Tags
Hit Pause by Donalyn Miller
Shifting books around, I realized that I have started five books, but not finished them. No, I won’t tell you their titles. These books sit on my nightstand–with bookmarks sticking out of them—reminders of interrupted stories. I feel guilty about not finishing them. Daniel Pennac gave us the “right to not finish a book,” but a lot of readers feel guilty about setting books aside.
My friend, Jillian Heise, calls these unfinished (but not abandoned) books “pause books.” Books readers won’t abandon, but won’t finish. I imagine most of us have hit pause on a book. It’s such a common occurrence, that scientists have developed an index for identifying the most common unfinished books.
What causes readers to set aside a book for now, but not forever?
- The book is too long. Reading a book takes commitment, and some books are more demanding than others. Occasionally, a book is so long that you get bogged down in it, or you switch to a faster-paced book for a while.
- You have to, want to, need to read something else first. Your book club/book study meeting is next week and you haven’t started this month’s selection. You have a paper due, and all you can read is research. You borrowed a book from a friend and you need to return it. A book you’ve been eager to read just arrived in the mail, and you want to read it now. You prioritize what you read, and sometimes other reading moves ahead of your current book.
- You’re worried that the book is about to get too scary or too sad. You can feel it—the tension that authors build—foreshadowing something terrible is about to happen. You know the dog is about to die. You know the killer is going to catch them. Your heart can’t take it, not today.
- You love the book so much that you don’t want it to end (or the series). You’re attached to the characters. The writing delights you or resonates with you. You’re not ready to say goodbye. It can be emotionally heart wrenching when a book or series you love comes to an end. Savoring and prolonging books feels delicious. Go ahead.
- The book already answered your questions about this topic. Picking up a book for research, self-help, or personal education, you’ve found the information you wanted. You don’t have to read every book cover-to-cover. Don’t finish a book for the sake of finishing it.
- The book has not lived up to its promise (so far). Everyone is talking about this book. It received a starred review. It won an award. The author was on Stephen Colbert. All of your trusted friends think it’s amazing. Your FOMO (fear of missing out) won’t allow you to abandon the book, but you’re not feeling it.
- You wanted a different book. You wanted vanilla and you got chocolate. You wanted more romance. You wanted less romance. You wanted historical fiction instead of science fiction. You’re just not in the mood for what this book has to offer, but that could change tomorrow.
- You’re not reading anything. You have a deadline. You have to work late every night this week. You’re sick and you’d rather watch TV. You should be writing instead of reading. Your family needs you more this week. The book you started will still be there when you circle back to it.
What causes you to hit pause on a book? When is it OK to stop reading a book for now, but not forever? When is a book worth finishing? When should we just abandon a book?
I wonder what kids would say. I imagine their answers would reveal a lot about their reading attitudes, experiences and interests, too. Many kids think that if they don’t finish a book, they’re bad readers. Making our reading lives transparent—including our reasons for not finishing books—would relieve a lot of reading guilt.
I invite you to share your comments on pause books. I look forward to the conversation.
Donalyn Miller has taught fourth, fifth, and sixth grade English and Social Studies She is the author of two books about encouraging students to read, The Book Whisperer and Reading in the Wild. Donalyn co-hosts the monthly Twitter chat, #titletalk (with Nerdy co-founder, Colby Sharp), and facilitates the Twitter reading initiative, #bookaday. You can find her on Twitter at @donalynbooks or under a pile of books somewhere, happily reading.
Nerdy Book Club 
I have one book that is on “pause” for over 10 years, Tom Clancy’s “Executive Orders”. I got so wrapped up in the plot that I got frustrated with some of the characters that I’ve had to “unwind”. It still sits in my bookcase, with the bookmark.
