Books that disappointed you

House of Blaze · 06-07-2014 10:41am

The plague by Albert Camus..

By the end I was begging for a dose of it!

marienbad · 06-07-2014 4:30pm

House of Blaze wrote: »

The plague by Albert Camus..

By the end I was begging for a dose of it!

This would be one of my all time favourite books and I have reread it many times, funny how we can react so differently to a work.

I suppose that's what makes the world go round though,

Precious flower · 07-07-2014 12:34am

I'm embarrassed to say this but The Great Gatsby. We read it for college last semester and everyone seemed to love it but me. I just couldn't get into it. I didn't like the book at all. I didn't finish it either, I just couldn't. I class when we would talk about it everyone seemed to think it was a good book but me (though I didn't say that).

I suppose because I thought it was one of those acclaimed books I should instantly like it and it bothered me that I didn't like it at all. Haven't seen the film either. Did anyone else who read the book feel like this? Like I mentioned I almost feel embarrassed at not liking it!

GerB40 · 07-07-2014 1:54am

Precious flower wrote: »

I'm embarrassed to say this but The Great Gatsby. We read it for college last semester and everyone seemed to love it but me. I just couldn't get into it. I didn't like the book at all. I didn't finish it either, I just couldn't. I class when we would talk about it everyone seemed to think it was a good book but me (though I didn't say that).

I suppose because I thought it was one of those acclaimed books I should instantly like it and it bothered me that I didn't like it at all. Haven't seen the film either. Did anyone else who read the book feel like this? Like I mentioned I almost feel embarrassed at not liking it!

I haven't read Gatsby but I do agree that some so called classics haven't aged well at all. I suppose when you consider how revolutionary they were when released you might appreciate them more.
I have the same issue with the catcher in the rye. Can't stand it whatsoever. But people love it. You shouldn't be embarrassed not to follow the crowd, be proud that you're thinking independently for yourself.

SarahBM · 08-07-2014 6:56pm

I agree about Gatsby. I thought it was rubbish.

Just packed in the Phantom of the Opera. I just couldnt get into it. I hated the characters, its awful. Im sad to say that because I loved the musical.

Precious flower · 09-07-2014 12:23am

Funny I mentioned to my mum and she said she studied it in secondary school and didn't like it either (though she said maybe that was because in school when you're analysing a book in great detail it kind of makes it hard to get into). So my dislike of it is genetic?!:P

BopNiblets · 09-07-2014 12:39am

judgefudge wrote: »

Just wondering what books people have been disappointed or felt let down by?

Mine would be One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. For the first 100 pages I LOVED this book, I was so happy it was in my life. Then slowly it just got so convoluted... I could just about keep up with the characters (and that's with a family tree in front of the book) and I didn't feel like I really got to know any of them.

I couldn't finish it either, didn't keep me interested at all.

Mine would be The Grass is Singing by Doris Lessing, read it English class in school, but man is it depressing and miserable.

House of Blaze · 09-07-2014 12:44am

Precious flower wrote: »

I'm embarrassed to say this but The Great Gatsby. We read it for college last semester and everyone seemed to love it but me. I just couldn't get into it. I didn't like the book at all. I didn't finish it either, I just couldn't. I class when we would talk about it everyone seemed to think it was a good book but me (though I didn't say that).

I suppose because I thought it was one of those acclaimed books I should instantly like it and it bothered me that I didn't like it at all. Haven't seen the film either. Did anyone else who read the book feel like this? Like I mentioned I almost feel embarrassed at not liking it!

Don't worry, you just have what is referred to in movie circles as "Citizen Kane syndrome"..

Day Lewin · 09-07-2014 12:51am

Anything by John McGahern. Cripes, talk about over-rated!!

"That they may face the rising sun" - WHY was this book enthusiastically welcomed? it is dreary, repetitive, monotonous, pessimistic - no characters that are like real people, no events that are like real events - almost no events at all, if truth be told

...in short, if you haven't finished it, don't bother. The rest of it is just the same.

