Kylie Posted June 24, 2009 Share Posted June 24, 2009 I think Andy was being sarcastic because the last line of his post was: Madness. Madness! This is crazy. The men in white coats are coming for you now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janet Posted August 26, 2009 Share Posted August 26, 2009 5. The 'wicca' series by Cate Tiernan-Ok, I feel awful saying this since my close friend and my fiancee rave about them all the time, but i tried to read them once around 4 years ago and never got on with them. I tried several times but despite the Ok blurb on the back, the contents was a car crash. I thought i would never see them again, yet the other week my friend surprised us by revealing he had borrowed them yet again from the library. They've been knocking around the local libraries since I was in school...it's time they vanished for good! I went to our local large second-hand bookstore, The Bookbarn, a few weeks ago and they'd got about 10 of these Wicca books on one shelf in the 'unsorted' section, all brand new. I was drawn to the pretty pale pastel coloured covers but I read the blurb and they didn't sound like my cup of tea. I'm glad I didn't pick one up now! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mysterioso Posted August 26, 2009 Share Posted August 26, 2009 Ooh this is a struggle as there's so much dross out there.... 1. The Time Traveler's Wife 2. The Lovely Bones 3. Twilight and it's irksome sequels 4. We Need To Talk About Kevin 5. On Green Dolphin Street- Faulks on a really bad day... Can I have more than 5 ?!! I was enjoying that... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janet Posted August 26, 2009 Share Posted August 26, 2009 Ooh this is a struggle as there's so much dross out there.... 1. The Time Traveler's Wife I think you're in the minority on that one! One man's meat... and all that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bethany725 Posted August 27, 2009 Share Posted August 27, 2009 Ooh this is a struggle as there's so much dross out there.... 1. The Time Traveler's Wife 4. We Need To Talk About Kevin Can I have more than 5 ?!! I was enjoying that... Heh.. I liked your last comment. Funny. I agree with you on #1 (yes, I'm in that minority with you!) and totally disagree on #4.. Loved that book! (But I think I'm in the minority again on that one.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adam Posted August 27, 2009 Share Posted August 27, 2009 1. The Time Traveler's Wife Maybe you'll like the movie better Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sirinrob Posted August 27, 2009 Share Posted August 27, 2009 (edited) The first five that spring to mind are: "The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant" by Stephen Donaldson: featuring the most unlikeable, ungrateful, useless so-called hero in the history of literature. Don't harbour, as I did, the hope that an illuminating epiphany will happen if you just bear with it one more page/volume; it doesn't" Totally agree here. The first volume is ok-ish, the following two volumes are simply tedious. Some bright spark gave me the second trlilogy - it was discreetly got rid off lol Edited August 27, 2009 by sirinrob Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sirinrob Posted August 27, 2009 Share Posted August 27, 2009 I've got to admit that I have read The Silmarilion, and although I wouldn't recommend it, I can't say that I found it that bad. I think it looses a lot of readers due to the fact that it reads like a history lesson. I would like to add Gravity's Rainbow by Thomas Pynchon to the unreadable pile though. I have now tried three times to read that book and, as before, I've gotten lost within the first fifty pages. What the _____ is going on in there Tom?! Hogfather by Terry Pratchett is the only book I've ever thrown in a bucket in disgust, and although I used to be a huge Elmore Leonard fan I left Bandits on a plane. I think it's far more annoying when a book is bad due to the amount of time you invest in it before you realise this fact. Can understand about Gravity Rainbow, the first 100 pages are confusing. Having said that it does become clearer and yes I have read it!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poppyshake Posted August 27, 2009 Share Posted August 27, 2009 It's so difficult isn't it because every book that somebody dislikes somebody else loves .. that being the case, I wouldn't recommend either .. The End of Mr Y - Scarlett Thomas Mr Toppit - Charles Elton Both started brilliantly and had really promising premises ... it just didn't happen (for me anyway) Books that I abandoned ... Salamander - Thomas Wharton (It just got sillier and sillier) Madame Bovary - Gustave Flaubert (I did read most of it .. in the hope it might catch fire .. not literally of course!) Books that I didn't enjoy ... The Book of Dave - Will Self (too clever) On the Road - Jack Kerouac (I so wanted to love it .. maybe another time) Gardens of the Moon - Steven Erikson (and I know I part company with nearly all of the lovers of fantasy fiction here but it's not really my preferred genre .. though I love Tolkien .. I only dip my toes into fantasy occasionally and this was like someone had given me a big shove into an ocean ... I didn't understand one word he wrote and I lost sight of who was who until my mind became so boggled I had to read a chapter of Jane Austen in order to calm down. I read five chapters and then gave up the will). I found that I'm really only suited to fantasy fiction with a small 'f' .. the sort that appeals to children. