No seriously, why DO you need to finish that book? I’m definitely a firm believer of DNF (Do not finish). Have I always been like this? Absolutely not but I think it’s a mindset readers of all types could benefit from.
I think the varying opinions on not finishing a book come from one of two places:
- That the joy of reading for some people falls strictly in the completion of books – I don’t mean this in a negative way either. Picking up a book and being able to put it down having read all the pages, cover to cover, is a great feeling. I used to be this way and honestly it’s part of the reason I fell out of reading for a few year. Being a reader is more than just reading books, its about enjoying the content and most importantly learning when something just isn’t for you.
- “The Finish what you start” mindset, which is not to be confused with the accomplished feeling of completing a book. This mindset is kind of a self-guilt trip to finish something lent to you by someone whose feelings you don’t wish to hurt. This could also be to help justify something that you bought. Regardless, it’s a way to make yourself finish whatever you decided to start: love it or hate it. A very damaging way to go through life in my opinion.
Go Ahead and DNF
I’m going to put this bluntly: Why do you waste your time reading, looking, or doing things you don’t want to do? After all, life is short and should be filled with things that make you happy: books included.
This is only going to apply to people who read for fun. If you’re in school and getting an education of any form reading things you don’t find interesting is most likely going to happen (welcome to the world of academia). Generally speaking, reading should be fun. If you pick up a book thinking its going to be good and realize you hate it after fifteen pages, what’s stopping you from putting it down? Especially when the only person who wanted to read it was you. You don’t owe anyone and you aren’t going to get a prize for struggling your way through an unenjoyable book.
Instead of forcing yourself to read books you hate, I challenge you to respect your time and energy better. You read that right. You deserve to spend your time reading what you want, when you want. So give yourself slack when you set down a book knowing you aren’t coming back to it. You’ve tried and you’ve realized it’s not for you. There is nothing wrong with that. So go ahead and drop that book with stupid dialog (Yeah I’m talking about Where the Crawdads sing by Delia Owens) and lets hunt down a book on our TBR (to be read) we actually want to read.
DNF Vs Coming Back
For a mood reader like myself, I think there’s a definitive difference between a DNF pile and a “coming back to it” pile. Take right now for example, I’m currently reading three different books. A classic, a nonfiction and a historical fiction. All so different but I only read them when I’m in the mood. I love Dracula but I’ve been reading it on and off for a month whereas I just started The Stationery Shop today.
To me a coming back stack is something I’m reading concurrently. It’s especially dependent on my reading moods. Whereas the DNF stack is something I’m never planning on picking up again. That stack is separate from the rest of my books and getting ready for donation! For me there is no cross contamination of books in either stack but that isn’t to say it won’t be that way for you. Changing your mind about reading can go both ways. You might start something and decide to DNF and then later decide to try it again. I’d rather just leave room for the vast majority of books I have on my list to read, even if that means finally getting to an ‘on trend’ book months later.
Side note: I also don’t follow book trends either. Sometimes being a reader is knowing your limitations, whether that be monetary or mood. It isn’t always the right time for me to read something and I acknowledge.
Some ambiguity between your stacks isn’t a problem if you remember why you put down a book. Work whatever system works for you. Still drop that book if it doesn’t make you happy though. We don’t have time to waste on ‘bad’ books.
bad is subjective, just because you didn’t like something doesn’t mean it won’t be good to someone else.
Overall
Deciding to DNF a book is like a form of self-care. It frees up your energy and your time for things that actually make you happy, like a different book. DNF’ing books makes you be real with yourself. You start to take note of what genre’s you dislike and can steer-clear of or enter with caution. This method also helps avoid book burnout!
There’s nothing wrong with trying something new and realizing it isn’t for you! Shelf that book and lets move on to more exciting pages.
