How many books do you read in a year? And do you read them in full? I know some people have a rule that once they start a book, they have to finish it. Me, I could never do that. I used to, when I was a lot younger. I can remember one book I had to force myself to carry on with even though I wasn't enjoying it at all - but I thought that if it was good enough to be published, then it must be worth reading.
Of course, reading is a very personal thing. My dad read crime and biographies and nothing else. My mum read sagas and nothing else. I used to be a librarian specialising in work with chldren and schools and I used to encourage children to read widely... even though my own reading tastes as an adult are relatively limited.
So, yes, I do give up on a book if I'm not enjoying it. But this blog is about skipping bits and then carrying on reading. Do you ever do that? Why? Here are some of things that would make me flick forward a few pages.
Unnecessary Padding In one novel, an architect spent an entire chapter wandering around a city, admiring its buildings and finding inspiration. It didn't advance the plot - or if it did, I missed that bit because I skipped to the next chapter. Yes, description is important. It creates the setting and contributes to the mood and atmosphere. It deepens the reader's relationship with the character and submerges the reader more fully in the book. But description for its own sake.... sorry, that doesn't work for me.
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Being Lectured To In a novel involving a theatre that exists in real life, the author had obviously done her homework - the operative word being 'obviously.' She couldn't stop herself sharing about every single thing she had learned about the theatre's history. It turned into a page and a half of lecture. Keep it to yourself, love. Just because you know it, doesn't mean the rest of us need to know.
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Too Much Back Story A bit of back story here and there is essential to an understanding of the plot, but entire chapters of it...? I once read a book that involved a family which, in spite of minor tensions, was clearly happy and united, with Mother as the lynch-pin. Early on in the plot, Mother died in a freak accident. How would her adoring husband cope? What fresh responsibilities would fall on the shoulders of our young heroine? What would happen next? What actually happened was a trip back in time to wander through Mother's childhood and see how she grew up to meet and marry Father. I wasn't interested in that - I wanted to know what happened next.
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Am I skipping the parts of a book that represent the author's self-indulgence? The parts where the author, because s/he loves the book or the character so much, just can't resist adding more? Or am I missing chances to become more immersed in these stories?
How about you? What makes you skip a part of a novel? And what do you think of what I've identified as my own triggers for skipping?
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