Introductions- read or skip them?

[Sundrop]

Always read the intros and afterwords.....every time, all the time ♥

[tmac61]

I like reading SK's intros, because they sometimes offer some insight into his thought process when was writing the book.

[Todash]

With most authors, I skim them, and if they're interesting, I'll read them. They often are.

I always read King's, of course. And I always read Neil Gaiman's. Those two authors could publish their grocery lists, and I'd read them.

[tenngolfer]

I have to say I read about 1/3, glance through 1/3, and skip 1/3. Although I have to include that I read a decent amount of non-fiction career related material, and some of the intros to subjects like Metallurgy, and Organizational Behavior may not really be all that interesting.

[Shoesalesman]

I like reading SK's intros, because they sometimes offer some insight into his thought process when was writing the book.

Me too, for the same reason.

[fredthe3rd]

I remember him giving a bit to much info in the intros to the stories in Everything's Eventual. Classic novels often have an intro by an academic and I always read these after I've read the novel because they almost always spoil something.

Stephen's after words... I usually wait til the next day to read them because I feel they distract from the closure of the novel.

[blunthead]

Always read the intros and afterwords.....every time, all the time ♥

Imho, every word in any book should be read, with the exception perhaps of the page with the publication info and some of included reviews quotes.

[kingricefan]

With King I always read the intros, afterwards and whatever else there is printed on the pages. When I was in my teens, I wouldn't bother with any of that stuff, until I started reading SK. By the way- there is a really rather enlightening afterword in the original paperback editions of Firestarter that wasn't in the hardcover version. Very interesting, indeed!

[ZMeister]

They're usually the first thing I look for when I get one of his books. I also enjoy it when he quotes song lyrics and poetry before chapters or sections. I've discovered Yeats, T.S. Eliot and Theodore Roethke from reading those.

[jacobtlong]

I always read introductions whether they are by the author who wrote a particular book or by a different author. I actually prefer introductions by a different author than the one who wrote the book most of the time. But on the whole I just read introductions in general because I've always believed in reading a book from first page to last even if the info contained within the introduction is a bit trite.

But SK's introductions are generally pretty interesting.

I don't really like afterwords, though. At least not until after I've had enough time to digest the contents of the novel or story collection. Which, depending on the book, could be a while.