Piper Nuelle

I was looking through social media the other day and I came across a post that said ‘Unpopular book Opinion’, and it was all about a certain opinion this person had about a book… But it got me thinking… What are some unpopular book-ish opinions? So, naturally I got to making one of my favourite things, a list about all the ones I do or know about that are unpopular…

• I skip to the last page to see the ending before I’ve read the book – I actually remember doing this as a kid! I hated surprises and wanted to know anything bad that might happen beforehand so I wouldn’t feel so bad and depressed when it did actually come up within the story. Plus, Sometimes I did it when me and a group of friends all promised to read a book (In our friends book club) but I either forgot or didn’t like it, so I would skip to the end to at least sort of know what people would be talking about.
• Judging books by their cover – This one is not really something I do. Yes, sometimes I will buy a book on a whim based on what the cover looks like if it really stands out and calls to me, but for the most part, I don’t really buy a book based on it’s cover, it’s more based on reviews, what is recommended in my local book shop, word of mouth, and whether it suits my need for a certain genre at that moment in time and whether after flipping through the pages and the blurb and I feel connected to the book.
• Reading reviews after finishing a book so I can feel validated – Ok, I have actually done this a few times. Say I’ve purchased a book that has been raved about, but I read it and wasn’t keen, I will then read reviews to see if it is just me infuriated by certain characters etc, or whether other people feel the same way too. But, I do also read reviews for some books first too, all depends on my mood!
• I read multiple books at once – Yeah again, guilty as charged! I currently have three books on the go. One I’m about to finish and will review shortly, one I’m struggling to get into and one that I have just picked up and couldn’t wait to start reading.
• Reading books on the loo – Ok, so I never used to do this, I used to want to be in and out as quick as possible, I also worried about germs and contamination but… I have an illness… Endometriosis which can affect my bowel movements and sometimes I need a little ‘Alone time’, to feel comfortable to go (Sorry TMI lol) and sometimes I just need to sit and contemplate life and read for my body to be happy to go. I also find the bathroom is the only safe space away from my kids, I can happily sit in there for ten minutes and not be disturbed. And to banish my germ phobia I keep Dettol wipes in my loo to wipe the book over and I won’t touch the book if my hands aren’t clean and the loo seat is always down when flushing lol. I know it seems wrong but I actually bet there are loads of loo readers out there but they are just to ashamed to admit it. Even one of my friends reads in the loo, usually science books, but everyone to their own.
• Dog Ears (Folding the pages to mark your place in the book) – Omg… I’m so sorry again I’m so guilty as charged!!! I’m a book vandal, I’m sorry, I know it’s a problem and I am seeking help… My daughter got me a new book mark the other day to try and stop me vandalising my books… She was so disappointed in me… LOL!!!
• If it has a mistake in it it’s a bad book – I for one do not believe this for an instance. We are all only human, the author, the writer, the editor, the proof reader, the beta reader and so on… We are all only human and we can only do so much, if one little mistake is missed in a book for me it does not write off the whole book. If I am enjoying the story and the characters, one or two or a few little mistakes is not enough to make me dislike or hate on a book. What will make me dislike a book is, a bad storyline, plot holes that are excessive and annoying characters that I cannot gel or vibe with.
• All books by celebrities are good – This again I do not agree with. Whilst some are indeed good, some are not. Some celebrities are celebs for reasons known, e.g. actor, actress, racing car driver, reality T.V star etc… But then they are given chances to make more money, expand their audience by writing books… But they might not be very good at it, sometimes it is just a mere money making scheme, a quick buck because they already have an audience. And then sometimes they don’t even write it, it’s all ghost written and they get all the praise for something they didn’t actually write because they have fame and money. I think if you are famous for one thing, let someone else have a try and a chance at the other thing, don’t be greedy and take it all.
• Traditionally Published books are better than Self published books – No, now I may be biased because I am self publishing my own books, but I have read a lot of books, some are good, some are bad… Some are bad and traditionally published and some are good and self published and vice versa. I do think there needs to be a change in the way people in the book world view self published books, not all are done on the quick and cheap, some are professionally done and edited to high standards. Plus, now a days agents and publishing houses are not taking risks on books unless the author is well known, has a huge following, its in a good selling genre or a celebrities book, they know people in the business or they work within the writing world (There are exceptions of course) but many are making cuts and are not taking risks on new authors and books, so some authors only have the option of self publishing. And yes that does mean they are not so regulated and some people do self publish some rubbish expecting a quick buck and fame, but you just have to whittle the bad ones out, and places like Amazon are now clamping down on rouge authors and rubbish books by making publishing criteria meet a certain spec and standard e.g. X amount of pages, but by also by looking at reviews and pulling books that have bad editing, bad grammar etc… So, I do think Self Published authors need a little more slack and praise… Because a lot of Self Published books are awesome.
• Skipping a bit in a book if they know something bad is coming – I love re-reading books, especially ones from my teenage years. And sometimes when I revisit I may remember that a certain book has a certain part that makes me sad or uncomfortable, so I skip it! Obviously I still know it’s there, I still know it happens in the story for the story to progress… But I just skip it by a few pages so I don’t have to witness it again.

So there you have it, some of mine and others unpopular book opinions… Let me know, how would you answer some of these? Do we share the same views and answers or would yours differ? Or do you have any I could add to another post another time? Let me know!!!

Take care, xo Piper xo