A Goodreads user asked:

why on earth is this book so BORING?

30 likes · like
10 years ago
13 answers

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Rex This book is a masterpiece. The story is not boring. A person who declares such a work as this one as boring simply was not ready to read it. I found Mark Twain's Huckleberry Finn boring the first time I read it, but I kept an open mind. I was not yet in high school. Before I was 18 I'd read it four times and enjoyed it more each time. I'm not saying this reader (who said Mohicans was borning) would find the same to be true, but you DO need to take a different approach to some books than for others. Modern readers are used to a completely different language. You delve into the classics and you better be ready for a challenge. But the reward will be great. Give yourself time. A certain maturity must be achieved, as both a reader and a person, to appreciate a great work like Mohicans.

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Justin L Because you decided to read it without an open mind.

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Tiffany Rose I found it boring not due to plot nor the characters but Cooper's verbose writing style. I found it difficult to engage when half the time I couldn't understand what was being narrated. Perhaps we're just too stupid and close minded as some accuse or perhaps it's a matter of preference. I've read books by his Contemporaries that I greatly preferred. You're not obligated to like a book simply because it bears the title of Classic nor does it make you an ignoramus for disliking it. Now I picked this book up of my own accord; I can only imagine how a book one would've enjoyed otherwise was rendered boring because of school.

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Phyllis I love reading the comments here at goodreads. The Last of the Mohicans is really not a boring book, however Fenimore Cooper wasn't exactly a great writer. With that said, and I hope I don't offend to many people here, but this is one of those very few times that I MUCH PREFERRED THE FILM to the book. In fact, I have seen the film so many times, I can repeat a great deal of the dialog. No matter how you look at it, The Last of the Mohicans is a great story! So don't give up on it. Set the book down and pick it up again in a year or two. You may end up pleasantly surprised.

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Greg Frederick How is this book boring? I'm six chapters in and there hasn't been a dull moment. It starts with action, and continues with action, and more action. Not only that, but it is given enough depth to draw the reader in so that they too can feel the intensity of the constant chase.

As for the dated wording of the text and speech of it's characters - I've read several other books that are a much greater struggle. I find Cooper's prose to be quite accessible if you are at a high school reading level.

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Anna McKenzie I don't think boring is the right word. It's not a book for beginning or dispassionate readers, but if you keep the author's vision for the book in mind and embrace the descriptions and philosophizing then you can enjoy the strong ideas and characters. This book is would lose it's charm if it was watered down into an easy read.

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Jamie Flower James Fenimore Cooper was a poor novelist.

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Pat Giese JFC uses the language of the time, which to us, often sounds like a foreign tongue. I have to pay close attention to really understand what he is saying....it is not an easy read. But, you can easily imagine yourself in the wilderness around the Finger Lakes area of NY having read his tale. The "honor" of the British & French troops vs. the absence of such respect for any rules of engagement from the Six Nations adds to the degree of savagery we read about. I only know that were I faced with surviving on the frontier, I would hope that the scout and his trusty rifle are my companions.

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Jenny I'd not say boring but the prose and the characters are terribly stiff, particulary for modern bestsellar readers. Its a good book though.

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Judelon Ingram I'm listening to the audiobook, and the flowery language goes down a little easier for me that way.

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Linda Lewis JFC is my second cousin (5X removed) and I haven't yet read any of his books. I find it interesting that no one has mentioned the racist tones in his series. It's one of the reasons I've held back on reading them. I know it's a historical thing. Is that aspect difficult? I'd welcome any comments...

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Connie The book is "boring" to YOU. As Rex (below my comment) states, it is a masterpiece. I agree with him. Maybe you haven't developed your reading tastes yet; it is something that takes time and exposure to good, really good writers from a wide range of genres, and through a long span of time.

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