The Pillars of the Earth question

Follett is brilliant. Not all readers appreciate his work, but then not everyone I know loves Shakespeare, Milton, and Chaucer, either! The sports-talk and Facebook term "haters" applies to a lot of these comments, since saying it's boring reflects on the speaker as well as the topic we're speaking of. I can explain that I liked the two books Pillars and World Without End because the characters, conflicts, and narrative reflect the universal human strivings, good and evil, both. I've read nearly all Follett's work and have given most of them four or five stars. These two each got five. Clear depiction of the historical culture and living conditions,yes, but realistic characters and events. Great historical fiction.

Try the audio, it is fantastic. I don't think I would have ever finished it if I had to sit and read the whole thing. I listened to a lot of it while hiking with my dog on the local nature trails a few years ago and to this day when I walk those same trails little snippets of the adventure of Pillars come happily back to mind.

While i thoroughly enjoyed the book, I can definitely see how it could seem boring to some people. I surprised myself with how much I enjoyed the book, considering its overall predictability and the fact that it was 1000 pages about building a cathedral. I got very wrapped up in the characters's lives. Although, I am currently trying to get through World Without End (the sequel) and haven't made a ton of progress.

I loved Pillars as well and cannot understand anybody slamming it. I have the sequel on my shelf, savoring the time when I will take it down and enjoy it slowly over several days, maybe a week.

I loved it and I read it twice. I'm breathlessly awaiting his next book, Edge of Eternity coming out in Sept.

No matter how much you love something, someone is going to hate it. And no matter how much you hate something, someone is going to love it.

I did like Pillars - and I've really loved his other medieval books - but it's definitely not my favorite Follet book.

I'm a huge fan of Ken Follett. I know EVERYONE thought this his best work. Sorry - I just didn't. My favorite time period is medieval and yet I thought this was a snore. I did, however, really enjoy the recent mini-series. Go figure.

Carrie wrote: "Everyone I know LOVES this book and cant believe that I have abandoned it several times, never completing it. I wanted to love this book so much, but couldn't get past 100 pages or so. What is the ..."

I picked it up and put it down a few times as well. And personally, it isn't one of my favorite books. But, if you have anything happening your life that will steal your focus, wait until it has passed because you will need to concentrate on the complexities of the plot to keep everything straight.

Just finished reading Godforsaken by Suren Hokabyan
I thoroughly enjoyed the book, which involves angels & archangels for the fight of a young girl. Lily who is suppose to be inline to take the place that Eve held in the garden of Eden. The book was very well written.I could not stop reading it....needed to get to the end find out what happened to her. In the end I was left wanting more. Sure hope there is a sequel.

I love historical fiction and did enjoy PotE, but not being Catholic, I felt like I missed a lot of the architectural bits. I don't know a nave from an abbey. The rest I found quite interesting, even if most of the characters were kind of archetypical (if that's a word).

Carrie wrote: "Everyone I know LOVES this book and cant believe that I have abandoned it several times, never completing it. I wanted to love this book so much, but couldn't get past 100 pages or so. What is the ..."

It took me about that many pages before the story really starts to pick up. Keep plugging away. It took me a couple of tries to "get it". I am now tackling his sequel and hope it is as good.

One of my favorite books of all time, but it just might not be for everyone. I could not put it down and was sad when it ended. I have recommended it to some that shared my feelings, and others couldn't get through it. The Century Trilogy is also an amazing read. The third one is set to come out next month!

Carrie wrote: "Everyone I know LOVES this book and cant believe that I have abandoned it several times, never completing it. I wanted to love this book so much, but couldn't get past 100 pages or so. What is the ..."

Carrie wrote: "Everyone I know LOVES this book and cant believe that I have abandoned it several times, never completing it. I wanted to love this book so much, but couldn't get past 100 pages or so. What is the ..."

Carrie, I haven't been able to finish this book either. I figure I'll try again in a few years.

I found this book hard to read because of its shear volume. Nevertheless, I thouroughly enjoyed the complex characters, Aliena and her brother, and Elena, the interaction with the church at the time, well-portrayed as a force for good and evil. I do historical fiction myself, so I understand the importance of capturing the details of the life of the time, the smells, the lack of even the most basic privacy, which he captures well... but I can see that off-putting as well.

As an engineer, I enjoyed his capture of the techniques of planning and laying out a magnificent cathedral by barely literate people. Anyone in awe of the pyramids should be agape at Notre Dame.

So I enjoyed this one, and intend to do his sequel. But reader, beware, this is a very rich feast.

I never could have sat down with all nearly a thousand pages of this work and finished it. Fortunately, my library had the audio-book copy, so I was able to listen to it. That was quite enjoyable.

Only if you like the history of the Middle Ages and read books with many details and characters

Carrie wrote: "Everyone I know LOVES this book and cant believe that I have abandoned it several times, never completing it. I wanted to love this book so much, but couldn't get past 100 pages or so. What is the ..."
I liked it but I don't think you will like it since you've tried it several times. Move onto something else. Just because a lot of people found it interesting doesn't mean that you will. It's ok if you don't want to read it!