I have abandoned many books that were either not for me or not for me at that time. If I’m not reading a book for professional reasons (for critique or for review) I’m reading for pleasure and if there’s no pleasure in it, well, life’s too short and there are plenty of books. However, I have hit pause on one book that I plan to return to someday (it has been shamefully long already) and that is The Reluctant Journal of Henry K. Larsen. I was about 30 pages into it (and loving it, despite the fear over what was coming) when the Sandy Hook shooting happened and I had to put it down. I was too raw and unable to continue. I feel horrible because I normally don’t shy from ‘tough’ books AND I’ve met Susin and she’s a lovely person. I just couldn’t carry on. I hope to be able to one day.
I once heard Madeleine L’Engle say that life is far too short and there are far too many books for us to finish one that does not interest us. Sometimes I finish a book because someone I care about wishes me to. Sometimes I skim to get the gist–and occasionally end up getting hooked. I think that teachers who model this kind of process–giving a book a real chance, sometimes changing mindset from ‘I have to be engaged to read’ to ‘I have another purpose in reading this (to converse with a friend or to understand a new viewpoint or…)’–increase the odds that their students will find that sweet spot between giving up too soon and dredging onward until reading is equated with emptying the dishwasher…
I feel like sometimes it’s just timing for me. I started The Poisonwood Bible about 8 times (over a 5 year period) before I actually read it all the way through. And it is one of my favorite books of all time. Other books I have quit, I just don’t enjoy. When I dread picking it up to read more so I can finish it, I know it is time to quit the book!
I agree that often, it’s the timing. I started “Tell The Wolves I’m Home” twice and set it aside–when I finally gave it a third chance I was hooked and it was one of the best novels I’d read in a long time.
Sometimes I’ll pause a book because life gets in the way and I just can’t give a book the attention I feel it deserves–that’s where I’m at with “The Art of Fielding”–I’m about half-way through this 500+ page novel and I’m invested in the characters, but it’s definitely a book that I don’t want to rush through. I’m setting it aside with its bookmark firmly in place until I have enough time to devote to the great writing.
I’ll sometimes “pause” even before beginning a highly anticipated book for that same reason–I want to wait for a time when I know I can give it, as you say, “the attention I feel it deserves.”
I have a massive stack of paused books on my night stand that can rotates order as I read a page here and there depending on my reading interests before falling asleep. This post made me smile at the affirmation of this habit’s normalcy. Thanks for sharing, Donalyn!
The Goldfinch was my pause book. While it was really compelling, it was also really grisly. I had to screw up my courage and develop the stomach to finish it. I did finally finish it.
For years I was one of those people that “had” to finish the book I started. It didn’t matter if I liked it or not. It took me a long time to overcome that. I still fight it. However, my second year as a first round Cybil judge, where the criteria was you had to read at least the first 50 pages taught me that if I really couldn’t stomach the book that it was okay to abandon it. Some of those books I read later on after a student recommended it to me. One book in particular, “So Be It” is a book I’ve never finished. My students have loved it. I don’t know what it is that keeps me from finishing it. However, it has been a great way to teach my students that there are times when we set a book down for a while. We need to teach them that it is okay to put a book down, as long as they are not doing it with EVERY book. I’ve had many that I read the back and couldn’t wait to start. Once I started then maybe I was distracted by life events and laid it down. Once I set down to read it I wondered why I waited so long.
I, too, have many books on pause, in addition to books I’ve abandoned completely. In fact, I have a special book shelf for just those paused books–and a special organization style for the ones I’ve begun electronically. Most are informational books, which I find easy to pause when I get tired of the topic–GULP, for example; fortunately I can pick them back up periodically without having to remember what I’ve already read. The book that I’ve had on pause for at least a couple years–one that I’m determined to finish sometime–is WAR AND PEACE. As stated by others, sometimes I pause a book simply based on the degree I’m able to relate or concentrate on it at that time. For example, years ago when I first started FEED, I just didn’t care for it; however, several months later I started it again, and it is one of my favorite books of all times! Another reason I pause a book is because a new book comes out that I just can’t wait to read–any new book by Chris Crutcher, for example–so my current “okay” book moves to the pause shelf for at least a few days.
