The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
discussion
Did Anyone Else Hate This Book?
I feel ya!It was clunky....maybe it is the translation??
It was completely ridiculous to believe that the old man could not find his niece for 40 years or whatever and had to recruit those two completely unconvincing characters to do it. I did not buy that at all.
The only things I appreciated about this book were the cultural and geographical references.
I barely finished it and the other 2 are gathering dust on the shelf.
I don't get what the big deal is about this trilogy, just like the atrociously written 50 Shades Trilogy.
Bad writing does not seem to slow down commercial success in this day and age :-/
And there are so many wonderful and well-written Indie pubs that people turn their noses up at, saying, "It's independently published, it wasn't good enough to get published." Then they read whatever crap is "popular" at the moment and claim it's WONDERFUL! *siiiigh*
Freddy wrote: "I hated this book and the sequels. They are over-written, under-edited drivel with zero characterisation. Stieg Larsson is one of the most overrated hack writers ever to reach number 1."Thank you. Made myself finish the first book and tried to read the second, as I had purchased the series. The basic plot is obvious, he takes way too long getting to it and when I hit the Ikea shopping list, I put the book down.
Ali wrote: "Sorry! Not offended by your comments! I loved all three books, even though they are not within the genres I normally go for. I would agree that the first half of the first book is very slow to get ..."The Hollywood version became one of my favorite movies of all time. Daniel Craig epitomizes Mikael Blomkvist and Mara Rooney is brillliant.
I came to this thread because I enjoy hearing the counter opinion on literature, movies, music, etc. I did enjoy the book, but I can also see how it is difficult to get through.
It was so poorly written - even allowing for the translation, but the Lisbeth was so powerful, I finished it. I find the Norwegian films much more fulfilling than the American one.
Lenore wrote: "It was so poorly written - even allowing for the translation, but the Lisbeth was so powerful, I finished it. I find the Norwegian films much more fulfilling than the American one."I agree. I did like the Lisbeth character as well and read because of her. I hated the other characters so much though.
Emma wrote: "I have to be honest; I hated this book.I found the first third of the book clunky, slow and bogged down with jargon and pointless detail.
I found it disturbing and hard to read (which is not nec..."
i didn't hate the book, but i stopped halfway thorough because i got my hands on a book that i couldn't wait to read, so maybe i missed out on what made the book less enjoyable for you, also... R.I.P Stieg Larsson
I felt the writing was a bit clumsy but put that down to translation. What really spoilt it for me though was the gratuitous sex: any woman who looked at him felt the urge to strip off and mount him. I began to wonder if Larsson was writing his own personal fantasy. For the first time ever in my life, I preferred the (Hollywood) film to the book!
Rachel wrote: "I felt the writing was a bit clumsy but put that down to translation. What really spoilt it for me though was the gratuitous sex: any woman who looked at him felt the urge to strip off and mount h..."*laughing* That's typical for this sort of book. Read the Stuart Woods Stone Barrington series - the man is in his 60s by the later books and still gettin' some at least 2 or 3 times in his books. The earlier books were great, but after maybe 7 they started to get repetitive. I think it's just a meme in these sorts of books, personally.
Christamar wrote: "Parody: The Girl Who Smelled Like Cheese http://dailybrass.blogspot.com/2012/0..."*sneeeeeerk* Hehheehe. That made me snort in a most unladylike manner ... and I've only made it through the synopsis! That's hilarious - thanks for sharing!
The first half of the book was very difficult to get through because of the pace but I didn't let that hold me back. I am one of those weirdo's that is compelled to finish a book even if I get sick from it. Now to preface this I must also add that I am very sensitive to violence. I was very disturbed and my poor husband was clueless as to why I didn't want to get close to him from all the negative male characters in the book. I finished it and I wish I never picked it up because it was too much for me to handle. I did skip some pages because I was feeling sick from some parts but I liked the main character until she slept with the detective. It had a lot of action going on in the last half of the book and I was rooting so hard for Lisbeth, but I won't do that again.
Jessica wrote: "The first half of the book was very difficult to get through because of the pace but I didn't let that hold me back. I am one of those weirdo's that is compelled to finish a book even if I get sick..."I used to be like this, but ever since I hit 40 I just don't have the patience. If I can't get into it within the first 20% of the book, it's an "across the room" book...
