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101 Books Most People Start but Never Finish

They may be some of the most famous books in history, but "Catch-22," "Atlas Shrugged," and "The Lord of the Rings" are among 10 of the most "abandoned" books, according to reader-driven book recommendation website Goodreads.
Interested in why people set aside their books, Goodreads analyzed which books were most frequently shelved by their users.
49,404 users · 150,900 views
 
avg. score: 25 of 101 (24%)
required scores: 1, 13, 21, 27, 38 
type to search

How many have you at least started?

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The Lord of the Rings (J.R.R.Tolkien)
The Lord of the Rings
1
J.R.R.Tolkien
Les Miserables (Victor Hugo)
Les Miserables
2
Victor Hugo
Infinite Jest (David Foster Wallace)
Infinite Jest
3
David Foster Wallace
Atlas Shrugged (Ayn Rand)
Atlas Shrugged
4
Ayn Rand
The Catcher in the Rye (J.D. Salinger)
The Catcher in the Rye
5
J.D. Salinger
Hard Choices (Hillary Rodham Clinton)
Hard Choices
6
Hillary Rodham Clinton
Capital in the 21st Century (Thomas Piketty)
Capital in the 21st Century
7
Thomas Piketty
Catch-22 (Joseph Heller)
Catch-22
8
Joseph Heller
Ulysses (James Joyce)
Ulysses
9
James Joyce
Moby Dick (Herman Melville)
Moby Dick
10
Herman Melville
The Bible (Anonymous)
The Bible
11
Anonymous
A Brief History of Time (Stephen Hawking)
A Brief History of Time
12
Stephen Hawking
Thinking, Fast and Slow (Daniel Kahneman)
Thinking, Fast and Slow
13
Daniel Kahneman
War and Peace (Leo Tolstoy)
War and Peace
14
Leo Tolstoy
The Sound and the Fury (William Faulkner)
The Sound and the Fury
15
William Faulkner
One Hundred Years of Solitude (Gabriel Garcia Marquez)
One Hundred Years of Solitude
16
Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead (Sheryl Sandberg)
Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead
17
Sheryl Sandberg
Flash Boys (Michael Lewis)
Flash Boys
18
Michael Lewis
Fifty Shades of Grey (E.L. James)
Fifty Shades of Grey
19
E.L. James
The Great Gatsby (F. Scott Fitzgerald)
The Great Gatsby
20
F. Scott Fitzgerald
Midnight's Children (Salman Rushdie)
Midnight's Children
21
Salman Rushdie
Catching Fire (Suzanne Collins)
Catching Fire
22
Suzanne Collins
The Canterbury Tales (Geoffrey Chaucer)
The Canterbury Tales
23
Geoffrey Chaucer
A Tale of Two Cities (Charles Dickens)
A Tale of Two Cities
24
Charles Dickens
Invisible Man (Ralph Ellison)
Invisible Man
25
Ralph Ellison
In Search of Lost Time (Marcel Proust)
In Search of Lost Time
26
Marcel Proust
The Silmarillion (J.R.R. Tolkien)
The Silmarillion
27
J.R.R. Tolkien
Wicked (Gregory Maguire)
Wicked
28
Gregory Maguire
On the Road (Jack Kerouac)
On the Road
29
Jack Kerouac
Life of Pi (Yann Martel)
Life of Pi
30
Yann Martel
Pride and Prejudice (Jane Austen)
Pride and Prejudice
31
Jane Austen
Crime and Punishment (Fyodor Dostoevsky)
Crime and Punishment
32
Fyodor Dostoevsky
Don Quixote (Miguel De Cervantes)
Don Quixote
33
Miguel De Cervantes
Gone With the Wind (Margaret Mitchell)
Gone With the Wind
34
Margaret Mitchell
Walden (Henry David Thoreau)
Walden
35
Henry David Thoreau
Ready Player One (Ernest Cline)
Ready Player One
36
Ernest Cline
A Storm of Swords (George R.R. Martin)
A Storm of Swords
37
George R.R. Martin
In Cold Blood (Truman Capote)
In Cold Blood
38
Truman Capote
The Last of the Mohicans (James Fenimore Cooper)
The Last of the Mohicans
39
James Fenimore Cooper
Water for Elephants (Sara Gruen)
Water for Elephants
40
Sara Gruen
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