I had also a hard time finishing this book. It was very interesting at the beginning, but is toooooo long ..sometimes I would turn pages and pages without anything interesting happening so I found it sooo boring. I had to finish because I wanted to know how it ended, but really was a waste of time. Sorry, I am not a hater...just didn't really enjoy it as much as people told me I would :)

Hi Carrie! I actually really liked the book also, but it's ok if you just can't get into it. People were raving about "Never Night". I just couldn't get into it, so it's in my "not going to finish list" and that's ok.

At first I had a lot troubles to read this book. the first 200 pages take me like 1 month buth then I read all the book really fast, simply one of the best books ever! as all the comments before mine I can say that the book's soul core is in the characters that are fantastic.

I read every Ken Follett book I could get my hand on several years ago. Many fantastic, thrilling books about WWII and some other historical periods. There was one about Ross Perot's Sunshine Boys save people kidnapped in Iran during the hostage crisis that wasn't fantastic. I thought Pillars was great. Classic Follett. Great character development, exciting stories, and massive technical detail. I think it's the last part that could be annoying to some people. Follett learns how something works to an extreme, then uses it to describe situations as if you're talking to an engineer when he's had too much coffee. I personally like that. I did not like the sequel at all, and stopped reading it. I didn't feel there was a purpose to it other than being a sequel.

I LOVE Ken Follett! He is in my top 5 favorite Authors. This was my first Follett book and I was really surprised at how much I loved it and how quickly I finished. If you are into historical fiction then his books are a must read. The character profiles he creates and amount of time he puts into being historically accurate are what make his books so engaging.

I loved it. One of the best books i've read.

If you want to read a Follett with a little more oomph, try A Dangerous Fortune. Brilliant!

Sometimes, the hype is such that you expect to be amaized by the 1st word you read, and when it does not happen, you run out of "gas"n to continue the reading.

The big deal? It´s set in a historical setting, with very good descriptions of persons and places. And it´s very emotional, as well.

I would say: think no more about it, and stop reading /hearing other people´s comments on it and take another shot in a few months time.

I did the same - abandoning the book a few times even after being told by many that it is amazing. I ended up deserting it for over a year, then saw it on my shelf, finally deciding to give it another go.

It was definitely a mission to get through and very gritty, graphic and grotesque in many ways, but at the end I was so glad that I finished it. The story spans decades and involves a lot of complexity in all the characters and the world they live in. From the beginning to end, each character has their place in the story and their growth, in turn grows the story. The story's ending (although I won't spoil it) was worth the read and I feel like I even breathed out a breath that I had been holding on to - perhaps since I first started the book. Also I was amazed at how much I learned and became aware of the process it takes to build cathedrals, especially in that time period and that theme is central to the story's progress also.

If you do give it another go Carrie, I hope you have a similar experience to me. However if you can't, I can totally understand that too. It's not a relaxing read by any means! :)

It didn't do anything for me either. I eventually got around to finishing it, but have to say it bored me silly. I didn't have any expectations when I started it, being completely unaware of any 'hype' at the time. I have enjoyed a number of other historical epics so it wasn't the genre I had a problem with - it just didn't 'hit that spot' for me. I ended up giving it to a friend who absolutely loved it though, so it's gone to a good home.

It didn't wow me, either. It took me forever to get through and although it had some good parts, most of it just bored me. Maybe I'd have to be more interested in that time and place. The Poisonwood Bible was another that others said was fantastic, but I just never could get through.

A friend handed me a copy of this book. Everyone I know who read the book, loved it.

For me, the positive was learning about the lifestyle of people living in that time frame.

Otherwise, I just never really got engaged. I started and stopped several times.

The only reason I finished was to complete a book challenge in one of my groups.

In the end, I regretted the time spent. I have since reverted to my policy of stopping after 50-75 pages, if I really don't care for a book.

I wouldn't worry about feeling nonplussed. Its not as if its the only medieval adventure tale available. There may be others you might like more. I remember feeling surprised when Follett chose to go down this route in the first place. I always read him for his mastery of the spy story. His style is fresh and brisk for that genre when so few others are. So I too, felt a bit hampered reading this 'historical epic'--specifically because it was from him--and because I am so much more into his spy-writing--and finally, because he wasn't telling me anything new with regard to cathedral-building. It was a chore to wade through 'Cathedral Building for Dummies'.

Maybe people were more amazed by 'Pillars' because they had either never read medieval before or (what's more likely) they never gave much thought to medieval history at all, to any length? This is the kind of thing one always has to bear in mind: the general public are pretty thin 'up top'; and thus their word-of-mouth is increasingly suspect. I mean, what can you say about a mob which goes gaga over cringe-worthy tripe like 'Game of Thrones'?

You had a hard time because the book needed a good editor. It is an epic story. It also takes a little while to like the characters or hate them. The story was good and is worth reading if you like historical fiction.

