Let’s be honest—at some point, we’ve all picked up a classic novel thinking, “This will be the one that changes my life.” Fast-forward three weeks and it's... collecting dust next to your phone charger.
Don’t worry, it’s not just you. Some of the most celebrated books in history are also the most unfinished. They look great on a bookshelf and sound impressive at dinner parties, but finishing them? That’s a whole other epic.
Here are 10 classic books readers love to start but almost never finish—and the surprisingly relatable reasons why.
1. "Moby-Dick" by Herman Melville
Started because: “Call me Ishmael” is iconic, and the story of chasing a giant whale? Sounds thrilling!
Abandoned because: It turns into a 600-page deep dive on whaling, knots, and ocean metaphysics. You didn’t sign up for a marine biology degree.
2. "Ulysses" by James Joyce
Started because: It's often called the greatest novel of the 20th century. You’re a sophisticated reader, right?
Abandoned because: It’s less a book and more a fever dream written in code. Stream-of-consciousness overload.
3. "War and Peace" by Leo Tolstoy
Started because: It’s the literary Mount Everest.
Abandoned because: It has 587 characters, philosophical detours, and entire chapters that feel like history textbooks. It’s more like War and...patience.
4. "The Brothers Karamazov" by Fyodor Dostoevsky
Started because: You want to reflect on life’s big moral questions.
Abandoned because: Halfway through, you start Googling: “What even is free will?”
Spoiler: It doesn’t get easier.
5. "The Sound and the Fury" by William Faulkner
Started because: You heard Faulkner was a genius.
Abandoned because: The first section is narrated by a character who doesn’t use time normally—or sentences, apparently.
6. "Gravity’s Rainbow" by Thomas Pynchon
Started because: It’s legendary. Postmodern. Brilliant.
Abandoned because: You got lost in a black hole of conspiracy theories, rocket science, and characters with names like “Tantivy Mucker-Maffick.” Yes, really.
7. "Don Quixote" by Miguel de Cervantes
Started because: It’s the OG novel! You’re here for the satire and swordplay.
Abandoned because: 1,000+ pages later, it starts feeling like the same joke on repeat—only slower.
8. "In Search of Lost Time" by Marcel Proust
Started because: It's the ultimate introspective journey.
Abandoned because: One sentence lasts an entire page, and 300 pages in, you’re still at breakfast. (Madeleines, anyone?)
9. "Les Misérables" by Victor Hugo
Started because: You loved the musical. You’re ready for revolution!
Abandoned because: Hugo stops the story every few chapters to talk about sewers. Literal sewers. For pages.
10. "Atlas Shrugged" by Ayn Rand
Started because: You’re curious about its bold, philosophical ideas.
Abandoned because: At some point, you realize you’re 70 pages deep into a monologue on free-market economics. It’s less story, more TED Talk.
So Why Do We Keep Starting These Books?
Because we’re dreamers. Because we love a challenge. Because every now and then, a classic does change your life. But sometimes? Life is short, the TBR list is long, and it’s okay to DNF (Did Not Finish) without guilt.
TL;DR: You’re Not Alone.
Unfinished classics are a literary rite of passage. So whether you made it halfway through Moby-Dick or just opened Ulysses and immediately closed it again—congrats! You’re officially a reader with taste and boundaries.
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