[Gwynn ap Nudd]

Are there books you have read where on the first read or rereads you will skip entire povs/storylines?

I do this on rereads at times. In a series that has a large cast of characters, there are usually a few that I am not interested in reading about. Not characters that I dislike per se, but ones that I am just not interested in. If it has been a while between a book and the sequel coming out, I will reread the ones coming up to it (yeah, that meant a lot of reading the slow parts of WoT), but I may skip parts.

I also find that it becomes easier to predict events in a series as the series goes on. There have been a few instances lately where I haven't even bothered reading the pov/plotline after figuring out where it was going and who was involved.

Examples: With the WoT reference I gave, I skipped anything other than Mat or minor characters for a few books on the reread. I skipped the Sansa povs when DwD came out and always skip everything to do with Red Wedding (the outcome was way too obvious, I never understood why it lauded so much by some). Likewise I haven't yet read the entire Barghast storyline in DoD because of how telegraphed the outcome was (for SE it's up there with Murillio's death and Cutter killing Gorlas as one of the most obvious events).

[worry]

If I were God this sin would make the Ten Commandments.

[Una]

Towards the end of WoT, I was skipping most of Perrin's wolf dreams.

[King Lear]

I used to skip large portions of the Frodo and Sam bits of LotR

[Chance]

Very rarely on first reads unless its a pretty poor book but did it in the Republic of Thieves for the end of the young Locke story. Predictable and tedious stuff really ain't worth the bother.

Frequently does so on re-reads such as ignoring the more boring storylines in WoT or Game of Thrones, its also pretty useful when re-reading Erikson to simply follow one storyline at a time. On a re-read it can even give you more focus on the good parts without the bother of reading the tedious stuff in books like MoI and HoC.

When I re-read the Dresden files I have begun to skip a couple of book generally the first few and blood rites .

This post has been edited by Chance: 22 December 2013 - 08:42 AM

[D'iversify]

Never skip storylines as I'm too much of a completist - which, yes, meant I read all the WoT sections on braid-pulling, wool-headed sheep herders and half-hearted spanking, so not skipping does have its downsides. Don't reread much generally admittedly - might skip more if I did.

[Messremb]

For quite a few years I skipped the entire Felisin part of Deadhouse Gates.

King Lear, on 22 December 2013 - 08:10 AM, said:

I used to skip large portions of the Frodo and Sam bits of LotR

I need to get DVDs of the films with them cut out.

[Ukjent]

I never skip on the first read, but after that.. Think I jumped over half of WoT when I did a reread before AMoL. And I usually skip nearly half of midnight tides when I have to read it again.

[Dragnipurake]

When I was still re-reading WOT, I routinely skipped all the braid jerking and inner slopes of breasts sections. Thankfully now that I am older and wiser and with more interesting authors, I have skipped reading WOT completely.

Did skip sections of Republic of Thieves for the first 200 pages or so till the story actually got going.

[Slow Ben]

Messremb said:

1387712462[/url]' post='1103504']

King Lear said:

1387699804[/url]' post='1103499']
I used to skip large portions of the Frodo and Sam bits of LotR

I need to get DVDs of the films with them cut out.

Never in books, but I skip the hell out of them in most LOTR re-watches.

[Salt-Man Z]

When I reread, I read every word.

Dragnipurake, on 23 December 2013 - 03:38 AM, said:

When I was still re-reading WOT, I routinely skipped all the braid jerking and inner slopes of breasts sections.

But the inner slope is one of the best parts of the breast! (Has never read WOT.)

[Abyss]

I may skim certain storylines on a reread.


If i'm tempted to skip entire storylines on a first read, I usually stop reading the book entirely.

[amphibian]

On a first read, I do exactly as Abyss does: read everything unless it's bad enough to abandon entirely.

That strikes the right balance between personal enjoyment, respecting the author and allowing different literary experiences to show their own worth without quitting over something like Felisin in Deadhouse Gates (which so many people complain about without really respecting the purpose of Felisin as a character in the first place).

On a re-read, I'm usually hunting something specific, so I'll skip large swathes of stuff.

[Gnaw]

First read I usually read it all unless I'm far enough in that I know I'll enjoy later parts.

• The Felisin bits in DHG. Much of Toll the Hounds and all of the snake. He almost lost me completely on TtH. I get it; we treat children like shit.
• Frodo and Sam parts of LoTR. In my defence I was 8 or so the first couple of times I read it. The DVDs have way too much Eisenstein in them for me; all those hero monologues.
• Louis L'Amour. His early stuff was a bit preachy in places. Later stuff got to throwing too much mysticism in for me.
• Shared world stories. Bolo, Man-Kzin wars, etc.
• Heinlein in the bat shit crazy books. I.e, almost everything past Stranger.

But generally if there are parts that I dislike that much I usually just toss it.

[Nicodimas]

I have read AsoIaF a bunch, I hate Daenryers Chapters for whatever reason..so when Winds Of Winter is released..Ill re-read the first 5 and skip hers /ugggg.

I love her in the show though so thats kinda funny/strange.

Sometimes on my first read, ill skip parts when they get endlessly boring, but usally its on re-reads when certain parts are fresh if that makes sense.

[End of Disc One]

Nicodimas, on 26 December 2013 - 07:10 PM, said:

I have read AsoIaF a bunch, I hate Daenryers Chapters for whatever reason..so when Winds Of Winter is released..Ill re-read the first 5 and skip hers /ugggg.

I love her in the show though so thats kinda funny/strange.

That is strange. I thought they made her unlikeable a lot earlier in the show than in the books.