Emma wrote: "I have to be honest; I hated this book.I found the first third of the book clunky, slow and bogged down with jargon and pointless detail.
I found it disturbing and hard to read (which is not nec..."
I hated it so much that I threw it away. I didn't give it away, or donate it to charity, or release it into the wild at a restaurant. I threw it in the garbage.
Everything you said, and doubled, is what made me loathe it. Plus I disapprove of rape. Call me old-fashioned.
Richard wrote: I hated it so much that I threw it away. I didn't give it away, or donate it to charity, or release it into the wild at a restaurant. I threw it in the garbage. This made me smile. So, no 'maybe' in there then? haha
I must say, I struggle with the level of rape in popular culture too. I appreciate it's a powerful tool in fiction / film, etc, but I do find it hard to get my head round how people write / read it so easily. Perhaps I am just overly sensitive to sexual violence, but I have always had to take a minute when it comes up and often skip pages, or the scene in the film.
Katy wrote: "Rachel wrote: "I felt the writing was a bit clumsy but put that down to translation. What really spoilt it for me though was the gratuitous sex: any woman who looked at him felt the urge to strip ..."I gave up on Stuart Woods for that reason! He wishes!
It took me 2 weeks to read the first 50 pages. I forced myself to read the entire book and it was the biggest waste of time. Everyone I talked to has loved the series and I could hardly get through the first one. I'm so glad I'm not the only one!
Richard wrote: "Emma wrote: "I have to be honest; I hated this book.I found the first third of the book clunky, slow and bogged down with jargon and pointless detail.
I found it disturbing and hard to read (whi..."
I think that was Larrson's point. The brutality of it all. From his interviews I read/watched, he wrote the books to make a statement about crimes perpetrated upon women. I also found that difficult to read but I understand what he was trying to do. The second two books are better. I enjoyed them much more.
Emma wrote: "I must say, I struggle with the level of rape in popular culture too. I appreciate it's a powerful tool in fiction / film, etc, but I do find it hard to get my head round how people write / read it so easily. Perhaps I am just overly sensitive to sexual violence, but I have always had to take a minute when it comes up and often skip pages, or the scene in the film."I'm disturbed by the ease with which this violent crime is glossed over, justified as art, and generally not treated with what I see as its real and genuine danger.
Using rape in art is desensitizing readers/viewers to its horrors. We all *know* it's fake on screen and in books. It's just...part of the landscape. When it happens to *you* or someone you care about, the callousness of "relax it's just art" becomes apparent.
Or so it seems to me.
A.l.s. wrote: "Richard wrote: "Emma wrote: "I have to be honest; I hated this book.I found the first third of the book clunky, slow and bogged down with jargon and pointless detail.
I found it disturbing and h..."
I'm glad you found something to enjoy in the books. I am not planning to make further attempts of my own.
I found this very difficult to follow and understand. More like language barrier
I loved this book as well as the entire trilogy. The only weakness I found was that Larsson went a bit too overboard with description in the early chapters which slowed down the story. There was enough of a mystery to keep me hooked to the point I wanted to see how it ended. I can't figure out how could anyone not like Salander. I was once the victim of a false accusation and my employer was in collusion with the real perpetrator. I wish I had a friend like Salander who could've used their talents to help me out the same way that she helped out Blonkvist. Maybe that's why I related to both of them so well.
I was shocked to see "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" ranked so highly in the list of best "literary mysteries" on this site. It's a page-turner, about on the same level as a Dan Brown book, but it's hardly "quality" literature. I for one thought it horribly written yet deeply engrossing.What I found annoying was that the author seemed to enjoy pointing out with a huge arrow the various charaters' misogyny. I get that character x is a vile rapist, the author doesn't need to tell me that.
Katy wrote: "Marius wrote: "Personally I think that anyone who can not stand reading 50 pages of background story should stick to childrens books or books for "young adults"."Well, now, that's a tish unfair -..."
May I also add that Stieg Larsson being a Swedish author may have been writing for a Scandanavian market. One whose standards of literature would've been different than North American standards. J.R.R. Tolkien bombarded his readers with description, yet THE HOBBIT and LORD OF THE RINGS are still runaway classics decades after they were published.
