Discussion Question: Do You Review a Book You DNF?
Do you review a book that you don't finish? I don't. I just don't think it's fair to review a book unless I've read the entire thing. The main reason for this is because sometimes I'm just not in the mood to read a particular book and so that's the reason I don't finish it. In fact, one time I started The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver and I read maybe 50 pages of it and I just couldn't get into it. So I put it away for about a year and when I started reading it again, I absolutely loved it. Now obviously even if I finish the book my mood influences whether I like the book or not and ultimately my review of it, but I usually just don't finish the book if it's not working for whatever reason, so most of the time I like the books I read and I usually write positive reviews.
Playing devil's advocate, explaining why you didn't finish a book can be useful to people are considering reading it.
So what do you think? Do you review a book that you don't finish? How many pages do you feel like you have to read before you'll write a review? (I know some people who read a chapter or two to see if they want to read the book since they have so many to choose from and they don't write reviews if that's the case). Do you find reviews written by someone who has not finished the book to be useful?
Posted by: Pam
I have also not been in the mood for a book and DNF'd it only to pick it up years later and love it. I'm such a mood reader.
ReplyDeleteI don't really 'review' the books that I DNF, usually I will just write a short explanation as to why I didn't finish it. Like you, I don't feel comfortable giving a full review when I didn't finish the book.
I definitely have to be in the mood to read a particular book. I try to pick books that I'm in the mood for right then, but sometimes a book is due back at the library so I read it and if I'm not in the mood for it, I may not make it past 50 pages. There's just so many good books out there that I don't want to keep reading if I'm not enjoying it. But it doesn't happen that often. ~Pam
DeleteIt's rare for me to DNF. I think last year was the first time I ever did it since before I just always felt a need to know how stories end. But I only DNF like 3 books? I give them a small review and say what exactly it was that wasn't working for me (I usually attempt to get almost halfway or so before I give up). But I don't give star ratings on them.
ReplyDeleteThat makes sense, to give an explanation but not to give them star ratings. I usually finish books too, so it's pretty rare for me as well. ~Pam
DeleteBefore I started blogging, I rarely DNF, now I am a lot pickier because I don't get as much time to read and want to make sure what I am reading is worth it. I will write a DNF review if I get about a third in or more because I like to explain why it didn't work for me. I find DNF reviews helpful, I like to see what issues the person found with the book and if it's something that would bother me too.
ReplyDeleteI agree, I think DNF reviews can be helpful. And it's actually the opposite for me, I rarely DNF now because I'm reading the books I want to read rather than books I feel I should read or for book club or whatever. It does still happen occasionally. So far I haven't added them to the blog, to my list of books on Goodreads, etc. ~Pam
DeleteI have DNFed a couple books, I actually think I did it more before I blogged, but I also read a bit slower. It do not actually post my DNF on the blog, but I will post to goodreads giving a couple reasons why I did not finish the book. For example, I did not like Seraphina but I got about 75% before I decided to not finish it but I decided not to write a review since I think that I chose not finish it simply because I was not in the mood. Now there was another book that was I thought the writing was not great, there were a lot of spelling errors and grammar errors. Not to mention a lot of plot issue, so I felt like actually mentioning/reviewing that one, since it seemed like more of a book quality issue not mood issue. If that makes sense
ReplyDeleteAshley @ The Quiet Concert
That does make sense, there's definitely a difference between not finishing because you're not in the mood for a book versus that the book is just so bad. I can't believe you got 75% done with Seraphina and didn't finish it! I found that book pretty slow for me, but then it picked up and I finished it. Of course it's not a stand-alone and there's no way I can re-read that one! ~Pam
DeleteI almost never DNF a book. I am so bad at quitting. I just feel like I have to finish. What if it gets better? What if I miss something really good? What if my entire opinion would change in the second half? Idk. I'm weird like that. Lol. But if I do DNF a book, I would have to read at least half of it to review it. Any less than that and I don't think it's fair to review it because I don't have enough information. I do think that reading DNF reviews can be helpful. I like finding out what a person didn't like about a book or what didn't work for them. It helps me decide if it would work for me or not. But I definitely understand not wanting to review a DNF.
ReplyDeleteSame here, I usually finish a book if I start it. Sometimes books are just slow to start, but then they get really good so I just plow through hoping for the best. And honestly, I read pretty fast so most books only take me about 3-4 hours to read anyway. But there have been a few I didn't finish and I just feel like it's me versus them because of the mood I'm in. I do agree, though, if I see a lot of negative reviews of a book and then a decent amount of DNF reviews, that says something and it's really helpful. ~Pam
DeleteSo I've only ever DNF 1 book (that I can think of) and I did put on my blog the reasons why I did not finish it. I think that's fair to do. It was more to garner discussion and share my thoughts than to "review". But I don't know if I will do this with future DNFs. I don't really have a system because it's very rare for me to not finish a book. I have a good record of picking up books that I enjoy so low ratings are unusual to begin with, and even when I am not liking a book I tend to power through. I don't really have a set page count either but I think in this one case, I made it to page 100? so like a third of the book...
ReplyDeleteI'm the same way, I read books that I'm interested in and that I want to read and that I'm almost positive I'll like so it's rare for me to not finish and like the book. And same here, I'll just power through. There have been a few, though, and I just didn't mention them anywhere and not sure if I should have. One I read (or tried to read) recently I got about 60 pages in and I was just still bored (and it was only a 300 page book) so I just stopped reading it. I felt like it was because of the mood I was in, though so it didn't seem fair to review it. ~Pam
DeleteI DNF books ALL the time. There is no way I will ever get to read all the books that I want to so I don't waste my time on books that I can't get into. With that mind set, I put books aside pretty quickly--like after 20 to 40 pages. I would write a DNF review if I got 50% or further, but if I get that far, I'm probably just going to finish the book.
ReplyDeleteThat's hilarious that you mentioned The Poisonwood Bible. I have seriously owned that book for like 12 years and it stares at me from my shelf, but I just can't do it. I can't get rid of it either, though, because I imagine I will read it...someday. Great topic!
That's great that you can do that, I usually just power through and hope the book gets better if I don't immediately like it.
DeleteYou should read The Poisonwood Bible...just give it more than one chance! :) ~Pam
Ah, short answer: sometimes. If the case is like you mentioned, where I am just not in the mood for it, no, I do not review it because that's not fair. However, if the book is SO bad I CAN'T finish it, you bet I'm going to review it because it's got to be a pretty lame book where I physically could not read any more. Great topic!
ReplyDeleteIt’s this unwritten rule that you can’t review a book if you didn’t finish it and I don’t really agree with that. I’ve only reviewed one DNF book but I had a lot of opinions about the part that I did read so I went ahead and wrote a review. I think it’s a books job to get you interested at the beginning and a book that is boring or so not what you expected isn’t doing its job. I don’t think the ending should be the only good part of a book - I think the whole thing should be entertaining. I’m always interested as to why people walked away from a book so I like DNF reviews. I had a similar experience as you with East of Eden. I started it and I just didn’t get it. But I read it last year and I totally loved it! I wouldn’t review a book that I set aside and want to try again later, but the books I know I don’t like I usually post a little something about why I didn’t like it. Cool discussion!
ReplyDeleteI don't DNF books that often (I count it as a DNF if I've gotten through 1/2 the book and decided I don't like it), so in the event I do, I will write a quick review explaining why. I make it clear that it is a DNFed book, though, because I don't want to be misleading.
ReplyDelete