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I've been talking to readers for a long time now about their reading lives, and how they get more meaning and enjoyment out of the books they choose to read. Would you like to know the no. 1 piece of advice I can offer on how you can improve your own reading life, based on those thousands of conversations?
It's this: You don't have to finish every book you start.
For a long time, I thought the question of abandoner vs finisher was one of personality: some people are finishers by nature; others find it easier to abandon books that aren't working for them. I used to believe the answer was value-neutral, but I don't think that anymore, because that's not what my experience--including those I picked up in conversations with library users--shows.
Instead, I've seen how readers who are willing to set aside books that aren't working for them are more satisfied with their reading lives. They're happier with what they read, and they read more books overall.
I personally struggle with putting down books that don't work for me. I want to see it through and have the full picture of what the author is conveying. My wife is a voracious reader (and audiobook listener) so I try to keep up with her pace. It all depends on where my "reading life" is at.
I'm currently reading the Robin Lockwood series by Phillip Margolin (just started book 3.) I'm really enjoying them and am going through one book a week. Before this, I was jumping through books and couldn't settle on any given one. I would start a dense history book, only to get 100 pages in and decide not to finish it. Next, I tried a book on birds and flight patterns, with the same result. Finally, I tried reading the novel Fire and blood by George R.R. Martin, but it read more like an encyclopedia. It turned out that at this given time in my life, I am just doing well with legal thrillers based in Oregon.
There are good and bad reasons to not finish a book; here are a few good ones to not persist in reading a book you suspect you would be better off abandoning:
• You don't get that time back. When you spend your time reading books that aren't worth it, you do so at the expense of all the other books you could be reading.
• Reading becomes drudgery. When you're in the middle of a book you're not finding worthwhile, you don't look forward to reading time. (This can be disastrous for young readers.)
• Your reading life grinds to a halt. Worst case scenario: when you're reading a book you don't enjoy, you don't want to keep reading ... so you don't read at all.
Saying "no" to a book doesn't mean "no" forever, but maybe "just for now."
Book of the week!
If you are going to read one book, give this one a try...
Divine Rivals (Letters of Enchantment #1) by Rebecca Ross
(Young adult fiction: fantasy, romance, magic, war & military) ~ 368 pages
In a nutshell: A war between gods plays havoc with mortals and their everyday lives.
In a time of typewriters and steam engines, Iris Winnow awaits word from her older brother, who has enlisted on the side of Enva the Skyward goddess. Alcohol abuse led to her mother losing her job, and Iris has dropped out of school and found work utilizing her writing skills at the Oath Gazette. Hiding the stress of her home issues behind a brave face, Iris competes for valuable assignments that may one day earn her the coveted columnist position. Her rival for the job is handsome and wealthy Roman Kitt, whose prose entrances her so much she avoids reading his articles. At home, she writes cathartic letters to her brother, never posting them but instead placing them in her wardrobe, where they vanish overnight. One day Iris receives a reply, which, along with other events, pushes her to make dramatic life decisions. Magic plays a quiet role in this story, and readers may for a time forget there is anything supernatural going on. This is more of a wartime tale of broken families, inspired youths and higher powers using people as pawns. It flirts with clichéd tropes but also takes some startling turns.
Bottom line: Ideal for readers seeking perspectives on war, with a heavy dash of romance and touch of fantasy. (teens ages 14-18).
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Vince Giordano has been the librarian and director of the Juniata County Library since 2015.