Most disappointing book ever - ugh!!

echo beach · 09-07-2014 9:00pm

katemarch wrote: »

"That they may face the rising sun" - WHY was this book enthusiastically welcomed? it is dreary, repetitive, monotonous, pessimistic - no characters that are like real people, no events that are like real events - almost no events at all, if truth be told

I have to agree that nothing much happens in the book, on the surface at least, but the characters are all walking about everywhere in rural Ireland. I could identify with every one of them. Life, especially for anybody who lives on the land, is repetitive and monotonous but I don't remember the book as being pessimistic. I would describe it more as fatalistic. We are all going to die, and the wise understand that it is a natural part of life.

Swiper the fox · 10-07-2014 8:39am

If mcgahern doesn't appeal to you perhaps you should go back to Dan Brown rather than trying to dissuade us from reading one of the great Irish writers.

10-07-2014 8:46am

Garth, ya Garth Books disappoint me.

First_October · 13-07-2014 12:21pm

Finished On The Road last night; absolutely hated it. Certain parts were good: Sal's first trip to Denver and the bit in Mexico, but overall I was gobsmacked at how terrible it was. A novel about vacuous, pretentious gob****es running around America acting like unruly teenagers. The quality of the writing was also nowhere near what I thought it would be; I'd have to agree with Capote's assesssment of it: `It's not writing, it's typing'. How this is regarded as a classic I'll never know.

Also, I couldn't help but feel that Kerouac was attempting a mid-century retelling of the Carraway-Gatsby dynamic, but with bums. Or that Sal was (somehow!) an older Holden Caulfield.

Harry Angstrom · 13-07-2014 12:39pm

First_October wrote: »

Finished On The Road last night; absolutely hated it. Certain parts were good: Sal's first trip to Denver and the bit in Mexico, but overall I was gobsmacked at how terrible it was. A novel about vacuous, pretentious gob****es running around America acting like unruly teenagers. The quality of the writing was also nowhere near what I thought it would be; I'd have to agree with Capote's assesssment of it: `It's not writing, it's typing'. How this is regarded as a classic I'll never know.

Also, I couldn't help but feel that Kerouac was attempting a mid-century retelling of the Carraway-Gatsby dynamic, but with bums. Or that Sal was (somehow!) an older Holden Caulfield.

It's the worst book I've ever read. Pointless book. Terrible writing. A complete mess.

implausible · 15-07-2014 7:24pm

Swiper the fox wrote: »

If mcgahern doesn't appeal to you perhaps you should go back to Dan Brown rather than trying to dissuade us from reading one of the great Irish writers.

The thread is for people to give their opinions on books that disappointed them, not to denigrate their opinions.

Swiper the fox · 15-07-2014 8:12pm

Fair enough, I assume the poster has read quite a few of mcgaherns books and isn't just basing their opinion and recommending that we don't bother with him on a half arsed effort to read that they may face the rising sun.

ivytwine · 16-07-2014 7:29am

BopNiblets wrote: »

I couldn't finish it either, didn't keep me interested at all.

Mine would be The Grass is Singing by Doris Lessing, read it English class in school, but man is it depressing and miserable.

The Golden Notebook by Doris Lessing! Jesus that was torture plain and simple.

I didn't enjoy Possession by AS Byatt. I thought she was so caught up with being clever she forgot to write an engaging plot or characters.

Francis O Blibhionn · 20-07-2014 6:38pm

Three words: David Foster Wallace.

Genius was missed by a millimeter and the result is very frustrating.
Also, like St.Peter, I have to pretend not to know who he is in public, lest I be dismissed as a member of the Ironic Mustache Brigade.

Would still recommend, though.

ankles · 21-07-2014 9:36pm

Francis O Blibhionn wrote: »

Three words: David Foster Wallace.

Genius was missed by a millimeter and the result is very frustrating.
Also, like St.Peter, I have to pretend not to know who he is in public, lest I be dismissed as a member of the Ironic Mustache Brigade.

Would still recommend, though.

I agree, I don't require an ending to everything, but read Infinite Jest,and felt a bit frustrated. Yes , it screamed "you will never be able to write anything remotely as good as this", and it was sublime in so many ways, but almost a collection of unfinished short stories.

And also agree, would still recommend.

