According to some estimates, new books are published on Amazon at a rate of 14,000 per day. Last year I read 144 books, which is an average of one every 2.5 days. This means that while I’m reading one novel, 35,000 new ones appear.
I have a huge TBR stack. I currently have 158 books on my public library “For Later” shelf, over 600 on my Kindle (they were free; I’m an e-book hoarder), and about fourteen unread paperbacks on my shelf. This translates to over five years worth of books pending, and that’s not counting all the new releases coming out (for example, Charlie in Progress by Rachel Del Grosso, and Stages by Jen Sinclair).
If you are like me and you lament the fact that there are an unlimited number of books, but a limited amount of time to read them, I have a radical proposition for you: If a book doesn’t grab you within the first few chapters, quit reading it.
I didn’t used to believe that was an option. I finished every book I started, whether I was enjoying it or not. I felt an obligation, maybe to myself, maybe to the author, maybe to the mentality imprinted on me as a young child whose parents insisted winners never quit. Quitting is failure, and I don’t like failing.
The realization that I don’t have to finish a book hit me when I was reading something a friend gave me. It went from “wow, this is a slightly odd book with an unreliable narrator” in Part 1 to “OMG that was a hallucination and this is nothing but graphic torture porn” in Part 2. I couldn’t force myself to continue. And I realized I didn’t feel guilty about it. I wasn’t enjoying that book, so I put it down, and picked up something else, and the world didn’t end. The author didn’t show up at my door to yell at me, nobody shamed me for it, and I didn’t continue wasting my precious time on something that made my skin crawl.
Since then, I’ve quit a lot of books. I kept track last year, and I DNFed twenty-one books. The reasons vary. If the dialogue in the first couple of chapters is stiff and painful and full of as-you-know-Bobs, I quit. If I hate a character, I’m not wasting any time on them. If the writing style is childish, if the author uses too many repeats of the same word (every character huffs out a breath once per page? The MC chews her lip so much I’m surprised she hasn’t eaten it?), I’m out. I’m done. I’m setting myself free.
Reading is meant to be enjoyable. It’s supposed to be fun. If it isn’t fun, and if you aren’t getting something out of it, stop. Read something else. Not finishing a book is self-care. It is a sign that you know and trust what you need, and what you need isn’t in those pages.
This is your permission: You can quit. You can close the cover, or shut off your kindle, or silence your audiobook, and choose something else. Life is too short to suffer through bad books.
Our Recommendations
In each post, we bring you a list of book recommendations we love. This time, our theme is simple: to help you avoid books you’ll end up DNFing, we’re sharing (Some of) Our Favorite Books.
Rachel Del Grosso: Writers & Lovers by Lily King — This book is by far one of my favorite books. I read it yearly.
Sara LaFontain: The Husbands by Holly Gramazio is one of my absolute favorite books, one that I pick up to re-read when I’m in a slump. It’s fun, it’s full of dry British humor, and it gets rid of annoying men in a non-violent way.
Jen Sinclair: The Whispers by Ashley Audrain is one of my favorites from the last couple years. It’s twisty, fast-paced, and just downright good.
Rachel Stone: I adored every second of Carrie Soto Is Back by Taylor Jenkins Reid, a father-daughter story wrapped in a comeback story, filled with hope and triumph. My favourite TJR book yet.
Catherine Matthews: The Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood by Rebecca Wells. This book has been embedded in my heart for decades. Funny, heartbreaking, healing.
Julie Brown: I just finished The Griffin Sisters’ Greatest Hits, by Jennifer Weiner. It tells the story of two wildly different sisters who become a singing sensation in early 2000s. But their wild ride doesn’t last long. When tragedy strikes, their band falls apart as does their relationship. Years later, they are forced to reunite by their daughter/niece. Weiner expertly weaves different POVs and timelines that read seamlessly. I love sister stories, and this one is at the top of my list!
Kathryn Dodson: Call of the Camino by Suzanne Redfearn is a dual timeline story of two women who travel the famed Camion de Santiago and learn about themselves along the way.
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Your Turn
Do you give yourself permission to DNF a book you don’t enjoy?