My summer reading is chaos because I have been making of list of what I WANT to read since last September. So what caught my fancy in October sometimes does not have the same pull in July. Right now there are two books on pause in my goodreads queue. The are good, but are not feeding my desperate obsession quite as well as some others I am reading. I will finish them when I want. (different from “frogging” a book, a knitting term, which is when I stop, don’t finish, rip them out of my brain because….just not ever going to satisfy my reading monkey on my back) Gotta go read…
I like the term pause books. I have several, many of them professional books. I get started on one book, it reminds me of another book, which I then start. Right now, I am in the middle of 3 professional books that are waiting to be finished. I find that when I am ready for or need the information in that book, I will go back to it. You are right, it’s important to share this part of our reading lives with our students.
While we were reading last night, my 8 year old put a book on pause (too intense) and went to find something more reassuring to read. I have more books on pause (for all of these reasons) than I can count. A good reminder (for me and one I’ll share with my students) that this is a natural part of reading. And pausing a book doesn’t mean I won’t come back to it. I might not. But I might.
I find the term “pause book” very exciting. One thought I have about this is relating to my reading behavior when reading kid lit. In the summer I work particularly hard at reading newly published and recommended books. I currently have a few on “pause” while other books I have read from cover to cover. I’m going to think more carefully about reasons I have put these books on “pause” to help me understand myself as a reader and also try to use this in my classroom
I also have about 5 books on pause, for many different reasons, sometimes I just don’t know what I want to read, nothing resonates with me. I tell my students about this and say it is okay unless you abandon or pause every book!
All three of my children “paused” Mockingjay. I personally have “paused” True Believer by Nicholas Sparks three times.
I actually have a shelf on goodreads called ‘started but shelved for later’ for my paused books. I’ll admit that sometimes I pause a book because it’s heady nonfiction that begs to be studied rather than just read from cover to cover. ‘Thinking Fast and Slow’ is one of my paused books, for example, and although I was enjoying it, I needed a ‘pause’ and will eventually get back to it sometime.
I don’t like to have pause books because they end up being clutter. If I put them back in the bookshelf, then by the time I get back to them, I’ve forgotten everything I read up to the point that I abandoned it, and have to either give up on it or start from the beginning and read again. So, in answer to your question, if I stall on a book for more than a week, I try to make a decision to hand it off or pull out the bookmark and start again fresh sometime.
Great post, Donalyn. Does it also count as a “pause” if you hesitate even to begin a book because you know that, although you can reread it, you only have one opportunity to read it for the first time?
I’m happy that you shared this idea today, and the multiple reasons listed above. Ironically, I have four specific books on pause right now (mostly due to timing/travel), and just last night I determined that my goal this week is to get through them all so I can feel like I have a clean slate to start from next week in choosing my next book to read.
It has always been a good experience when I share the idea of pausing or abandoning books with my students. I want them to read and want to read and find some joy or understanding in it, not suffer through reading.
I like this idea of pausing books! I am thinking how it could support my struggling readers who in the past would have had to choose to abandon a book because they were struggling with comprehension but now with your language could “pause it” for now and return to it when they have built their skills or I have provided a stronger scaffold for them to access it.
Bullets 6 and 7 are deal breakers for me. Both those reasons would make me abandon the books for good. I usually read a YA book and grown up book simultaneously, so I pause and switch a lot, in a ridiculous effort to make them both finish at the same time.
I always ask my kids why they’ve returned a library book without finishing it, and the only answers I can ever get is that it just wasn’t interesting or they just didn’t like it (without giving me a reason why). I’m going to use this list with my 4-5 graders and see if I can get them to think more deeply about their choices and be able to articulate their reasons. Thank you!!
Me too! My 5th graders’ reply is that it wasn’t interesting. They can never go further and say why. I’m hoping this list will perhaps give them more to think about as to why they are abandoning or pausing on books.
I have only paused on one book lately. I was reading Savvy, because one of my students recommended it. I finally finished and I am so glad that I did. It was a little slow, but a good book. I don’t want to tell kids to take a break though, because I am afraid that some of them will never finish.
