Let’s chat about two books that are a little woo-woo: *Why Buddhism Is True* and *The Artist’s Way*.
People say a book only counts if you finish it. But the two books I rate most highly are both ones I stopped halfway through the first time: one at 40%, the other at 15%.
The first was *Why Buddhism Is True*. I started listening to the audiobook in October 2019. I was preoccupied with work and couldn’t quiet my mind, and I was still pretty inexperienced at listening to audiobooks. By the time I’d reached 40%, I hadn’t gotten much out of it, so I decisively put it on pause. I even wrote myself a little justification in my notes: This is kind of in keeping with what Buddhism teaches about letting go.
In the spring of 2021, I started meditating again, sitting for thirty minutes each evening. Some nights it came easily; other nights, not so much. Two months later, I picked the book back up, and this time I couldn’t stop listening. The day I finished it, I wrote: There are no bad books, only bad timing.
What it left me with was very tangible. One day, I spilled coffee on my slippers and the floor. In the past, my first reaction would definitely have been to swear. This time, I first noticed the urge to swear, and then it passed on its own. At the time, I was meditating for only about ten minutes a day.
The second was *The Artist’s Way*, and I put it down twice. In January 2021, I got 15% of the way through and realized it was a 12-week program that involved writing three pages every morning. My focus was on work at the time, and I couldn’t spare the energy, so I stopped. In March 2022, I felt the timing was about right and started reading again, but after that, it never showed up in my journal.
I finally got into it at the end of 2024. Around then, I realized that putting my thoughts down on paper worked better than anything else, which reminded me of the book. On December 27, I wrote my first Morning Pages, and I finished the book the following April. It was the book that had the greatest impact on my behavior in 2025.
There was also *Principles*. In 2019, I spent 17 hours listening to the audiobook, and I’d guess at least 70% of it went over my head. When I read it for the third time in 2022, I finally felt I understood it.
Looking back at these experiences, I think there are at least three reasons you might not be able to keep reading. The book itself might be bad—in that case, put it down; there’s no need to feel guilty. Or you might not be ready for it yet. For example, my English listening skills weren’t up to the density of *Principles* back then. You can skim through it over a few hours and come back to it in a few years. The last possibility is that the timing isn’t right: you haven’t yet run into the problem the book is about.
I used to think the right time meant having free time and a quiet mind. Now I think it’s more like this: the book happens to answer a question you’re dealing with. I needed to quiet my mind before *Why Buddhism Is True* could speak to me, while *The Artist’s Way* clicked during the messiest period of my life.
The next time you can’t get through a book, you could ask yourself: Is it the book, my ability, or the timing? The first two are easy enough to deal with. For the third, just remember the book, and wait until you encounter the question it has an answer to.
People say a book only counts if you finish it. But the two books I rate most highly are both ones I stopped halfway through the first time: one at 40%, the other at 15%.
The first was *Why Buddhism Is True*. I started listening to the audiobook in October 2019. I was preoccupied with work and couldn’t quiet my mind, and I was still pretty inexperienced at listening to audiobooks. By the time I’d reached 40%, I hadn’t gotten much out of it, so I decisively put it on pause. I even wrote myself a little justification in my notes: This is kind of in keeping with what Buddhism teaches about letting go.
In the spring of 2021, I started meditating again, sitting for thirty minutes each evening. Some nights it came easily; other nights, not so much. Two months later, I picked the book back up, and this time I couldn’t stop listening. The day I finished it, I wrote: There are no bad books, only bad timing.
What it left me with was very tangible. One day, I spilled coffee on my slippers and the floor. In the past, my first reaction would definitely have been to swear. This time, I first noticed the urge to swear, and then it passed on its own. At the time, I was meditating for only about ten minutes a day.
The second was *The Artist’s Way*, and I put it down twice. In January 2021, I got 15% of the way through and realized it was a 12-week program that involved writing three pages every morning. My focus was on work at the time, and I couldn’t spare the energy, so I stopped. In March 2022, I felt the timing was about right and started reading again, but after that, it never showed up in my journal.
I finally got into it at the end of 2024. Around then, I realized that putting my thoughts down on paper worked better than anything else, which reminded me of the book. On December 27, I wrote my first Morning Pages, and I finished the book the following April. It was the book that had the greatest impact on my behavior in 2025.
There was also *Principles*. In 2019, I spent 17 hours listening to the audiobook, and I’d guess at least 70% of it went over my head. When I read it for the third time in 2022, I finally felt I understood it.
Looking back at these experiences, I think there are at least three reasons you might not be able to keep reading. The book itself might be bad—in that case, put it down; there’s no need to feel guilty. Or you might not be ready for it yet. For example, my English listening skills weren’t up to the density of *Principles* back then. You can skim through it over a few hours and come back to it in a few years. The last possibility is that the timing isn’t right: you haven’t yet run into the problem the book is about.
I used to think the right time meant having free time and a quiet mind. Now I think it’s more like this: the book happens to answer a question you’re dealing with. I needed to quiet my mind before *Why Buddhism Is True* could speak to me, while *The Artist’s Way* clicked during the messiest period of my life.
The next time you can’t get through a book, you could ask yourself: Is it the book, my ability, or the timing? The first two are easy enough to deal with. For the third, just remember the book, and wait until you encounter the question it has an answer to.