When to stop reading a book

Books are awesome. There are millions to choose from every time you feel the inclination to curl up under a blanket with a cup of coffee and read. However, not every book is a masterpiece, and not every book speaks clearly to each of its readers. One person may relate to every situation, while another person can’t even begin to understand where the author is coming from. We’ve all been there, wondering if it’s worth our time to continue reading a book that is so far out of our realm of experience, that it can’t even communicate simple ideas. Fear not, dear reader, for I am now here to help you! I’ve been in this situation many times, so here are my best tips for when it’s time to put down a book.

1. It’s just not holding your interest: Now I’m not saying this is where you can give up on books that begin slowly or take the time to set up plot points and develop characters. I believe you must wait at least until the halfway point to make the final judgment on your interest level. I’ve read quite a few books that start off horribly dry, only to discover a complete turnaround after trudging through a few chapters. Books sometimes don’t start very wildly, but that’s purely because they, like a lot of other things in life, need a little time and patience to develop. Waiting and understanding the decision to include seemingly pointless details will greatly increase your appreciation when those details are used to twist the plot later on.

2.  Someone else told you to read it and it’s not something you would’ve picked up on your own: This is slightly more complicated. I’ve been recommended dozens of books that I never would’ve dreamed of discovering on my own and seen them become favorites. However, if a book is recommended to you, or if you decide to read it purely to stay with popular trends, it’s best to examine what you want to get out of reading the book. Reading something just to say you’ve read it is fine, but if in the process the book repulses you or you can’t understand why someone else would read and recommend this, put it down. It’s far better to discover your own favorites and not base your reading decisions on the experiences of others.

3. It’s too far out of your comfort zone. Now, allow me to contradict myself: I’m a big believer that books should disturb us, change us and surprise us. Our goals in reading should be to discover the hidden parts of ourselves, not to reaffirm what we already know. Some books, while they’ve been downright uncomfortable to read, have really influenced how I think and some of my actions. One such book is “American Psycho” (1991) by Bret Easton Ellis. For anyone picking it up, my words of advice are these: Don’t read it while you eat, and don’t read this book around other people. It’s a horrifying story describing the psychopathic tendencies of a man working on Wall Street, and it took a lot of determination to finish it. Now I am always on the hunt for books that have the power to induce such strong emotions. In some -- but not all -- cases the reward of forcing yourself to step way outside of your comfort zone is worth it.

I’m quite picky and determined to finish a book, so I often wait until all three conditions apply before deciding to put down my book. It’s always disappointing when a book lets me down, but on the bright side, then I have time to read another one.