Oh, I do have Ellenberg’s new book on hold, and there is a waiting list at our library for it. He does say this about the Hawking Index: “(Disclaimer: This is not remotely scientific and is for entertainment purposes only!)” Like Martin Gardner before him, he is putting a friendly face on the subject of mathematics. I would say more, but I sense that eyes are already glazing over.
I have two paused books right now: Mockingjay and A Dog’s Journey. My daughter has been urging me to read both, and I do like both books, but I think that they are not fitting my mood right now. With Mockingjay, I think it’s partly that the media was so saturated with Hunger Games movies at the time, that it kind of turned me off to the book. I imagine that I will pick it up again before the next movie comes out, so that my daughter and I can enjoy it together more. For A Dog’s Journey, I found the first book incredibly sad and moving, and I think it may just be that I’m not ready to take that journey again quite yet. Pause books can be very personal books, or sometimes, maybe they are just “possible” books.
I was thinking about this “issue” of mine the other day as I was cleaning up. I have quite a bit sitting on my nightstand, as well, with bookmarks that aren’t quite forgotten, just on pause like you said. I look and pick them up and then set them down again. I think for me it’s a matter of want and energy. The books that are on hold are books that have taken and will take quite a bit of thought on my part to keep up and pay attention to what is happening. I have a third book from a series, “Girl with a Dragon Tattoo” that I just needed to put space between the 1st and 2nd as they were too heavy for me to try to read the 3rd. Alas, I will go back to them, it’s just a matter of when at this point as I still have the want to read them.
Your post reminds me of the day my 5yo grandson patted my arm while I was reading to him and asked me to “pause it” while he went to the bathroom. ☺️
I like the idea of calling my books-in-progress “paused”. I’ve had them for all of the reasons above. But, I also commonly pause one or more books when a new release I’ve been waiting impatiently for comes available. My favorite authors especially rise to the top, and sometimes the books I’ve paused just can’t measure up to them.
I’ve paused many books in my reading life. Reading is a very emotional experience for me. If the book I am reading doesn’t fit well with where my emotions are at, I’m more likely to stop reading it. I rarely abandon books completely (although there have been a few that I just couldn’t finish), but I often set the books off to the side and finish them when my mood fits. Right now, my mind is reeling with thoughts of a new school year and all of the “stuff” happening in my personal life, so I’ve been sticking with lighter reads. I just finished Laurie Halse Anderson’s Prom and Margaret Peterson Haddix’s Among the Hidden with absolutely no problem. On the flip side, my husband gave me The Girls of Atomic City by Denise Kiernan, and I’ve put it on pause for the moment. Another of my pause books is Little Women. I’ve gotten halfway through, but I just haven’t finished it yet. It’s sitting on my shelf waiting for me, and I’m certain I’ll go back to it some day.
Do finish Girls of Atomic City. I loved it!
I often pause professional reading for two reasons a) l come across a reference to a book, organization, or website I am unfamiliar with so I go to bookmark it and fall into reading it online or b) I need time to hold new ideas up to my current thinking/practice and decide which ideas I will borrow/modify to meet the needs of my students.
Many of my paused MG or YA novels are paused because I carry books I am enjoying around with me (hoping for “edge time” to read a few more pages) and talk about them with students which has resulted in passing them along before I have had a chance to finish reading them. I work with struggling secondary readers so I never say no to a request to read a book even if I am not done enjoying it myself.
I’m so glad I’m not the only one. All those reasons are true for me. I’ve been going back and forth between five books. I don’t care what anyone says, it’s like television. You can keep up with multiple stories at once.
This was really interesting to me because this is something I rarely ever do. (This doesn’t apply to picture books.) As I read other comments, I see that I am in the minority, and I am asking myself why do I hold onto that book and force myself to finish before starting another! I need to get over that self-imposed “rule” and feel free to move on when something’s not working or maybe the timing’s not right!
I have pressed “pause” on a number of books! Sometimes I’m just a bit greedy–a book I really want to read becomes available, so I switch gears. Pausing at times breaks my reading flow, and I’m reluctant to backtrack and moving forward also doesn’t feel right. Interesting topic!