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sirinrob Posted August 27, 2009 Share Posted August 27, 2009 The one author I really dislike is Sartre. Read 'Nausea' which was ok. Made the big mistake of reading 'The Age of reason'. In my opnion this is a pretentious, longwinded novel with totally superficial and unlikeable characters. Its also depressing. I might finish 'Being and Nothingness' one day, but not making any promises Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BookJumper Posted August 27, 2009 Share Posted August 27, 2009 Totally agree here. The first volume is ok-ish, the following two volumes are simply tedious. Some bright spark gave me the second trlilogy - it was discreetly got rid off lolI respect your tact and grace - if someone had dared present me with the second trilogy of Thomas "The Whinger" Covenant I probably would have hit them over the head with it. The End of Mr Y - Scarlett Thomas... started brilliantly and had really promising premises ... it just didn't happen (for me anyway) It didn't happen for me either then again, I gave it to someone on here who loved it so to each their own. Books that I abandoned ... Salamander - Thomas Wharton (It just got sillier and sillier) Don't say that, I've got it on my shelf, looking all inviting and stuff... ! I might finish 'Being and Nothingness' one day, but not making any promises I admire your courage. My copy was mercilessly charity shopped - never (attempted to) read a more obscure, incomprehensible, pretentious thing in my entire life. I do like my philosophy but I like it engaging and, while by no means dumbed down, not obfuscated beyond necessity: Descartes, Nietzsche, Kierkegaard... now, those are the kind of guys who can get complex concepts across entertainingly and (within reason) accessibly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poppyshake Posted August 27, 2009 Share Posted August 27, 2009 Books that I abandoned ... Salamander - Thomas Wharton (It just got sillier and sillier) Don't say that, I've got it on my shelf, looking all inviting and stuff... ! lol It was probably just me, don't let it put you off .. you might love it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MuggleMagic Posted August 27, 2009 Share Posted August 27, 2009 I never struggle through books now. There are too many books out there and so little time The last book I struggled through was Moby Dick and that was in January 2006. God knows why I continued with it but I did and it was AWFUL! I can't really think of any others. If a book hasn't got my attention within a few chapters then I give up completely. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bel-ami Posted August 27, 2009 Share Posted August 27, 2009 I've been enjoying reading through this thread and like others have gasped when someone wrote that they didn't like some personal favourites like War of the Worlds, Madame Bovary or Stendahl's Scarlet & Black. I would include Lord of the Rings in that, but Freewheeling Andy's comment made me think about whether I would still like it now as an adult. I read it when I was eleven and was totally captivated by it. I wonder whether it would have the same effect if I read it now - probably not. So, my turn to upset someone perhaps. The books I wouldn't recommend: The Alchemist by Paolo Coelho Father Brown by G.K. Chesterton To the Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf Weaveworld by Clive Barker The Influencing Engine by Richard Hayden Reasons? apart from boredom, I think the first three were partly because I don't like being preached at or having an author's philosophical or moral preconceptions forced upon me. Weaveworld proved to me that fantasy horror wasn't my cup of tea and the last one was simply the dullest, most pointless, badly written book I have ever waded through (sorry Mr Hayden). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Echo Posted August 27, 2009 Share Posted August 27, 2009 ACK! I loved Weaveworld! It's still one of my favorites...and due for a re-read, I think. But I agree with you about To the Lighthouse. Bo-ring. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mysterioso Posted August 27, 2009 Share Posted August 27, 2009 Maybe you'll like the movie better I admire your optimism Adam but, having seen the trailer, that old adage involving hot pins and eyes springs to mind... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Piper Posted August 27, 2009 Share Posted August 27, 2009 Wouldn't recommend Murder Suicide - Keith Ablow The Dead - Ingrid Black Breath, Eyes, Memory - Edwidge Danticat But Inside I'm Screaming - Elizabeth Flock A Quiet Belief In Angels - R.J. Ellory The Resurrectionist - James Bradley probably loads more but these recent reads spring to mind. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pickwick Posted August 28, 2009 Share Posted August 28, 2009 Ooh this is a struggle as there's so much dross out there.... 