...Skipping Pages...

[SmokeBellew]

Well by starting this thread I wanted to know if there are any people here who skip pages while reading. If yes, why? Also, can you give any examples? What books were so boring (or any other reason....maybe you had to return the book to your friend/local library) that you decided to skip a few pages.

I admit that while Jack London is one of my favourite writers, I did skip some pages while reading his "Martin Eden". Mostly they were dialogues about phylosophy or someting else (I can't remember now) and back then maybe I wasn't "grown up" for that kind of information so those dialogues bored me to death. Now I'm thinking about reading that book once again, if I have time of course.

So, waiting for your comments))) :thumbs_up

P.S. I started to read T.Dreiser's An American Tragedy 5 or 6 days ago and now I'm finally finishing it. It's 890 pages in total and I'm on page 870 (the part where Griffits talks to the priest about Berta in prison)....I thought I'd never finish it :nod:

[Geoffrey]

The only times I have found myself skipping past pages is when I am reading a book for the second or third time. For example, I just re-read House of Leaves by Mark Danielewski and did not find it necessary to be reading the entire piece from start to finish - I simply wanted to isolate the story within it.

Otherwise though, if reading a book for the first time, I don't believe skipping pages to be a good practice - who knows what one could miss within those lines of text! no matter how boring the book may be...

[Idril]

The only times I have found myself skipping past pages is when I am reading a book for the second or third time.



I do that as well, for instance, I usually skip the entire first half of Fellowship of the Ring when I reread it because I barely got through it the first time, I'm not going to subject myself to further readings. :p

I do remember a couple of instances where I skipped a few pages of books I was reading for the first time, in Don Quixote I skipped the part where that guy was reading a book, a book within a book just seemed incredibly unnecessary to me, especially since it was something like 20 pages long! :rolleyes: I also skipped a few pages in Brothers Karamazov when they were writing about Father Zossima's manifesto or whatever it was. I felt a little guilty about the Father Zossima thing but I just couldn't bring myself to read through it but I think skipping over the story within a story in Don Quixote was perfectly acceptable because it really was completely pointless.

[Bastet]

I think skipping over the story within a story in Don Quixote was perfectly acceptable because it really was completely pointless.


Would you say the 'play within a play' in Hamlet was completely pointless?

[RobinHood3000]

Or the story within a story within Poe's "The Fall of the House of Usher"?

[Idril]

Would you say the 'play within a play' in Hamlet was completely pointless?


Or the story within a story within Poe's "The Fall of the House of Usher"?

Goodness! I didn't realize such a harmless statement would create such a firestorm. ;) I wasn't talking about either Hamlet or Fall of the House of Usher, I was talking about Don Quixote, I meant the comment to pertain to that book, I didn't intend for it to encompass every book ever written.

[subterranean]

I sometimes skip pages when I read comic books. When the story gots exiciting, I sometimes loose my patience and skip some pages to see how it ends. Then I'd go back again. For non visual books, I hardly do this, unless it's a re-read.

[Pensive]

Sometimes, when I am curious for the end like in Agatha Christie's novels, like sub, I gets excited and ignore/skip some lines but I skip pages when the story gets too boring. A few strories who are very interesting in the start gets boring in the middle so it is difficult for me to bear them. So I skip pages in thought that it might be better in the next chapters.

[papayahed]

I skipped many many pages in The Fountainhead. I don't prescribe to the philosophy and after reading about it once or twice didn't really need to review it over and over ?

[ShoutGrace]

I skipped many many pages in The Fountainhead. I don't prescribe to the philosophy and after reading about it once or twice didn't really need to review it over and over ?

I've read The Fountainhead, Atlas Shrugged, Anthem, and We the Living. I have come to the conclusion that Rand has the tenacious ability to beat a dead horse relentlessly not only throughout the length of each book, but across the board of her novels as well. I think you were much smarter than I am, because for some reason I fully read each book, of which for each the bottom line is essentially the same.

[Bysshe]

Sometimes I'll skip very long, drawn out descriptions. And if I'm reading a biography, I often skip out big chunks that don't interest me.

[Geoffrey]

Sometimes, when I am curious for the end like in Agatha Christie's novels, like sub, I gets excited and ignore/skip some lines but I skip pages when the story gets too boring. A few strories who are very interesting in the start gets boring in the middle so it is difficult for me to bear them. So I skip pages in thought that it might be better in the next chapters.

Do you ever find yourself wondering if the ending would have been better had you taken the time to read all of the pages?