Never thought of it as putting books on pause! I have far too many of those to list here (or anywhere for that matter) 🙂 I have become a more fickle reader than I used to be, I think because my time has become even more precious. I just don’t have the energy to read something I don’t think I’ll enjoy.
Thank you for articulating this so clearly Donalyn. My house is cluttered with pause books. These are usually books that I ordered because the topic fascinated me or I heard about the author on the radio. I pick up these books, read a few pages, and set them down. They are inevitably replaced by a new interest. Just this morning, I was contemplating how I can become more disciplined about this. I don’t have the answer, because there is a 300 pager, the third of a series, sitting on my nightstand right above the book I promised myself I would read this summer (I bought it last summer but people are still talking about it so I have missed out!). Unfortunately, I have to go to work now, but I’m awfully glad that the people I am meeting for breakfast are late so I had time to respond to your post!
The majority of my pause books are professional titles. I’ll get over half way through them, and another book will start calling my name. I think sometimes once you’ve got the “gist” of the author’s message, the rest of the book seems repetitive. Professional text often requires more rigorous reading, and I tend to take it in chunks. I’ve noticed almost all the books lingering on my “currently reading” shelf on Goodreads are educational titles I can’t seem to finish. I’m so thankful to knows there are others out there facing the same challenges. Thanks for normalizing our experiences Donalyn.
I agree with you, Tenille. I just recently finished one of those dense, rigorous nonfiction tomes, and it was on my “currently reading” shelf for 8 months because I HAD to read it like you eat an elephant–one bite at a time. I’m thinking of making a “Paused” shelf for my Goodreads account.
I love this, Donalyn. I try to get about 1/4 of the way through a book before I give up on it. Most of my abandonments are permanent. I’ve pretty much let go of the guilt and don’t keep the books out, thinking, “I’ll finish it after I finish this other one!” And it’s almost always because it didn’t live up to its promise. Sometimes it’s the implied promise that it will be like an author’s other books. OK, maybe it’s not implied by the author, but it’s inferred by me :>) I think if I like a couple of a writer’s books, I’ll like all of them. Not necessarily true. And writers have every right to try new kinds of books–I’ve just given up the bad habit of thinking something’s wrong with me if I don’t like them all. Other times it’s the promise that it’s gripping. I just started a book that was getting raves, but I was bored stiff. Other times it’s the promise that it will simply be at a least a professionally put-together book. I started an ebook recently by a bestselling writer who’s a pretty big name. The ebook wasn’t even copyedited! What the heck? I couldn’t get past all the typos, grammatical errors, and clichés in order to even try to focus on the story itself. My bottom line is, if I’m not excited to pick up the book, I know it’s not really giving me what I came to it for (which definitely may differ from book to book). That’s when I return it to the library or delete it off my Kindle and relegate it to my “didn’t-finish” shelf in Goodreads. With a clear conscience. There are too many fantastic books to waste time on the ones that just really don’t do it for you.
Glad I’m not alone with my Pause Book list. 🙂 Les Miserables has been lingering for years!
I say YES to sharing this with students!!! It’s more than just “why we abandon books”. Giving them the nod to pause and hopefully return to a book is genius. I have many unfinished books on my Kindle. I’ve been diligently reading an 800 page book this summer that is getting tedious. I have paused my reading for reasons 1 & 3 on your bulleted list. Mainly the third. It’s just so, so sad. So, during my valued reading time on the balcony this summer I have taken to other reading because I can’t deal with the main character of this book. He is headed on a downward spiral and I can’t ‘watch”. HOWEVER, one of my colleagues was also, and has subsequently FINISHED the same book. It’s become somewhat of a competition, as well as a strong need/desire to talk with her about the book once I’m finished also. The power of conversation around books. It never ceases to amaze me! Thank you for this post.
Obviously a GREAT subject, Donalyn, by the overwhelming response! 😀 I totally agree with Madeleine L’Engle—life is far too short, and noticed that Sandra Stiles began her comment as I would’ve mine.
