Stop missing out!!!

By Alice McVeigh on July 24, 2024

The other day on Facebook someone — let’s call her X — complained about a (non-Jane Austen) novel that she couldn’t finish, because she couldn’t like the heroine enough to “root” for her.

Some people berated X, but I’m actually a massive believer in not finishing a book. (Sooooooo many books, such little time!)

Also, books need to catch you at the right point in your age/experience. Here are my recommended ages (since absolutely nobody asked me) for when a booklover should first approach Austen:

1. Before they’re 20: Pride and Prejudice
2. When aged between 20–25: Sense and Sensibility
3. Once they’ve reached about 30: Northanger Abbey, Emma, Persuasion, Lady Susan, Mansfield Park

Of course, some people will never appreciate the last few — and the order is significant — but we’re talking intelligent booklovers, so there is hope.

Returning to the Facebook bookworm page, some readers stoutly supported X’s decision to quit a book because she couldn’t empathise with its protagonist.

I didn’t. Instead, I remembered, aged thirteen, arguing with a friend that Scarlett in Gone with the Wind was too great a character to miss, even though she was wicked. In other words, I’ve always been bothered by the view that you have to “root” for a character in order to appreciate a book.