Don't feel bad! Fiction, especially, is all a matter of taste. I've disliked lots of books with hype, like Wolf Hall and--gasp!-- The Fault in Our Stars , so I've come to the conclusion that everything from our previous favorite books to our life experiences to the time of year influences whether we like a book or not. With Pillars , it was too much emotion and description in some passages. For history, I say go to a well-written non-fiction work; the "tour-guide" type of historical fiction isn't for everyone

I seem to be at odds with most of the comments here. I enjoyed Pillars right from the start and became more engrossed as time went on. A friend gave it to me after she was unable to get through it. By the last third, I did nothing but read every chance I got. I found the characters engrossing, and though I agree that there were many graphic parts, I wasn't bothered by them. I found "Cathedral Building for Dummies" interesting and now look at churches and such in a different manner. When you realize these were built without modern machinery, you get a new appreciation. I am a person who enjoys both classic, "should be read" books and what Feliks referred to as cringe-worthy tripe. I think there is a place for both types, and it just depends on your mood. Finally, my wife has been reading "Pillars" on and off for a few months. She is of the book every few days ilk, but this one just isn't grabbing her attention. She will finish it because of my rave review to her, but I doubt if she will feel the same.

I can relate to feeling pressured to liking a book that's popular.

OR...like today I gave a mediocre review to a book I just read; then read glowing reviews, and I felt kind of left out.

Maybe the book isn't for you. Or maybe put it down and try again in a few years? Another idea: Read it slowly while reading other stuff. What if you read a chapter a week?

Sometimes I find myself not liking a book because I'd rather be reading something else and I want to rush through the current book so I can get on with other things. Does that ever happen to you?

I finished reading it and enjoyed it to some extent, for what it is, a fun page turner, but I do not think it is great writing at all. I found it rather corny actually, what with all the heaving breasts all the time, and how very good the good guys were, and how very bad the bad guys were. Not a lot of complexity of character to put it mildly. There was no need for the periodic rehashing of events at the end of a chapter either.

I'm a character driven reader. If I'm not interested in the characters I don't give a rodent's rear end about what happens in the story. For me, Follett never developed these characters to any real degree, nor did he do more than skim the surface of a premise and setting rife with possibilities.

I suspect this is one he outlined then handed over to his staff writers to flesh out, and probably just let the editor(s) polish. It's doubtful, after reading this phoned-in novel, that I'll ever invest any of my time on another of his books unless someone can convince me Follett's put some effort and imagination into it.

I loved this book. All the things that it lacks are finely written in this post. But, for me, the story reached me on a spiritual level. The metaphor of building the church, as in building a meaningful life, moved me. My wife saw something in me that I didn’t quite recognize, until then. Ive never read one of his spy novels (were they spy novels?) I had fun learning about medieval history and the characters were not so complex to draw me away from the oomph of the book. An all-time favorite novel for me.

Pillars is ok. Unlike most of you I wasn't told that this book was great or anything. Follett actually says in his prologue that his editor completely disapproved of him telling a story that took place in medieval times. Said that it wasn't his game and that it'll fail. That actually got me intrigued.
Pillars does the job of putting you in the medieval era with the bad guys being really bad (rape etc) and the good guys ultimately winning. It also tells you a lot about churchlife (something I am unfamiliar with) and how terrified people are of God.
World Without End was just a rehash of Pillars though. If you thought Pillars was average that don't read the sequel. It's more or less the same thing.

The first 100 pages are tough, but once you get past that hump, GO! I've read this several times, now, and these first pages still dog me. This is the best book I've ever read and I recommend it to everyone I know. The ending is worth every minute.

My sister & her dh gave me the paperback version which both my dh and I both enjoyed! In an attempt to save shelf space, I got the audible version as well...really good listen. I mention the audio version as hearing it might make the book more dynamic and enjoyable for you. We also got the followup book (sister & dh to my dh). We also enjoyed it. I've not gotten the audible version yet but it is on my wish list!

My book that I kept cursing and throwing across the room was THE WORLD ACCORDING TO GARP. I finally finished it and did sort of enjoyed it...but if my friend hadn't raved on it, insisted that I read it, I doubt I would have!

FYI, the audio version Length: 40 hrs and 54 mins.

Even though it's not my usual fair, I did love this book. I can see how it may not hold everyone, though. I guess I just got caught up in the place and time of Follett's incredibly authentic narratives.

Carrie, it's probably because you care about decent writing. Holy cow, a friend of mine (English major/Rhodes scholar) raves about Follett - this guy writes like a sixteen year old boy with a hard on. This book is complete garbage. I put it down after chapter six never to pick it up again - unless Follett learned to write as he was going, it wasn't going to get any better.

My favorite parts of the book were when the characters were roaming the countryside trying to obtain work, shelter, and food. I love to see people pitted against the elements, coping with bad weather, frightening people, and so on. This was how I became attached to the characters when I saw them so vulnerable. I started rooting for them.