Did Not Finish

Paris By The Book

By: Liam Callanan

DNF

I don't usually review books that I don't finish. Mainly, I have a hard time criticizing authors and bringing down their overall ratings. I know how much hard work goes into writing and publishing a book. It breaks my heart when I don't enjoy one, and Paris By the Book felt like an extra crack because I deeply wanted to enjoy this book.

The premise is wonderful. A woman who's always wanted to travel moves to Paris and works in a bookshop upon her husband's disappearance. It's not uncommon for her husband to disappear - what's uncommon is that he doesn't come home. An author, her husband leaves behind what appears to be clues in his book. Acting on instinct, Leah gathers the pair's two daughters and moves to Paris to find her husband.

This was how far I got. I made it to the end of Chapter 2.

Not finishing books is something I have only recently begun to do, and I feel like it's changed my life. With over 50 unread books sitting on my floor, it's a relief to not waste time reading books that don't make me happy. I don't exactly know why Paris By the Book failed to captivate me. It was actually very well written. In fact, it's one of my DNF books that I won't give away because I think I may revisit it at a different time in life. Perhaps it's just my current life situation that led to my distaste of this book. I don't really know because on paper, this should be my favorite book.

One thing I did not particularly enjoy was how the protagonist seemed so... weak. Her husband seemed to control the situation and it appeared that she used him for an escape. The romance, for me, simply wasn't there (of course, I only gave it two chapters, so this could be an unfair ruling). I also didn't like the focus on Paris itself. I love books set in Paris; however, I chose this one for the mystery. Taking too much time to establish a setting turns me off quicker than almost anything.

Enough being mean. I can be snarky, but I prefer not to when it comes to books. I really chose to write this post because of the stigma around not finishing books. I'm 24 and I just recently discovered that if you don't like a book, you don't have to finish it. Why is it so taboo in our culture to not finish things if they don't bring you joy? We're so concerned with not being quitters that we completely overlook the reason why one might want to quit something. If it doesn't make you happy (and it's something trivial like a book), stop doing it. Life is hard enough as is without people judging us for quitting things we chose to do with our free time. In fact, I don't think anyone is judging you when it comes to books. And if they are, surround yourselves with new people.

As a school librarian, one of my goals is to instill in children that reading should be fun. Part of the fun is quitting books you don't enjoy (unless, of course, they are required reading for class).