Is there a trick to convincing myself to read a book that I really dislike?
I'm about 100 pages into Watership Down and I *hate* it. The writing is flat, the plot is boring, and I'm struggling to picture anything that's going on. I read a few pages (slowly, with pauses between sentences because I *don't want to continue*) and then don't pick *any* books up for a week (I prefer to only read one book at a time), because I dread it so much.
I've only heard good things about this book and even saw people scolded for DNFing it. I know the gist of the story, with cults and the like, but I don't find that particularly interesting either.
Why did *you* like the book? How can I force myself to read it? Or should I ditch it and move on?
by Pagoda_Squid
34 Comments
Life’s too short to force yourself to read something you don’t like. Just because it’s highly regarded doesn’t mean it’s for everyone
Just DNF it honestly, life’s too short to torture yourself with books you hate
There’s plenty of other “classics” out there that might actually click with you – maybe you just don’t vibe with talking rabbits and that’s totally fine
No point in forcing yourself, classic or not.
Definitely ditch it.
>Is there a trick to convincing myself to read a book that I really dislike?
Why do you want to read something you dislike?
There are too many great books out there to force yourself to finish one you are not enjoying. Ditch it and move on.
Ditch it life too short and there’s too many books to read
Life is too short to struggle through a book you are not enjoying. I rarely don’t finish a book but lately I did not get through the first three pages of a very popular novel. Zero regrets of putting it back on the shelf to pick up something I did enjoy.
There’s a lot of “highly regarded” books I’ve not enjoyed and books with average / middling reviews that I’ve loved because it scratched the right itch.
Don’t force yourself to consume content you don’t enjoy.
Don’t force yourself to read books. I didn’t like Stephen king books and he’s considered one of the best writers. Sometimes things can be good but not be for you. The fact that I don’t listen to rap doesn’t mean that rap music is bad or that rappers don’t have more talent in their pinky than I have. It just means I don’t like rap.
I loved it!
If you don’t like it, put it down and pick up something else. It’s not going anywhere, and you’re not losing anything by reading something else.
I dnf a book immediately if I’m not vibing with it. If you really want you can avoid it for a while and try to pick it up again later but I would dnf it
Life too short to read a book that’s not doing it for you
Read what you enjoy. Not every book will pique the interest of every person and keep them engaged. That’s ok! That book isn’t for you. Pick another book and read it.
It’s not for you, move on.
i was around 40 (reading novel-sized books since i was 5-6) before i could DNF. i regret it took so long.
there are too many books. you’ll never read even close to all the ones you would have loved to read.
free yourself.
You can put the book down and walk away. Just because someone else liked something doesn’t mean that you have to like it as well.
This book is a great story but I found it such a pain to read. In my experience, it was worth pushing through and already carries a weird nostalgia. But my memories of it are better than my experience reading
You can totally ditch it and move on. There will be no Book Police coming to knock on your door, you know? It’s ok. I give you permission to not read it. A book about a group of displaced rabbits looking for a new place to settle in the ferocious British countryside is not for everyone.
I frickin LOVED Watership Down- it is one of the most formative books of my childhood. The worldbuilding, the characters, the challenges- just the plotlines. It’s not boring or flat, you’re just plain wrong there, but that’s ok too.
Eggs are highly regarded but if you don’t like eggs you don’t like eggs.
I just watched a Booktuber who hated Watership Down and she was not at all sorry lol Some comments agreed with her, so you are not the only one. I personally never read it and I don’t intend to for now.
Ditch it and move on – 100 pages is more than enough to show that this is not a book for you.
Finnegan’s Wake is highly-regarded. Yet to try and read it is a practice of masochism. Move on! We will respect you more if you stand by your decision and not let others browbeat you for not finishing a book.
I read it. Don’t bother
The trick to reading is to stop if you aren’t enjoying it.
Unless your job or school needs you to read this book, there is no reason as to why you should be forcing yourself to read something you dislike.
Like others have said, it’s an incredibly freeing experience to know it’s okay to DNF a book. Occasionally I do end up going back and finishing a book or series when that is the vibe I’m aiming for. But, zero guilt if I don’t. Wish I had figured it out before I was 40, but I got there.
Don’t force yourself to read it. Stop and pick up something you like. Then if you are interested, try again in a year or two. I have hated certain books. Gone back to them later and loved them.
This happens to me about half the time. Quit and is you just want to know the ending, Google “how does book title end”
Totally reasonable to ditch a book, even a classic, if you aren’t feeling it.
Watership Down is one of my favorite books of all time. I found it young off my Redwall obsession, but WD is definitely much more mature and realistic regarding animal behavior.
I like it partly because of the insights into rabbit behavior, but even while grounded in realism the rabbits also have their own language and mythology, which I found/find fascinating. The characters are also just wonderful, and the growth they experience through their successive trials literally brings me to tears every time I read it.
I’m listening to an audio version. I like it better than I thought. I’ve wondered if I would have liked the written version though.
I just DNF’d it last month. I felt the same as you, wondering what I was missing, but I think the author summed it up himself in his introduction. He says something along the lines of publishers did not want to pick it up because it was a story children would enjoy but written in a way only adults would comprehend.
That was me with the Goldfinch. I got up to about page 450 and realized i can’t do another 300+ pages of this. Too dense. I officially put it away last week and instantly felt excitement to read again when I started my other books
i despised this book when I had to read it in 8th grade and thought I’d give it a shot as an adult to see if it was any better with free will and a developed brain…and I still absolutely hated it.
don’t suffer through a book you hate! it’s not worth it.
I have a thing where I get fascinated by why I hate a book so much and find a bit of fun picking things apart in my head about what specifically I *don’t* like. I feel like I learn a bit about myself in the process.
Mileage may vary