We've talked about the concept floated in this article here before, how so many people struggle to quit reading a book they aren't enjoying. I'm here once again to remind us all that finishing a book you don't like isn't some sort of virtue, and it doesn't mean you have more perseverance or that you're "gritty" - it just means you've been conditioned to "stick it out" for some bizarre reason.
There are too many AWESOME books out there to suffer through the ones that don't get you. Even if it's a popular, best-selling, everyone-loved-it book - not every book is written for every person. AND THAT'S OKAY.
And what if you find yourself in a rut, where no book is pulling you in? I just recently went through a reading drought and let me tell you, I'm so glad I quit those five books in a row because then I stumbled upon the 6th and I was back. Sometimes books meet us in the wrong time or season of our lives. We might try them again later, but until then, we've got to move on.
If you find yourself hating everything you try to read, my suggestion is to pivot. Switch it up from fiction to nonfiction. Dip into something completely foreign to you, be it memoirs, graphic novels, science fiction, audiobooks, or even your typical genre, but by an author you've never heard of. Ask your librarian for translated books for something literally foreign. Adventure into the YA section, or the children's section - I've found that short and sweet children's fiction is sometimes the best palate cleanser, and a good "refresh" on reading.
Whatever you do, please don't agonize over a book you don't like.
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