Currently reading 1Q84, excellent ( I know, wrong thread

)

shootermacg · 21-07-2014 10:00pm

ankles wrote: »

Currently reading 1Q84, excellent ( I know, wrong thread )

On the contrary, it's exactly the correct thread. I actually use 1Q84 as one of the extremes for giving a one to ten rating. Of course 1Q84 is minus one on that scale, which is strange considering used toilet paper is a zero.

New Home · 22-07-2014 12:23pm

Some of mine have been already mentioned, so I'll just list the rest.

"New York Trilogy" - complete and utter tripe, I'll never get back the time I wasted in reading it, just like someone else here did with another book, I threw it across the room when I finished reading it.

"Madame Bovary" - I kept thinking "Die, already!!", I didn't like it one bit, I thought it dragged on and on and on and on, etc.

"Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrel" - predictable, quite badly written, boring.

"On Beauty" and "About Schmidt" - Irritating.

Anything with Ross O'Carroll Kelly - Waste of time, unfunny, repetitive, puerile. Probably a good idea, but very poorly executed.

The "Lyonesse" Trilogy - well, if you overlook all the rapes (especially of children) and the ill concealed S&M, it's probably acceptable.

"The Reluctant Fundamentalist" is also on my list, but I simply didn't like it, it's not that I hated it so much I wanted to cause it harm, as much as the others made me feel. I just think it's over-rated. Meh.

Tombo2001 · 23-07-2014 4:03pm

Here's a couple:

I agree completely about On The Road.

I have a very distinct memory of reading an outstanding introduction to the novel, and really being pumped up, and then when I started reading it I very quickly thought "this guy's a twat".

I had similar thoughts about Rabbit Run by John Updike. It just has not aged well at all, it appears a bit juvenile and the writing is not sophisticated.

Ben Okri, The Famished Road......I dunno, magical realism is not for me I guess (unless its by Salman RUshdie).....when I read it, I got that blank feeling that my dad probably gets when he hears an Eminem song.....just meaningless (to me).

Ian McEwan, Saturday.......dull as dishwater.

Howard Jacobson, The Finkler Question......great name for a book....the last time I will ever buy a book because it won a literary prize.

megadodge · 04-08-2014 9:44pm

Mainly because of this forum I decided to read 'The Count of Monte Cristo' and I just cannot overstate how disappointed I was.

The actual plot really appeals to me, but the absolutely awful, awful, awful writing style frustrated me so much I only made it half way and the only reason I made it that far was because I wanted to see what happened. In the end I just couldn't force the 'why say it in five words when you can say it in fifty five' style on myself anymore and googled a synopsis instead.

The utterly ridiculous formalities and asskissing every character has to go through when conversing leads me to think that Dumas was a snob, writing about snobs, for snobs.

I appreciate his style is 'of its time', but if it is don't call it a 'classic', because the definition of a 'classic' is that it doesn't date.

ivytwine · 04-08-2014 10:25pm

Tombo2001 wrote: »

I had similar thoughts about Rabbit Run by John Updike. It just has not aged well at all, it appears a bit juvenile and the writing is not sophisticated.

Agree! Another one we had to do for college. Hated the main character. I felt like smacking him. The more he bitched about how his wife wasn't hot anymore the more I was like "And I'm sure you're not getting tubby and thin on top either!"

Fate Amenable To Change · 05-08-2014 12:16am

Tombo2001 wrote: »

Ben Okri, The Famished Road......I dunno, magical realism is not for me I guess (unless its by Salman RUshdie).....when I read it, I got that blank feeling that my dad probably gets when he hears an Eminem song.....just meaningless (to me).

Thought it was absoloutely magical

I took the viewpoint it was a kid trying to make sense of the world around him, so that might be a bit of a difference.

FunLover18 · 05-08-2014 2:44am

megadodge wrote: »

Mainly because of this forum I decided to read 'The Count of Monte Cristo' and I just cannot overstate how disappointed I was.

The actual plot really appeals to me, but the absolutely awful, awful, awful writing style frustrated me so much I only made it half way and the only reason I made it that far was because I wanted to see what happened. In the end I just couldn't force the 'why say it in five words when you can say it in fifty five' style on myself anymore and googled a synopsis instead.

