Awful, awful, awful books....

[Keef]

Eng Lit's equivallent of slasher films!

LOL, Good description!

I liked Lord of the flies a lot, but was put off a bit when we had to do an essay on all the religious parallels :-S

[ChavWivaLawDegree]

Haha, how to ruin a good book!

[charliecharlie]

just shows there's something for everyone... I loved Saturday, shame it did not do it for you, funny, only just remember there being a squash match in the book, maybe I just skim read that bit!!! naughty me...

[Jah Lush]

A La Recherche Du Temps Perdu by Marcel Proust. All three volumes of it. Why? Life is too short.

[RosieH]

Jah Lush Wrote:

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> A La Recherche Du Temps Perdu by Marcel Proust.

> All three volumes of it. Why? Life is too short.

Jah Lush, I might have to fight you for that. F*cking brilliant - one of my all time favourites, just beautifully observed

[Jah Lush]

To be fair to you Rosie I only managed to get through the first part (Swanns Way?) and really just couldn't be bothered with the rest. Maybe one day I'll try again.

[RosieH]

Maybe best when you have the luxury of time (I read it at university) - perhaps in retirement..?

[Marmora Man]

On Chesil Beach by Ian McEwan

Ah, that is the only one of his I have read - I did feel distinctly underwhelmed and didn't intend to read any others by him, but perhaps that is too hasty a decision.

Don't you mean it was all over so quickly I ahd no time to feel / think about it?

[ChavWivaLawDegree]

Just discovered the boring Hardy book was 'Far from the madding crowds'. What a load of old rubbish. I hated having to read that in school and it put me off Hardy for life.

[indiepanda]

Marmora Man Wrote:

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> > On Chesil Beach by Ian McEwan

> Ah, that is the only one of his I have read - I

> did feel distinctly underwhelmed and didn't intend

> to read any others by him, but perhaps that is too

> hasty a decision.

>

> Don't you mean it was all over so quickly I ahd no

> time to feel / think about it?

Lol, it was rather short - can't believe they still stuck a ?6.99 cover price on something less than half the size of a "proper" novel, was glad I borrowed from the library rather than wasted my money on it.

Mind you, the characters and plot line were so unconvincing to me I am not sure more quantity would have improved matters, more drawn out the misery.

[ruffers]

I have a bit of a principle of trying not to not finish a book once I've started but one of the few books I've started which broke that rule was Vanity Fayre - unfortunately it was one of my A-Level set texts.

Forecast A, actual D. I should have read it.

[mockney piers]

Portrait of a Lady. I had to study Henry James as part of my literature bit at uni; god how I struggled with that one, seriously tedious. Hats off to anyone who made it past the fascinating encounter on the lawn.

"Under certain circumstances there are few hours in life more agreeable than the hour dedicated to the ceremony known as afternoon tea."

Yeah, but few hours less agreeable than reading about tedious people taking afternoon tea.

[Jah Lush]

I still haven't read that Mockney and was going to start it only recently but put it down and picked up something else instead but staying with Henry James - and I've read quite a bit of his stuff - I do find him incredibly dry but by far the worse read of his was The Ambassadors, which, I suppose put me off reading Portrait of A Lady as it has remained on my bookshelves for more than a decade.

[????]

mockney - you have just struck off almost anything by Jane Austen and Oscar Wilde!! (both good in my 'book')

[capt_birdseye]

Aaargh! The Ambassadors! I read that too, or rather my eyes read the words whilst my mind found far more interesting things to think about (Ferrero Rochers). Like ruffles I always make an effort to finish a book, whatever the quality. I wish I had made an exception with The Ambassadors.

[mockney piers]

Fair point quids, and I do love Oscar Wilde even if he was a pompous arse. You can keep Jane Austen though.

As it goes I thought Daisy Miller was alright, so maybe it's not James per se, but agree with the others about The Ambassadors, truly numbing.

[indiepanda]

I've only ever read one Henry James - The Turn of the Screw - I seem to recall enjoying it (was some 20 years ago) - but it was very short of course.

I love Jane Austen though, about the only classic writer I really do love.

[ruffers]

capt_birdseye Wrote:

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> Aaargh! The Ambassadors! I read that too, or

> rather my eyes read the words whilst my mind found

> far more interesting things to think about

> (Ferrero Rochers). Like ruffles I always make an

> effort to finish a book, whatever the quality. I

> wish I had made an exception with The Ambassadors.

ruffles? ruffles?!

[Cassius]

Just finished Saturday and with the detrators. God that family were vile - if Baxter had had his evil way I would have been far happier. Still if they were ever "driven out with all the other faint-hearts into the suburbs" I am sure ED would be high on their list of destinations.

[capt_birdseye]

ruffers Wrote:

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> ruffles? ruffles?!

:-$ oops. Sorry!

[willow]

His Dark Materials trilogy by Phillip Pullman. Boring load of w**k. Agree about Saturday - tosh. Also don't ever read The English Patient. It's rubbish.

[mockney piers]

I put HDM in there with Harry Potter.

Though admittedly he's given it some real thought and written it all with some big ideas in there, it still doesn't really engage on an adult level.

In other words "Boring load of w**k", can't really put it better myself.

[Keef]

don't ever read The English Patient. It's rubbish.

Not read that, but tried Anil's Ghost, also by Michael Ondaatje, and found it horrifically dull... Have always said I'd go back to it, having finally given up about a third of the way through, but there are just so many more books out there that I'll enjoy, I don't see the point in going back to something you know will be painfull, just so you can tell people at dinner parties that you've read the right books.

[indiepanda]

Keef Wrote:

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> I don't see the point in going

> back to something you know will be painfull, just

> so you can tell people at dinner parties that

> you've read the right books.

Ewww, are there people really like that?? Thank Christ my friends are more of the "drinks lots of wine and giggle about nonsense" types when it comes to dinner parties. Not that we would call them "dinner parties" - sounds too much like Margo Leadbetter in the Good Life for me!

[Jah Lush]

ChavWivaLawDegree Wrote:

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> I hated Thomas Hardy at school - what a load of

> flowery old crap.

I'm going to have to take you to task on this one CWALD. I loved Thomas Hardy's stuff and have read at least half a dozen of his books. All the classic ones anyway. Never got around to reading his poetry though. Yes, his novels could be full of misery, despair and unrequitted love but he wrote it all beautifully.

Maybe it was because you had to study it at school is perhaps what put you off. In fact, I think a lot of really good books that people had to study at school or University have been put off them for life. Perhaps if they tried reading them again without the pressure they would enjoy them more.