]

I always feel guilty if I see rave reviews over a particular book- especially if it's someone I personally know that won't stop gushing- and so I try to pick the book up and I just...can't. "They" made it sound so compelling I feel like I am missing something or am just waiting for the "good" part that will hook me in. My general rule of thumb is after the first few chapters I am not compelled to keep going I put it down and move on. No guilt allowed, just different strokes for different folks!

[Seetha E]

Interesting subject/plot/information, steady or good pace, not unnecessarily complicated, simple language, a good take away are the few things generally every reader expects from a book.
If I don't find at least 2 of the above, I would stop.

[Stephen Christopher 1]

I always feel guilty if I see rave reviews over a particular book- especially if it's someone I personally know that won't stop gushing- and so I try to pick the book up and I just...can't. "They" made it sound so compelling I feel like I am missing something or am just waiting for the "good" part that will hook me in. My general rule of thumb is after the first few chapters I am not compelled to keep going I put it down and move on. No guilt allowed, just different strokes for different folks!

I totally agree with you. I think, for me, in the end, it comes down to genre. I'm more of a crime/sci/fi/action than a romance reader. So if you love a romance novel and give it 5 stars, it's probably not one I'd enjoy, but for different reasons.

[Stephen Christopher 1]

Interesting subject/plot/information, steady or good pace, not unnecessarily complicated, simple language, a good take away are the few things generally every reader expects from a book.
If I don't find at least 2 of the above, I would stop.

that's actually really smart to have a checklist like that. The book that I ultimately quit on didn't tick any of those boxes hehe.

[Seetha E]

Interesting subject/plot/information, steady or good pace, not unnecessarily complicated, simple language, a good take away are the few things generally every reader expects from a book.
If I don't find at least 2 of the above, I would stop.

that's actually really smart to have a checklist like that. The book that I ultimately quit on didn't tick any of those boxes hehe.

What is the tipping point for you, when would you stop flipping the pages? I recently read a book (won't name the book). I had to look up the dictionary too often but the subject was interesting, so I finished it. It was a shame that such an interesting and pertinent subject may get dismissed just because of the sophisticated vocabulary.

[The Keeper Jr]

I would stop reading if the book doesn't capture my interest by the first few pages or chapters ( same as Kaylyn ). Sometimes I end up with some book expecting to be fun and interesting but then it turns out to be the opposite, so I can't continue reading that. It feels really tiring to keep on reading something that isn't of my interest.

[Stephen Christopher 1]

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What is the tipping point for you, when would you stop flipping the pages? I recently read a book (won't name the book). I had to look up the dictionary too often but the subject was interesting, so I finished it. It was a shame that such an interesting and pertinent subject may get dismissed just because of the sophisticated vocabulary.

In this case, it was the plot. The book took off in a totally unexpected direction, but it was a topic that was very difficult to read about, and it made me almost feel ill. That was the end for me. I read to enjoy, not to be made sick hehe.