I also Don't understand 'skip pages that I thought mite be better in the next chapter' .... because generally pages don't repeat themseleves, so better in the next chapter or not, you won't find the material again

[AimusSage]

Sometimes I skip ahead, to see if I'm right about something, but it feels a bit like cheating.

[rachel]

that is what makes you so endearing, you have such sweet little ways despite being a too cool guy who (sob)eats the cows I thought you just chatted with in Swahili!
I don't know how I feel about skipping pages, but is seems that it might simply in Glady's case be because she is so young and full of energy and restless perhaps try reading after you have really excercised or been out of doors for a while. you will feel tired but be able to relax and read more slowly.

[Petrarch's Love]

I've tried skipping pages sometimes when I'm rushed to get reading done (an average week for me usually includes reading though at least five books, sometimes more), but I always find myself going back and reading what I skipped after all, so now I've just settled for skimming through things that I need to get read fast, but hardly ever skipping. The one exception is with certain literary critics and theorists. Some theorists you can skip over several pages and come out just as enlightened as though you'd read them all. In fact, some can be skipped altogether without being any less enlightening.:D

[EAP]

I skim, and very rarely, skip from time to time. It's no big deal, whatever floats your boat.

[Pensive]

Do you ever find yourself wondering if the ending would have been better had you taken the time to read all of the pages?

I also Don't understand 'skip pages that I thought mite be better in the next chapter' .... because generally pages don't repeat themseleves, so better in the next chapter or not, you won't find the material again

I mean that whenever I a novel get bored, I skip lines but not whole pages. and some of you will say that I should better leave that book but what if it gets interesting in the next chapters? This is the thought which makes me to keep reading the book and to skip boring lines.

[PeterL]

I rarely skip pages, but I once admitted to an author that I had skipped a large part of one of his novels. He commiserated and spoke of that novel in disparaging terms.

[WaxDoll]

I’ll admit… I’m a skimmer. Recently though, I’ve been trying to slow down and soak everything up better. You know, understand the depth of the story better instead of just skimming the surface. It’s killing me, though. I can’t get through half the number of books I used to in the time I used to, and I tend to be giving up on books a lot more, too. The plus side, though, is that the books I do get through, I come out with a better understanding.

[Logos]

I recently skipped a number of pages in The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett, though I thought most of it was awfully boring anyway. Also, Richard Adam's Shardik has lengthy descriptive passages of rocks and streams, yawn. There's a fine art to skimming, finding that next introduction of conversation or other relevant development of a character that gets the book back on track. Overkill of theme and setting really gets to me :p

[Geoffrey]

I mean that whenever I a novel get bored, I skip lines but not whole pages. and some of you will say that I should better leave that book but what if it gets interesting in the next chapters? This is the thought which makes me to keep reading the book and to skip boring lines.

I do understand you now, well :nod: I can't ever help but feel terribly guilty though, when I fail to finish a book. It always seems like such a waste.

[yunnie]

Sometimes I'll skip very long, drawn out descriptions. And if I'm reading a biography, I often skip out big chunks that don't interest me.
Have you ever read Emile Zola? I used to skip pages of his books when I studied them at school. There are pages and pages of descriptions about places and people!!!

[Nightshade]

I alway skip the sex scenes...usually only a pargraph or two but once I belive it was somting like 8 pages :eek2:
But I never read every line in a book the good thng about this is I can read the same thing 4 times and still discover knew things :D

[jon1jt]

Well by starting this thread I wanted to know if there are any people here who skip pages while reading. If yes, why? Also, can you give any examples? What books were so boring (or any other reason....maybe you had to return the book to your friend/local library) that you decided to skip a few pages.

I admit that while Jack London is one of my favourite writers, I did skip some pages while reading his "Martin Eden". Mostly they were dialogues about phylosophy or someting else (I can't remember now) and back then maybe I wasn't "grown up" for that kind of information so those dialogues bored me to death. Now I'm thinking about reading that book once again, if I have time of course.

So, waiting for your comments))) :thumbs_up

P.S. I started to read T.Dreiser's An American Tragedy 5 or 6 days ago and now I'm finally finishing it. It's 890 pages in total and I'm on page 870 (the part where Griffits talks to the priest about Berta in prison)....I thought I'd never finish it :nod:


I have a photo of both Jack London and cover page of his first edition Martin Eden framed on my apartment wall. I encourage you to read that book again, all of it.

[IrishCanadian]

I hate skimming parts of books. I always think its a shame when someone tells me that they kip certain parts. Thats right! shame shame SHAME.
Just kidding.