I have this rule with books; If it’s boring and doesn’t entertain, inform, or grip you in the first 5 chapters or around 30 pages, bin it. That is to say don’t continue reading just for the sake of it. Just because your favourite aunt bought it for your birthday or your sister bought it for you for Christmas. Sell it, donate it to charity, or re-gift it to someone you think is more likely to appreciate it.
That was my rule.
I’ve slightly modified this rule for where the book contains content or information that you need to know, or you have been asked to read it for work, a book club, or another reason whereby you will be asked questions later. In this scenario I speed-read it.
Speed-reading is an artform in itself and each individual undertakes it differently. For me it depends on whether the book is fiction or non-fiction.
For fiction I kind of stare at the page unfocused picking out key-words and following the gist of the story. I look for any change in pace or emphasis on something important in the text. I take around 5-seconds a page this way, taking longer when I find something worth reading. I can guarantee that after some considerable practice I can finish most fiction books in an hour or two max.
For non-fiction I’ll read the back-cover, the inside jackets, and scan the table of contents. Then I’ll flick through each page only stopping if anything of interest catches my eye. I’ll have already noted sections or pages that I want to take a little more time with from reading the TOC. This way I’ll have gotten what I wanted from the book.
Not every book should be read from cover-to-cover. True, you may have your favourites, well worn copies that you’ve read many times. But you will encounter tomes that are just dull, badly written, with no life in them. And the older you are the less time you are willing to waste on bad prose. In fact feel free to speed-read these posts or skip them all together. I’m not writing them to make money. I’m writing them for me. But they may contain some nuggets of wisdom, so feel free to practice your speed-reading.