I hardly ever abandon a book, but that's an improvement for me. I used NEVER to abandon one. Thanks for posting the article. I enjoyed it.

That was an interesting article and I read it through! I don't agree with throwing out a bad (to him) book. Someone else with different tastes might enjoy it. As to deducting one's age, good idea but I find that skipping the first chapter can work if the author hasn't hit the mark with me at first. Abandoning a book after nearly thirty pages could rob me of an interesting read!
Skipping a mystery to read the final chapters and discover the murderer is vital for me even if I was bored by the book. I would advise making sure that it is really the end of that story and not an opener for another book. I made that mistake once and was mystified by a whole lot of new characters!

Like annpan, I would not throw out a book; it might be enjoyable to someone else. But I have certainly abandoned books--Foucault's Pendulum comes to mind (three attempts at that one, to no avail). Reading for enjoyment should involve... enjoyment.

There are books I think are so bad that I would, and have, thrown them out. Not many, I'll admit. Most of the ones I decided not to finish end up at the library. Either I borrowed it and returned it unfinished, or I owned it and donated it to the fund-raising sale.

Rosefolly

I have become adept at choosing books in such a way that I don't run into this dilemma, but every now and then I do come across a dud. I have a rule of thumb to deal with these situations: I give it 50-100 pages, depending on how many pages the book is. Another rule of thumb is that you can expect the story to have taken off after about 20% of the pages (which is about 50 pages in an average novel).

I don't, as a rule, throw out books I don't like. They still might have value for someone else, and since I donate most of my read books to a charity, that's where they go. However, I have twice come across books that were so terrible that they deserved the trash can. I actually finished both of them, one because I had made a commitment to finish it for a review, and the other because it was just one crappy cliché piled on top of another and I kept turning the pages in disbelief, looking for something to redeem it, but never found anything. The first was a library book, which went back there, but the other I gave to my pet parrots who had a fine time gnawing it to pieces. I simply didn't want to inflict it on anyone who might actually read it.

Third attempt at March this weekend. Unwittingly, I gave it 13 more pages than the 100 pages minus age in years rule of the article (I like that!). It's going in the library sale pile. But at least it is one book removed from the TBR shelf.

Netla, don't feed them to the parrots or they could become ex-parrots as in the Monty Python sketch!

I laughed very hard picturing the parrots shredding the book! I threw away a book once, a couple of years ago. It was a bestseller and got some great reviews but I could not believe how horrible it was - poorly written, gratuitous violence. I did not want to be responsible for anyone else reading that book. (No, it was not The DaVinci Code.)

I have no problem moving on from books that I'm not enjoying -- except when I'm having to read them for my book group. Sadly, this happens more than I would like. In fact, I'm struggling through one right now called: "The 19th Wife." I will try to finish so that I can add to the conversation, but it's not much fun.

This whole thread brings to mind that wonderful Dorothy Parker quote -- which has been mentioned here at RP many times:

"This is not a novel to be tossed aside lightly, It should be thrown with great force."

Very useful parrots! I like thinking about them at work on a truly bad book.

Sarah Canary, someone just recommended The 19th Wife to me and I was thinking of trying it. Was it really that bad? If so, I hope my book club doesn't decide to read it

Rosefolly

Rosefolly - I don't know if it's the book or me. It jumps back and forth from historical to present and from character to character. That's not usually a problem for me, but I'm finding this somewhat confusing and have to keep checking just exactly who is writing/talking. Also, in books with this format I generally prefer the historical story more. In this case, however, I'd prefer to just stay with the modern day story. That's just my opinion, though. Who knows, you might love it. Let me know if you do read it what you think.

Sarah Canary

pammyfay, I really enjoyed the article, thank you.
I do not feel quite so bad now at abandoning books quick smart if they do not grab me. I find it especially hard after finishing a really good read to find another that I will enjoy.
I have just gone thru a stage like this after finishing a David Malouf book, The Big World, after discarding quite a few books I have ended up reading acollection of his short stories. What next for me??

I like the quote in the article "you should treat books like TV channels!!"
I also liked the "take one hundred and then deduct your age".
I always pass my no reads on to my village library.

Thanks again pammyfay, I have done a printout of this article and will mail it to my off-line brother, he ius a senior read like myself!!

I just came across a quote in So Many Books, So Little Time by Sara Nelson that I thought was rather apt for this thread:

"Allowing yourself to stop reading a book-at page 25, 50, or even, less frequently, a few chapters from the end-is a rite of passage in a reader's life, the literary equivalent of a bar mitzvah or a communion, the moment at which you look at yourself and announce: Today I am an adult. I can make my own decisions."

Love it, Netla!

(How come I still suspect that when the check-in clerk at the library sees me put a book in the return bin, she can see the look on my face and KNOW I never got all the way through it?!)

I have always thought of books as tv channels of sorts, and I like that analogy. Very few are precious to me although unlike some, I read my favorite bits over and over.
If I don't initially like a book, I start heavily skimming and might make it to the end of I'm not turned off.

The only book I bought that I threw out was Kitchen Confidential, his description of the bride and her shenanigans disgusted me (along with many other things but not the food!) although I did read the whole book.

Thanks again Netla, a great article. I intend giving my local library girls a copy, I know that they would find it amusing.