tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4146073139129271180.post2523904981891495639..comments2024-02-02T19:40:16.372-08:00Comments on me and you and ellie: Half assed, half readsMe, You, or Elliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13159195620327366257noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4146073139129271180.post-66368520869163831662009-02-17T01:22:00.000-08:002009-02-17T01:22:00.000-08:00I used to feel guilty about unfinished books, and ...I used to feel guilty about unfinished books, and then I realized that life is too short to spend time reading a book that I'm not interested in.Kathi Dhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13380037164148416426noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4146073139129271180.post-228257847856415442009-02-16T06:51:00.000-08:002009-02-16T06:51:00.000-08:00There are many things about getting old that are a...There are many things about getting old that are awful...I will spare you this morning. But there are many things about growing old that are great, and one of these is that given whatever time I have left, I am not going to spend it reading a book I don't enjoy after 75 pages.<BR/>So, as your mother Beth (and auntie to Jackie and Ellie), I give you all permission to quit on a book if it doesn't grab you. Life is short!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4146073139129271180.post-15939062634591336872009-02-14T08:02:00.000-08:002009-02-14T08:02:00.000-08:00How interesting, Jacqueline. I loved "A Heartbreak...How interesting, Jacqueline. I loved "A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius". It didn't win the Pulitzer, though -- it was a finalist for General Non-Fiction in 2001. But, more importantly, "The Book Thief" is one of my favorite books <I>ever.</I> Top 5. <BR/><BR/>And I really *do* think it's interesting, how a book can grab one person, and leave another cold. Keeps the world spinnin'...<BR/><BR/>xxxEllieMe, You, or Elliehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13159195620327366257noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4146073139129271180.post-22369973466049645962009-02-14T05:05:00.000-08:002009-02-14T05:05:00.000-08:00Hey - you should never, ever, ever "slog" through ...Hey - you should never, ever, ever "slog" through a book or feel guilty for not finishing one. Holy crap. The book has the responsibility of so engaging you as to make you want to finish it. It's not your responsiblity to finish reading a book just because it's been written. No wonder so many crappy, boring books continue to get published if people feel they "have" to read crappy, boring books. Sheesh. Read what you love, what makes you smile or think or feel good or whatever it is you go to a book for. Life's too short to force yourself to read stuff you have no interest in. My goodness....Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4146073139129271180.post-64475137744196422512009-02-13T21:41:00.000-08:002009-02-13T21:41:00.000-08:00I also hate it when I can't slog through a book. I...I also hate it when I can't slog through a book. I'm having that problem with The People of the Book, and although it's getting better and I look forward to finishing it, it never really grabbed hold of me. I was expecting to love it, Year of Wonders was one of my faves. <BR/><BR/>I did love Birth of Venus. I was riveted by The Way the Crow Flies, I wouldn't say that I loved it but it sure stuck with me (you read her first one, right) I can't remember Stones from the River... but it sounds familiar. <BR/><BR/>I've got a big stack on my nightstand too, I keep trying to start The Book Thief, which everyone loves but I keep setting aside. I was famously (in my own head, anyway) unable to finish A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius. That book drove me nuts. Pulitzer, my ass.<BR/><BR/>JacquieMe, You, or Elliehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13159195620327366257noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4146073139129271180.post-29971700365957139302009-02-13T17:25:00.000-08:002009-02-13T17:25:00.000-08:00Hi...How awesome! Thanks for sharing!Hi...<BR/>How awesome! Thanks for sharing!Femin Susanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06261731875448040555noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4146073139129271180.post-4738505845320026302009-02-13T13:49:00.000-08:002009-02-13T13:49:00.000-08:00Well, let's see. Yes on The Way the Crow Flies by ...Well, let's see. <BR/><BR/>Yes on The Way the Crow Flies by Ann Marie MacDonald, yes. <BR/><BR/>The Birth of Venus by Sarah Dunant, <I>definitely</I> yes. Great one. <BR/><BR/>Stones From the River by Ursula Hegi, yes, but I don't think I liked it as much as everyone else did.<BR/><BR/>The Fig Eater by Jody Shields, I read it but can't remember it. Sigh. Happens.<BR/><BR/>I don't <I>think</I> I've read the other ones. But you never really know....<BR/><BR/>I almost always finish a book. Or I do if I read more than the first few pages. I almost never put something down halfway through. Which is less about my moral code and more about my complusion.<BR/><BR/>But, man, I love the reading. I've been on a tear lately.<BR/><BR/>Happy Reading!<BR/><BR/>(Oh, and I read Brick Lane, too.)<BR/><BR/>EllieMe, You, or Elliehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13159195620327366257noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4146073139129271180.post-83713741418059211762009-02-13T08:12:00.000-08:002009-02-13T08:12:00.000-08:00I am one who feels no guilt about abandoning a boo...I am one who feels no guilt about abandoning a book. I give myself a three chapter minimum and if after that I don't really like it, I quit and never look back.<BR/><BR/>There are so many books on the earth that if we did nothing but read, we still wouldn't finish them. So, it's a waste of valuable reading time to put that time into a book that you don't like. <BR/><BR/>Also, in my (almost!) 40 years on the planet, I can say from my experience, I've never muddled past a book where I didn't like the first three chapters and then was suddenly overcome with the greatness of the book. Maybe it's happened to other people, but it's never happened to me. Every time I've forced myself to finish a book that I didn't really like, I've regretted the time I wasted because it never picked up and rewarded me, it just either continued to be bland, or went further downhill. <BR/><BR/>I do have a habit though, if I'm going to give up on a book, I flip through it and read random parts to see if maybe it improves somewhere, and I always, always, <B>always</B> read the last 1 or 2 chapters, because I've just gotta know how it ends.Ritahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06434151165867029916noreply@blogger.com