Books you "should" love, but just don't

[Anonymous]

Educated — Tara Westover

The improbability of the details of the book, particularly the medical issues, coupled with the “he told me I wrote the best thesis ever at Oxford” really undercut the story of the extreme, and abusive, family she was raised in.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The Vanishing Half. Remote narrator, zero passion. Great plot she did not do justice.

+1 Just read this and was underwhelmed.

I know the title is books you should love but don't but I liked this book!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:- Into Thin Air
- The Shack
- In the Woods (though I did feel seen by a recent thread about this book)
- We Need to Talk About Kevin
- The Dinner
- Defending Jacob
- Wild by Cheryl Strayed
- The Silent Patient (OMG so boring for 95% of the book)

See now I liked Silent Patient. Interesting.

NP. I liked Silent Patient, but I liked it because I was interested in the psychology of it. If I hadn't liked that I am certain I would have put it down without finishing. And then the end was a great, not because of a twist--though there was one--but that as you were reading you thought you were reading something different than you were. Basically it wasn't an unreliable narrator as much as an unreliable author who tricked the reader. I loved that aspect of it.

I liked the Silent Patient as an easy thriller but hated The Maidens from him.

I liked The Silent Patient also and agree that The Maidens was awful; could not finish.
I also could not finish We Need To Talk About Kevin - ugh, talk about a book where every single character is unlikable and awful.
I also posted on the Feb book thread that The Invisible Life of Addie Larue was not good.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You know those books that everyone raves about .... "must reads". And try as you might, and as intellectually stimulating as they are, you just cannot read one more page.

For me it's A Prayer for Owen Meaney (John Irving). I just found it so tiresome.

What's yours?

IS IT BECAUSE OWEN MEANEY TALKS LIKE THIS?

WHY did he have to speak in all caps?!?!?!? It was awful.

Hahah, I loved Owen Meany. But the all caps was supposed to reflect his high-pitched unusual sounding voice/serve as an allegory for God, I think.

I think The Secret History is another love it or hate it book (I loved it).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The Vanishing Half. Remote narrator, zero passion. Great plot she did not do justice.

So you liked the book but not the audiobook?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Eat, Pray, Love. Couldn't get even get through the Pray section. Author was extremely unlikable to me.

X100 She is total narcissist.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The Vanishing Half. Remote narrator, zero passion. Great plot she did not do justice.

So you liked the book but not the audiobook?

No, I read a hardcopy and didn't like it. All books have a narrator, even if it's the author. But, all good authors should know who the narrator actually is...maybe I'm wrong and it was dual narrators. It was like she was telling the story from 10K feet. We never truly got to see in the sisters' hearts.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You know those books that everyone raves about .... "must reads". And try as you might, and as intellectually stimulating as they are, you just cannot read one more page.

For me it's A Prayer for Owen Meaney (John Irving). I just found it so tiresome.

What's yours?

IS IT BECAUSE OWEN MEANEY TALKS LIKE THIS?

WHY did he have to speak in all caps?!?!?!? It was awful.

I loved this book and I don't remember the all caps. It must not have bothered me. Maybe because I read it pre texting/social media, so writing in all caps didn't mean yelling or anything in particular.

[Anonymous]

Add me to the list for The Secret History. I couldn't get into, and never finished it.

[Anonymous]

Recently - Hamnet comes to mind.

Previously - I agree on Defending Jacob.

[Anonymous]

Agree on The Nightingale and add anything by K. Hannah.

Classic category: Catcher in the Rye
Such a spoiled, callow protagonist

[Anonymous]

A Brief History of Seven Killings. It was endless, rambling, had tons of characters, and much of it was written in patois.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Agree on The Nightingale and add anything by K. Hannah.

Classic category: Catcher in the Rye
Such a spoiled, callow protagonist

You are not alone. My friends and I all hated that book, especially Holden. What a whiner. His sister, Phoebe, was OK, though.

[Anonymous]

Educated — Tara Westover

The improbability of the details of the book, particularly the medical issues, coupled with the “he told me I wrote the best thesis ever at Oxford” really undercut the story of the extreme, and abusive, family she was raised in.

Yes, this book was completely annoying in the way of Wild and Million Little Pieces. Just obvious, stupid, self-aggrandizing lies.

[Anonymous]

50 Shades. All my friends loved it. I flipped through and what I read made me sick to my stomach. That kind of garbage is why so many women end up in abusive relationships.