The particularities of page 87

What do you do if you start reading a book and you find you’re not enjoying it? Do you put it down? Or press on?

There are those who say toss it… there are better books out there and there’s no point wasting time reading something you’re not loving. Others say press on. Perhaps it will get better. Yet others say, always finish what you start. And then there’s the FOMO crowd. “What if I miss out on something?”

In the book club I belong to we have one rule (the first and only rule of book club): Always read to at least page 87. By then you have a good idea of the feel of the book, and you’ll have given it a decent chance.

Why page 87? No one really knows. There’s no scientific study (that I’m aware of) that captures the exact point of no return in a book. But since we introduced the rule I’ve been conscious of pushing through, and it works! Sometimes a book starts out slow or scrappy but becomes more captivating by page 87. Sometimes it doesn’t. It’s a good rule of thumb. Give it a try!

(Interestingly, the number 87 is considered “the devil’s number” by many with regards to Australian cricket. Read more about this phenomenon here.)

Colin is our resident wordsmith. He can write absolutely anything and loves to read, too. He even has his own book club.