Years ago, when I first really delved into kidlit, having made it my life’s goal to become a published author/illustrator, realized HOW MUCH I missed in not having spent enough time reading since I was a kid, and kidlit books simply becoming my true passion–I, too, would push myself to finish the books I’d started. That did change when my list of TBR books got increasingly longer and my time got shorter. I will now only read books that compel me. What I find most difficult is reading a book by someone I know that doesn’t grip me : / I push myself through it anyway and I don’t like spending my time that way anymore.
What I’ve found is that, with the several books I’ve “paused” with, it’s typically because it’s just not doing enough for me and something more interesting has pulled me away from it. That “pause” is actually “abandon” though not officially labeled as such. And many on my TBR list call to me, but time doesn’t allow—especially for the long ones. This will always twinge my reader’s heart with that sense of desires unfulfilled because life really is too short.
I don’t usually have “pause books” for an extended period of time, so when I read this entry, a certain book popped into my head right away. I was so excited for this book to come in the mail, but I had only gotten 67 pages into it when I discovered that it was just a little too weird for me. I set it aside and decided to read something a little less intense for a while – but it has been three months and I haven’t picked it up again. It keeps calling to me when I see it sitting on the desk, and though I hope it will get less weird, there is the possibility that it won’t be as good as I was hoping it would be. So there is sits with its pretty cover.
I wonder how often we let our students pause? I agree that it is common. How do we let our students pause? This is a very thought provoking entry!
Was loving Counting by Sevens. I even bookmarked pages for lessons. Then, I just stopped reading it. No reason. Anytime the book comes up in conversation I fully disclose that I stopped 60 pages in for no good reason. Fessing up is my cry for help. “Sell me. I’ll give it another go.”
Was loving Counting by Sevens. I even bookmarked pages for lessons. Then, I just stopped reading it. No reason. Anytime the book comes up in conversation I fully disclose that I stopped 60 pages in for no good reason. Fessing up is my cry for help. “Sell me. I’ll give it another go.”
“Pause books” will be a great discussion for me to initiate with students when I begin my new job as a high school librarian next month. As always, love the way you think Donalyn!
As a librarian I hit “pause” on books all of the time. Usually it is for one of the reasons you mentioned, or, that I have read enough of the book to know, as their librarian or friend, who needs to read the book, as in “this book would be perfect for…”. The result is I start a lot of books during the school year and have the luxury of finishing them all during the summer. 🙂
Re: #2. I’ll pause a book when a new book comes in on hold from the library and I know I’ll have to finish and return it quickly because it’s popular and I won’t be able to renew it.
I learned to let books go a long time ago. Back in college, when I was younger and more obsessive, I actually finished a trilogy that I HATED because I felt I had to finish what I started. I would never do that now. I don’t even finish book club books if I don’t enjoy them or don’t have time for them. There are so many books I want to read, why would I waste my precious reading time on something I don’t enjoy?
I’d love to know what your students think!
Me too! These reasons for pausing on books resonated with me. I’ve learned to give myself permission to abandon a book I’m not loving – too little time so many books I want to read! My stack of books to read and books I’ve started (including articles too) grows and sometimes they call me back, always they beckon. So, I just keep calm, keep reading and place my next half.com order! BTW – Reading in the Wild is sitting right here whispering now!
Loved this. I have one pause book that turned into one of my favorite reads – The Book Thief- just needed more focus time for it… a year after reading the first two chapters. Many books on pause now as well!
I often find myself pausing a book, especially when I can anticipate it’s about to get sad. I put down The Underneath for a few weeks ago because I have a hunch someone is about to die. I paused Mockingjay a long time ago for the same reason. I’ve been thinking about how to model pausing books for my students and reading multiple books at the same time – I always have a nonfiction and a fiction in the works.
Thank you for posing these questions and sharing this index. I like the way it clearly defines the main reasons why we pause books. I wonder what my students would say about their book pausing, or book abandoning. I suspect that the answers would be revealing about their reading attitudes.