Can we talk about the advice to skip the last 100 pages of a slow book?

My book club buddy swore I should skip the final 80 pages of 'The Power of One' because the ending drags. I tried it and missed a key twist that tied the whole story together. Now I'm wondering if skipping parts ever works or if it's just bad advice. Anyone else ever follow that tip and regret it?

2 comments

2 Comments

kelly.robin1mo ago

Wait, didn't you feel like you were cheating yourself out of the whole experience? I totally get where your buddy was coming from, but that advice never worked for me either. I once skipped the last sixty pages of a mystery novel because I got impatient, and it turned out the killer was someone the main character barely interacted with until the very end. I was so mad at myself for missing that reveal, it ruined the whole book for me. Now I just power through even the slow parts, because nine times out of ten, that payoff is what makes the slog worth it. It's like paying for a movie and walking out before the final scene.

margaret991mo ago

Yeah, I learned that lesson the hard way too @kelly.robin, now I just skim ahead to check if it gets better instead of skipping whole chunks.