I found it turgid and dreary and slow to the point of being glacial. In all honesty, is this the northern ethos, or the translation?
Meran wrote: "Nope. Loved it. Yes, it's from a different country, a different culture. Other peoples think differently, plots SHOULD be differently paced. I enjoy the differences.I must note that reading all t..."
I loved all three books. I agree with you that it must help to read them back to back. Wonderful story sequence. I loved the Swedish Movie and loved both actresses in both movies, who played Lisbeth. Terrific casting for the flawed, darkly eccentric, abused, misunderstood,and mighty heroine.
Jo wrote: "I loved all three books. I agree with you that it must help to read them back to back. Wonderful story sequence. I loved the Swedish Movie and loved both actresses in both movies, who played Lisbet..." I'm looking forward to the two other parts starring Daniel Craig. Both Swedish and American versions were great.
The first few pages were boring but after I got through that I really enjoyed reading it. The story was shocking and lizbeth is sooo strong (i love reading about string women). This guy I was talking to at the time hated it. He never said why but I kind of wish I had pushed him to tell me his opinon a bit more.
Jeanette wrote: "I found it turgid and dreary and slow to the point of being glacial. In all honesty, is this the northern ethos, or the translation?"It would be interesting to see how much of the book is lost in translation but I believe it to be too clunky and badly written to blamed on that. Also, if the translation was that poor someone would have reattemped as it grew in popularity.
Yay! I'm not alone, I really hated this book!!!
Jo wrote: "I loved all three books. I agree with you that it must help to read them back to back. Wonderful story sequence. I loved the Swedish Movie and loved both actresses in both movies, who played Lisbet..."lol. I thought Lesbith was great too. She didn't take crap from anyone and never got into the self pity thing, when clearly she could have. She rocked. The only thing I didn't like about the books, besides the brutality of the first one, was the amount of pointless filler Larrson put in the books. There was so much material included that didn't have anything to do with the plot, but other than that I really enjoyed them.
I preferred the film version with Danial Craig. I thought they were both good, but I thought the American version was better paced.
I didn't HATE it but I didn't find it "great" as so many apparently have. I finished it. It was interesting in parts but I slogged through it.
I think he has some great characters, an interesting but complex plot, and some personal politics that he feels compelled to share. After a slow start, the characters get better and the politics are not as in your face. The second book was easier to get into. On the whole, I enjoyed the series.
Meran wrote: "Nope. Loved it. Yes, it's from a different country, a different culture. Other peoples think differently, plots SHOULD be differently paced. I enjoy the differences.I must note that reading all t..."
I have to agree with you. I, too, read these back-to-back. However, I had quite a struggle getting through the first book...probably because I had already watched the movie. I did like the twists though. I flew through the second book, thought it was ABSOLUTELY genius. The third book dragged a tad, and I was almost left longing for more. All-in-all, I loved the trilogy!
This book is hard to get into, but while on a four hour flight I forced myself to read on. I was really satisfied by the end of the story.
I hadn't seen any of the movies so had no previous idea of the plot. Though I admit to rarely reading for PLOT... it's not the end of the journey, but the JOURNEY itself that's important :DSo, yes, the twists and turns were delicious. I usually 'guess' the ending of novels far too far in advance... and far too correctly most times. This one (the trilogy) surprised me. I like that :D
and Yes, he had an ulterior motive or two in writing the books. I don't think he kept that hidden. After all, he begins each book with a statistic on the abuses of women. He wanted a strong (within herself) character, one who was built by the life (good or bad) that she had lived. The instances of abuse are NOT sugar coated for American psyches. They are HARD to read through. My life has, in many ways, been similar to Lisbeth's, so I had to identify with a lot of the personal issues. Overall, though, her life (fictional or not... who knows? She may be a composite of real women!) has been hard. I so badly wish he'd lived to write the rest of the work he was building.
And, as with all books, sometimes you either love them or hate them. If you don't really like it, go on and read something else. There's lots to read out there for everyone! (And I'm not being snarky when I say that.. ;) )
I liked the first one, but the two sequels were disappointing. They lacked the intimacy of the first book's isolated location and got too bogged down in their plots.
