28 May 2009

BTT: Mental ReWrite

In the perfect follow-up to last week’s question, as suggested by C in DC:
Is there a book that you wish you could “unread”? One that you disliked so thoroughly you wish you could just forget that you ever read it?

For the most part, I enjoy the books I read on some level. Typically, I can find the good in a book, a reason to read. But over the years, there ahve been a few where I've thought 'why did I waste my time'.
Up to a few years ago, I would finish reading a book even if I didn't like it. I would force myself to continue, page by page, thinking that the book would get better, or that I had to read it for some intellectual reason, or that I would somehow be failing if I stopped. Finally I realized that there were just too many books and too little time. Unfortunately I read a few stinkers before coming to this realization.
I've done a decent job of deleting these books from my mind, so I don't necessarily need to unread them. I've soft-erased them, writing over their plot with the plots of better books, morphing their characters into the new faces of loved texts, and sometimes revising the stories into more interesting tales.
I refuse to type their names in the fear that calling them to mind will undo the mental rewiring.

4 comments:

  1. I agree, there are too many books to be read to suffer through a boring one!

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  2. Bluestocking: :)

    Nise': I am sad that it took me so long to realize that!

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  3. I couldn't agree more! My reading time is precious...I don't want to waste it on a bad book.

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