The utterly ridiculous formalities and asskissing every character has to go through when conversing leads me to think that Dumas was a snob, writing about snobs, for snobs.

I appreciate his style is 'of its time', but if it is don't call it a 'classic', because the definition of a 'classic' is that it doesn't date.

I reckon there's also a small fraction your disppointment that depends on the translation as well, like tiny. I have this on my list of books to read, as I've just finished The Three Musketeers I'm going to take a break from Dumas for the moment. I know what you mean about the asskissing of characters. Dumas has absolutely no problem reminding the reader how prudent every character in TTM is. I did enjoy it though partly because it was nothing like what I expected based on the various adaptations I've seen

Fate Amenable To Change · 05-08-2014 6:43pm

FunLover18 wrote: »

I reckon there's also a small fraction your disppointment that depends on the translation as well, like tiny. I have this on my list of books to read, as I've just finished The Three Musketeers I'm going to take a break from Dumas for the moment. I know what you mean about the asskissing of characters. Dumas has absolutely no problem reminding the reader how prudent every character in TTM is. I did enjoy it though partly because it was nothing like what I expected based on the various adaptations I've seen

Was The Three Musketeers not a complete pisst ake? Thats how I read it anyway. He literally has characters abandoning their friends and then stresses how brave they were to run away from some randomers on the road who had no weapons.... when they're meant to be trained cavalrymen. As soon as the landlord is out of sight he is out of mind - every promise of rescue broken while they try and seduce his wife. The musketeers word and honour is a pile of rubbish. Its been a while since I read it but I remember how I couldn't stop laughing at how ridiculous it was. It seemed there was two books there, one for the upper classes and one for everybody else.

cack_handed · 05-08-2014 11:27pm

Tombo2001 wrote: »

Howard Jacobson, The Finkler Question......great name for a book....the last time I will ever buy a book because it won a literary prize.

I am half-way through the Finkler Question and liking it so far, its an engaging insight into Jewishness or should that be, Finklerishness, that I find rather timely at the moment. Remains to be seen whether I'll still be so upbeat by the end though.....

One book I didn't even make it to the halfway mark: The Good Man Jesus and the Scoundrel Christ by Philip Pullman. Everything grated with me, the style, the content...everything. Feel I'm missing something about it but don't know what...

Also, most David Peace novels. The Damned United excepted. Read the Yorkshire trilogy and was totally underwhelmed by the end of all of them, and gave up after 100 pages of Red because the repetition was getting to me. I understand that's kind of the point of it, but it just wore me down...may try and go back to it yet if i can work the stamina up for it!

Yeatz · 05-08-2014 11:55pm

Very forlorn about all the disappointment in poor 1Q84. I must say that I found it one of the most bewitching books I've read in a long time, but then again, I'm a huge fan of magical realism/ fabulism and the like. There are a few dodgy bits, but I do think it's just down to the translation. There was a misuse of 'presently' that just slapped me in the face like a moist fish. And sentences like, 'Ushikawa had to pee like crazy." No.

MR fan notwithstanding, 100 Years of Solitude was a disappointment. I read it quite some time ago, and all I've retained is a vague impression of luxuriant moustaches and disturbed females eating soil.

There have been lots and lots of books I've been disappointed by, but at the moment I'm too indignant about my lovely Murakami being shunned to think of any.

FunLover18 · 06-08-2014 2:44am

Fate Amenable To Change wrote: »

Was The Three Musketeers not a complete pisst ake? Thats how I read it anyway. He literally has characters abandoning their friends and then stresses how brave they were to run away from some randomers on the road who had no weapons.... when they're meant to be trained cavalrymen. As soon as the landlord is out of sight he is out of mind - every promise of rescue broken while they try and seduce his wife. The musketeers word and honour is a pile of rubbish. Its been a while since I read it but I remember how I couldn't stop laughing at how ridiculous it was. It seemed there was two books there, one for the upper classes and one for everybody else.

I have to say I didn't get that impression at all. I could be wrong though, I only realised The Princess Bride was a pisstake about a quarter of the way through :rolleyes:

Books that disappointed you

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