Click for Source Image By Charlotte Dibley
I’m sizeist. There, I’ve said it.
A big, thick, lengthy book is a complete turn-off for me.
I find long books undeniably daunting. I'm not one of those people who can abandon a book part-way through; I have to complete them. I know, I know. No idea why. So, the thought of being disinterested and overwhelmed during a 900 page story yet soldiering on to the finish does not appeal to me in the slightest. I've always found hefty books a little off-putting and as a result, I haven't read anything ridiculously long. I always think 'come on, what can warrant that amount of deforestation and that amount of ink?'
I’m sizeist. There, I’ve said it.
A big, thick, lengthy book is a complete turn-off for me.
I find long books undeniably daunting. I'm not one of those people who can abandon a book part-way through; I have to complete them. I know, I know. No idea why. So, the thought of being disinterested and overwhelmed during a 900 page story yet soldiering on to the finish does not appeal to me in the slightest. I've always found hefty books a little off-putting and as a result, I haven't read anything ridiculously long. I always think 'come on, what can warrant that amount of deforestation and that amount of ink?'
Click for Source Image In all honesty, I think I'd be inept at reading anything really long. It would take me weeks to finish and by the time I'd got to the middle, I would almost certainly have forgotten what I'd already read. Who's that character? *Cue flicking back hundreds of pages, getting more and more furious*. I suppose that's the good thing about Kindles; there's no real concept of just how massive something is when you click the "Buy" button. However, because I'm a little weird and overly fixate on how long it will take me to read something, I'll always check the number of pages before purchase, even on a Kindle book. When reading, I notice what page I'm on and murmur 'halfway through, only another 200 to go,' or 'oh, 62%, come on!' I definitely need to crack this weird anti-long book discrimination that I have because I'm sure I'm missing out on lots of gems.
The longest book I’ve ever read is Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix at 766 pages. Looking at my copy, it is sizeable and could probably kill a full grown man if you hit him over the head with it. Then again, Order of the Phoenix was the fifth book in the most popular children's book series of all time, so J.K. Rowling could have written 4,000 pages and people would still have read it. I remember getting the book when it came out and rather than being severely peeved at the size, I excitedly thought ‘Wow! So many pages of Harry goodness to enjoy!’ I also recall having revision and school work to do, but I kept sneaking in chapters because OBVIOUSLY, the magical world took precedence over everything else. I think Order of the Phoenix marks the one and only time that I've been excited about the length of a book.
You know what else? The longer a book is, the more likely I am to skim read, just because I want to get to that final third where I know I'm on the home straight. Am I strange? I'm guessing so.
I’ve got The Goldfinch and The Luminaries (both notoriously lengthy) on my Kindle – I haven’t even got the paperback/poorly wrists excuse - but I’m actively avoiding them purely based on their lengths. I’ve even been skirting around the Game of Thrones books for the same reason.
The longest book I’ve ever read is Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix at 766 pages. Looking at my copy, it is sizeable and could probably kill a full grown man if you hit him over the head with it. Then again, Order of the Phoenix was the fifth book in the most popular children's book series of all time, so J.K. Rowling could have written 4,000 pages and people would still have read it. I remember getting the book when it came out and rather than being severely peeved at the size, I excitedly thought ‘Wow! So many pages of Harry goodness to enjoy!’ I also recall having revision and school work to do, but I kept sneaking in chapters because OBVIOUSLY, the magical world took precedence over everything else. I think Order of the Phoenix marks the one and only time that I've been excited about the length of a book.
You know what else? The longer a book is, the more likely I am to skim read, just because I want to get to that final third where I know I'm on the home straight. Am I strange? I'm guessing so.
I’ve got The Goldfinch and The Luminaries (both notoriously lengthy) on my Kindle – I haven’t even got the paperback/poorly wrists excuse - but I’m actively avoiding them purely based on their lengths. I’ve even been skirting around the Game of Thrones books for the same reason.
What's the longest book you've read? Do you feel dread or delight when you see hundreds upon hundreds of pages? Are there any lengthy books that I should make the effort to read?
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