There are so many books that I nearly didn’t read. There are so many stories to consume and we can’t get to them all, so some books will be passed over.
This blog was originally going to be a list of books that I decided not to read, but then I thought I’d end up feeling guilty and put all of them straight back onto my TBR. Instead, I’m going to list a bunch of books I tried to put down, but failed and read them anyway.
I will genuinely read anything.
Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo
Why did I nearly skip it? I read the first chapter and I didn’t make sense. It has a prologue that is basically a ‘behind the scenes’ to the main plot and didn’t feature any of the characters or details mentioned in the blurb, so it went straight back onto my shelves.
What changed my mind? I started college and made a friend who was also obsessed with books, and she had an Instagram edits account named after one of the characters. I mentioned I read one chapter and put it down, and she spent every single day for a few weeks telling me to read it again. So I did. It’s now one of my favourite books.
City of Bones by Cassandra Clare
Why did I nearly skip it? I read the first chapter and I just… didn’t like it. I had seen that the series of incredibly hyped and loved by so many people that I just wanted to love it too, but it didn’t captivate me immediately. I was a lot more picky with my books back then.
What changed my mind? I was on holiday and this was the only book I brought along with me, as well as City of Ashes. I was so bored that I forced myself to reread that first chapter over and over again until I loved it.
Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi
Why did I nearly skip it? This isn’t a proper ‘skip’, but I got just over halfway through the book, put it down, then had no desire to pick it up again for a few months.
What changed my mind? I refuse to not finish a book that I’ve started.
Every Day by David Levithan
Why did I nearly skip it? I’d read the book he did with John Green and didn’t really click with it. I wasn’t sure if I wasn’t a fan of the book itself, how his parts were written, or if I just didn’t like his writing style.
What changed my mind? I loved the concept of the book so much. Someone on Movellas was writing something with a similar idea (I don’t know if they were inspired or not) and I loved that, so I couldn’t pass up reading a version of it in physical book form.
Three Dark Crowns by Kendare Blake
Why did I nearly skip it? I read a lot of mixed reviews from the book community. Some were very positive but mentioned a lot of points that I didn’t like, and some were very negative but mentioned a lot of points that I did like.
What changed my mind? I loved her ‘Anna Dressed In Blood’ books too much to not read more of her work.
The Hunger Games
Why did I nearly skip it? I watched the film with my friend first, before I had any idea that there were books or that the franchise even existed. This was when I was still in a phase where I thought most book-to-film adaptions were accurate and there was no need for me to read the book.
What changed my mind? I found out that most book-to-film adaptions weren’t accurate and there was a need for me to read the book.
What is a book that you nearly didn’t read? What changed your mind?
TandeWrites 