Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:"We Are Water" by Wally Lamb. I love (and have re-read) several of his other books, but I really disliked that one. Too much build-up for the plot payoff and really horrible scenes of child molestation that I wasn't expecting.

God yes. That book felt like it was written for the Issue of the Month Club. Hmm, let's throw in molestation. Later-in-life lesbianism. Hey, a murder! It was ridiculous.

On that subject, doesn't it feel like lots of books these days have a checklist? Lesbianism, check. Evil priest, check. It's like the publishers insist writers add these things because they think they'll make the books sell among the few people who still patronize bookstores and read books. Believe me, I have no problem with LGBT issues per se, and in fact I'm wondering if someone in the family is about to come out, and that would be fine with me. But it gets a little wearing to read about it in every.single.novel.

Rant over.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Caleb's Crossing (was that the name?) Nantucket, Native American, Harvard? I really love books of this genre but this one. What a disappointment.

LOVED Caleb's Crossing. You know it was based on a true story, don't you?

I'm not that PP, but I am the PP who said she hated the author's other novel, People of the Book. Yes, I know Caleb's Crossing is based on a true story. It's what this author might do to the story that scares me. If People of the Book is any indication, she'll take the very few facts we know to be true and twist them around to fit her agenda.

Anonymous wrote:Funny, Middlesex is one of the best books I've ever read!

Agree--and I am really difficult to please. I really enjoyed it and still think of it 5 or 6 years (or however long it has been) since I read it!

Anonymous wrote:Glass Castle.

I picked it up based on so many favorable comments on DCUM and was so disappointed in the end. There were small parts that were compelling It is supposed to be a memoir, but I couldn't shake the feeling that the whole thing was a self-absorbed lie.

DITTO

Anonymous wrote:The Appeal by John Grisham. What a jacked up ending. I was so mad, I threw the book at my wall. I felt like he wasted my damn time on that stupid book.

And that V.C. Andrews book where it turned out the boy was a ghost the whole time.

I can't say the title because no spoiler alerts allowed on here.

+1 Grishams books get worse and worse.

Anonymous wrote:"We Are Water" by Wally Lamb. I love (and have re-read) several of his other books, but I really disliked that one. Too much build-up for the plot payoff and really horrible scenes of child molestation that I wasn't expecting.

God yes. That book felt like it was written for the Issue of the Month Club. Hmm, let's throw in molestation. Later-in-life lesbianism. Hey, a murder! It was ridiculous.

The Appeal by John Grisham. What a jacked up ending. I was so mad, I threw the book at my wall. I felt like he wasted my damn time on that stupid book.

And that V.C. Andrews book where it turned out the boy was a ghost the whole time.

I can't say the title because no spoiler alerts allowed on here.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The Interestings and Middlesex

I liked the interestings but anything by Eugenides makes me run screaming

Loved The Virgin Suicides and Middlesex. The Marriage Plot filled me with rage.

Loved Middlesex, waited years for him to write another book and was sorely dissapointed with Marriage Plot.

I liked Middlesex okay. I really liked The Marriage Plot. LOL.

Anonymous wrote:Caleb's Crossing (was that the name?) Nantucket, Native American, Harvard? I really love books of this genre but this one. What a disappointment.

LOVED Caleb's Crossing. You know it was based on a true story, don't you?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The Interestings and Middlesex

I liked the interestings but anything by Eugenides makes me run screaming

Loved The Virgin Suicides and Middlesex. The Marriage Plot filled me with rage.

Loved Middlesex, waited years for him to write another book and was sorely dissapointed with Marriage Plot.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:there was one person on here who didn't like Casablanca either, so ...

So...what?

shows what level of credence to give some of the opinions around here.

I'll take critical thinking over perceived obligation to like a work of fiction any day.

Yes! There are a cluster of us who didn't like The Graduate. Can you imagine? Clutch pearls

Ah, yes. Where are you in the Forrest Gump debate? (My guess: pro Gump.)

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:there was one person on here who didn't like Casablanca either, so ...

So...what?

shows what level of credence to give some of the opinions around here.

I'll take critical thinking over perceived obligation to like a work of fiction any day.

Yes! There are a cluster of us who didn't like The Graduate. Can you imagine? Clutch pearls

"critical thinking" is good, but you should say why you do or don't like something - that way we can see who is critically thinking and who is just vapid, lacking in taste, biased etc.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:there was one person on here who didn't like Casablanca either, so ...

So...what?

shows what level of credence to give some of the opinions around here.

I'll take critical thinking over perceived obligation to like a work of fiction any day.

Yes! There are a cluster of us who didn't like The Graduate. Can you imagine? Clutch pearls

Anonymous wrote:Caleb's Crossing (was that the name?) Nantucket, Native American, Harvard? I really love books of this genre but this one. What a disappointment.

I hated another one of this author's novels, People of the Book. The characters were all shallow and one-dimensional. It was sort of like reading Ayn Rand but with a religious agenda (for the record, I'm religious and liberal). That book scared me off Caleb's Crossing.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:there was one person on here who didn't like Casablanca either, so ...

So...what?

shows what level of credence to give some of the opinions around here.

I'll take critical thinking over perceived obligation to like a work of fiction any day.