1. The Time Traveler's Wife 2. The Lovely Bones 3. Twilight and it's irksome sequels 4. We Need To Talk About Kevin 5. On Green Dolphin Street- Faulks on a really bad day... Can I have more than 5 ?!! I was enjoying that... My list would be almost identical to yours.Haven't read We Need to Talk About Kevin so will probably avoid that one,as we seem to have similar tastes in books.I was recently persuaded to read Born Bad by Josephine Cox that was a big mistake for me I hated it.So that would be my number 4 on the list. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bel-ami Posted August 28, 2009 Share Posted August 28, 2009 ACK! I loved Weaveworld! It's still one of my favorites...and due for a re-read, I think. But I agree with you about To the Lighthouse. Bo-ring. Re: Weaveworld - yes, its inclusion says more about my tastes than the book itself, so perhaps not fair that one. I should have thought it through better - if you like horror/fantasy, then Clive Barker is to be recommended I'm sure Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
libri vermis Posted October 30, 2009 Share Posted October 30, 2009 "The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant" by Stephen Donaldson: featuring the most unlikeable, ungrateful, useless so-called hero in the history of literature. Don't harbour, as I did, the hope that an illuminating epiphany will happen if you just bear with it one more page/volume; it doesn't. Any "Harry Potter" between vol. 5 and the end: for me, the magic quite simply died at the end of "The Goblet of Fire". I didn't even bother with the last few chapters of 5, the second half of 6 and most of 7 - this was no longer the world which had captured me; and to think I waited so long for 5 to come out. In terms of expectations, possibly the worst literary let-down of my life. "Twilight": I apologise in advance to all twilighters here, but... I found this so predictable, unbelievable (the clumsy new girl in town desired by every boy in school? did this woman ever go to high school?!) and badly-written I could not persuade myself to trudge beyond page 120. I might have tried to ignore the writing had the plot gripped me, but I found the characters too soppy/two-dimensional and the romance too sudden/devoid of any real foundation/chemistry to make me care. Yes, Thomas Covenant is one of the most unlikeable characters in literature. I agree with you there. However, I disagree about there not being an illuminating epiphany. There is a Lord Foul inside of us all, I think, and that may be why so many find this series uncomfortable and even loathsome to read. Exploring the part of ourselves that we don't like can be very difficult. I agree with you completely about Twilight and the last few books of the Harry Potter series, though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nollaig Posted October 30, 2009 Share Posted October 30, 2009 These aren't the top 5, just a random 5: The Shack - W. P. Young Pig Island - Mo Hayder Haunted - James Herbert The UnDead - Dacre Stoker Okay so four, I can't come up with another. Clearly, I know my own taste too well to pick out awful books. That said, all of the above were guilty pleasures at the time of reading, and I would read them again, by man they're bad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BookJumper Posted October 30, 2009 Share Posted October 30, 2009 Yes, Thomas Covenant is one of the most unlikeable characters in literature. I agree with you there. However, I disagree about there not being an illuminating epiphany. There is a Lord Foul inside of us all, I think, and that may be why so many find this series uncomfortable and even loathsome to read. Exploring the part of ourselves that we don't like can be very difficult.I actually agree with your statement, so let me elaborate what I meant is that TC does not have a satisfactory illuminating epiphany of the "You're not real, I'm not your saviour, go away ---> actually, then again, I'll believe in myself and take control of my destiny" kind. The UnDead - Dacre Stoker Oh dear... ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nollaig Posted October 30, 2009 Share Posted October 30, 2009 Poor BookJumper lol. Sorry, but it's true. I may even have to pass on writing a review on it because I just don't know how I can in all honesty say anything good about it. 'It has a nice cover.' Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fastpants Posted October 30, 2009 Share Posted October 30, 2009 I havent read a great geal of books in my lifetime, I've probably read 99% of my books in the last 4 years so I only have two dissapointments. 1. Rant - Chuck Palahniuk 2. If you liked school you'll love Work - Irvine Welsh I gues I expected more for from these authors from previous work. Just turned out to be extreamely twisted. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eleanor Posted November 13, 2009 Share Posted November 13, 2009 I found the Lovley Bones by Alice Seabold beautifully told right up until the final quarter which really ruined the book for me. My list would be 1. Brave New World- Aldous Huxley 2. Revolutionary Road -Richard Yates 3. The Tin Princess -Philip Pullman 4. Wuthering Heights- Emily Bronte 5. Hard Times- Charles Dickens Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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