Well, I really liked this book. I read it in spanish for two reasons: it's my native language and the translation was closer in meaning to the original. Actually, the original name is "The men who didn't love women" so I kindda knew what I was getting into, and even some misogyny was expected.I do agree with the fact that the book was really slow at some parts and even felt tempted to put it down a few times, but when the action began I couldn't bring myself to stop reading. It grabbed me completely and ended up, unexpectedly, liking it.
Nonetheless, I haven't read the last two books of the series and don´t know if I ever will.
I loved everything about the book, and the following sequels. I think it's a shame he never got to finish the fourth, because I would love to read it.On that note, yes the writing is detail-laden and a bit difficult to maneuver through at times. However, you need to remember two things about it: 1) it's a translation. Unless you're reading it in Swedish, it isn't going to be as elegantly crafted. Translation is not a science, it takes a lot of weighing of options to decide which words in the translation will best represent the native tongue of the work. Even the best translations have their problems. 2) you're reading a book written by a man that grew up in a different society than you did. We love our suspense novels to be short whirlwinds of excitement, but that isn't necessarily the case for other countries' expectations of their writers. I can't say with absolute certainty that Swedish citizens expect a longer, more verbose novel from their suspense writers, but it can't be discounted. I'm sure many of you are familiar with the dense, never ending stories that Russian authors have famously churned out over the years, for example.
As far as the intense and very detailed scenes of sexual abuse and rape go, if you can't read them, I understand that. But it also means that he did an excellent job of portraying the scenario to you. Larsson had a mission when he started the series. If you didn't catch the statics or the deliberate setup of Lisbeth's abused past, you missed a large chunk of the plot. Personally, I had a hard time reading those scenes because they hit too close to home for me. I had to take several breaks during them because they were difficult to read, but they weren't gratuitous. By the third novel, those scenes create a serious complication for Lisbeth's life. And frankly, I felt damn good seeing a novel with such a fast thinking woman in that situation because she was able to do what many women can't: stand up to and humilate their abuser.
People are of course free to not like a novel for any reason they so feel. I never could get into many of the Russian authors and yet I've read Spinoza without so much as a yawn. I think it's really all a matter of personal taste, and when a book is being translated, personal taste really affects what you can handle.
Alyssa wrote: "I loved everything about the book, and the following sequels. I think it's a shame he never got to finish the fourth, because I would love to read it.On that note, yes the writing is detail-laden..."
Like. Thanks for your input. It is appreciated, especially about the nuances of translation.
Very good points.
I was bored with it. It was the least thrilling thriller that I have read. Certainly not a page turner and I did not bother with the other 2 in the trilogy.
Alyssa wrote: "I loved everything about the book, and the following sequels. I think it's a shame he never got to finish the fourth, because I would love to read it.On that note, yes the writing is detail-laden..."
I agree with you, Alyssa. I found the third book in the series to be a bit too detailed-laden. It took a bit too long before the first turning point (the scene in the hospital). But as I mentioned earlier, Larssen may have been writing by European standards and not American standards.
I also hated this book. I got to page 100 and gave up. But everyone I talk to loved this book, so I was at some point going to go back and give it a second chance. Now I am not so sure.
"It was ridiculous; if you don't know anything about computers it's just boring and tells you nothing"Maybe that's one of the reasons I DID like it so much. And Lisbeth, despite her flaws (or perhaps because of them?) BUT ... great dialog going, I HATE the "Emporor's new clothes" syndrome where you allow others' opinions to alter your own.
I loved all 3 (especially 1st), US movie was OK (haven't seen Swedish). Wife hated movie & did not care for book and will not bother with sequels.
@andrewThe swedish movies are immensly better.
Andrew wrote: ""It was ridiculous; if you don't know anything about computers it's just boring and tells you nothing"Maybe that's one of the reasons I DID like it so much. And Lisbeth, despite her flaws (or pe..."
Check out the Swedish versions. You won't be disappointed.
Alyssa wrote: "I loved everything about the book, and the following sequels. I think it's a shame he never got to finish the fourth, because I would love to read it.On that note, yes the writing is detail-laden..."
I like the different perspective of translated works. If the author has a strong political bias or feels his country needs to understand a particular view (even if it's a non-issue in the U.S.), I see that as a plus. This type of writing can become dated but Lisbeth is such a compelling character that it makes the whole stronger. As they say, character is king.
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I could not read another Larsson book.