19 March 2009

Booking Through Thursday: Worst Best Book You’ve Ever Read

Suggested by Janet:

How about, “What’s the worst ‘best’ book you’ve ever read — the one everyone says is so great, but you can’t figure out why?

I absolutely loathed Sophie’s Choice - I really can’t think why I kept on reading it. The narrator’s inability to keep his mind out of the gutter disgusted me, and I really wish my mind had a “delete” button. I couldn’t even finish Looking For Mr Goodbar; talk about tedious. I skipped ahead to see if Theresa would do something other than get high and pick up men, but she didn’t so I quit and didn’t care whether she got killed or not.

On the local front there was The Girl Most Likely, a Brisbane book that got raved about several years ago. I don’t generally read (or care for) chick lit but decided to read it to see what the fuss was about. And I hated it. Largely because of the spineless heroine and the party where she a. told a pack of improbable lies to make her life sound more impressive, and b. got so blind drunk that the next morning, she couldn’t remember if she had or had not had sex behind the barbecue with her host’s 17-year-old brother. Who she had, the year before, tutored in Year 10 modern history.

Eeeww!!!

Edit: As Gautami’s post just reminded me - The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho was simply dreadful. It inspired me with nothing more than a desire to dump it in the returns chute as swiftly as possible.

8 comments:

  1. I didn't read Sophie's Choice but saw the film years ago. I just recall Streep's performance was very good.

    My BTT is up.

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  2. The Girl Most Likely sounds awful.

    http://barneysbookblog.blogspot.com/2009/03/booking-through-thursday_19.html

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  3. Oh no, I have always quite fancied trying Sophies Choice, I might not now!

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  4. And I was thinking of buying Sophie's Choice!

    When my niece asked for The Alchemist and Tuesdays With Morrie, I was only too glad to give both!

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  5. Well I guess I won't be putting those books on my wish list any too soon. More like never.Thanks for sharing

    My BTT is here

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  6. Eep! They all sound like such winners. lol!

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  7. I have not read any of these books.

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  8. Uh oh, Sophie's Choice is already loaded into my Kindle. *gulp* Now I'm not looking forward to it so much!!

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Header image shows detail of A Young Girl Reading by Jean-Honoré Fragonard, c. 1776