OK, I'll admit the Huffington Post is an odd place to be looking for book-related articles. And it's not even a journal I normally read. But somehow I came across this list Huffpost recently ran, and it caught my eye because I've been doing some thinking about this very subject -- books that got rave reviews from just about everyone, even though they didn't appeal to me. Huffpost polled their readers and put together the following list of "Books They Hated That Everyone Else Loved":
- The Lovely Bones. Alice Sebold
- The Lord of the Rings trilogy. J.R.R. Tolkien
- The Twilight saga. Stephenie Meyer
- The Shack. William P. Young
- Water for Elephants. Sara Gruen
- The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. Stieg Larsson
- Fight Club. Chuck Palahniuk
- The Reader. Bernhard Schlink
- The Corrections. Jonathan Franzen
- A Visit from the Goon Squad. Jennifer Egan
- The Road. Cormac McCarthy
- Moby-Dick. Herman Melville
- Angela's Ashes. Frank McCourt
- The Giving Tree. Shel Silverstein
- The Kite Runner. Khaled Hosseini
- Eat Pray Love. Elizabeth Gilbert
- The Book Thief. Markus Zusak
- The Bridges of Madison County. Robert James Waller
- The Great Gatsby. F. Scott Fitzgerald
- Running with Scissors. Augusten Burroughs
- The Alchemist. Paulo Coehlo
I've only read a few of the books on the list (those in red), and parts of a few others (twice I've managed to get through about the first quarter of
Moby-Dick before starting to tear my hair out). And there are quite a few on the list that I wouldn't even attempt -- no way I'm ever gonna read
Eat Pray Love. On the other hand, I thoroughly enjoyed the
Ring trilogy when I read it many years ago, and
The Great Gatsby is one of my all-time faves (I've returned to it many times). So, go figure.
How about you? Got any "well-loved" books that you just can't stand?
How can someone hate "The Giving Tree"?! :(
ReplyDeletesmellincoffee--
ReplyDeleteExactly what I said when I read the list!
I have read about 8-10 and like some...loved a few. like LoTR. to each there own...
ReplyDeleteI hated THE TIME TRAVELER'S WIFE!
ReplyDeletecaite--
ReplyDeleteVery true. I guess everybody can't like everything.
Marie--
I couldn't get beyond the first twenty pages of Time Traveler's Wife. Even though it sounded like something I'd love.
Well as I was reading this list I had to wonder who these people were!! I read and loved 1,5,8,11,13,14,16,17, and 21.
ReplyDeleteYow, how could someone hate The Book Thief? The Great Gatsby - great movie, boring book. Sorry, Joy! But, hey, I liked Moby Dick! So there truly is something for everyone.
ReplyDeleteStaci--
ReplyDeleteI wondered about that, too. Just "readers," but they seem to have pretty quirky tastes.
Kaye--
Haven't read The Book Thief, but it definitely sounds like something I'd like. I'm glad to find somebody who liked Moby Dick! Just a little TOO much whaling for me.
I haven't read any of them except part of The Giving Tree -- I guess I just don't have booklist taste in books. Of course, I can't seem to get through Franny and Zooey so what do I know?
ReplyDeleteB-B--
ReplyDeleteYes, I might not be the "book list" type, myself. There are really only a few titles here that look appealing to me. I did love Franny and Zooey, though.
Interesting article & list! I've read several books on this list but there are also a few I won't be reading in my lifetime (except in bizzarre circumstances that I don't see ever happening! lol) such as The Twilight Saga, The Shack and Eat Pray Love (gmta!)!
ReplyDeleteOne immensely popular book that didn't work for me is Ken Follett's Pillars of the Earth (I think that's the title!)
I am utterly confused by The Giving Tree being on this list! Oh well, each to his own!