What To Do
February 24, 2007 at 4:04 pm | 3 Comments »Ever gotten about halfway through a novel and realized that you despise the main characters? Do you toss the book aside in disgust or keep plowing through, hoping the author will come to his senses and give weenies spines?
I’m facing the choice right now. On one hand, The Zookeeper is well-written technically. Vivid imagery and a somewhat exotic setting in the world of professional animal caretakers. However the characters are allowed to wallow in self doubt and indecision to the point that I want to slam the book against a wall and never pick it up again.
Little wonder that I’ve been reading it for a month but have only managed to get about 150 pages in. Not sure it’s worth the struggle.
well. i personally have a hard time not finishing a book if i start. but it sounds like it might be worth throwing out the window.
Do you always have to like the characters? That you’re having such a strong reaction seems to make it compelling. But yes, sometimes slogging through material feels like you’re hitting yourself in the head. If you’re not finding it at all intriguing, toss it.
Take it from the former English major – if there’s not a 10 page paper required in 3 days, toss it!