The Next Best Book Club discussion
Non-Book Related Banter
>
Thread Of Dire Judgment
Life of Pi was another one of those for me that left me wondering what the big deal was. It was okay, but...Aren't they making a movie of that? That I would like to see.
So I will weigh in and say that I liked all of the 'Hannibal' movies but have not read the books yet, but am looking forward to getting into them soon.
Kandice wrote: "I felt Harris wrote Hannibal because he was made to. The guy has constipation of the pen with years and years between books. That's fine with me since they end up being greatly crafted stories, but..."I completely agree. I felt the same way. I guess if we rate it upon how quick he wrote it then fine it was OK stilll but I just wish he spend more time on it. I am sure it could have been great!
Donna, I don't think I've seen many people to give anything less than 5-stars to To Kill a Mockingbird. I don't even want to trash you... I'm just... wow. :)
Well, I read it so many years ago and I rated it based on what I thought of it then. I was 15 and all I wanted to do was hang out. I wan't much of a reader as I am now. But I alwasy wanted to give it another try.
El wrote: "But I did see you read something by Ekaterina Sedia who looks interesting. I've added both her books to my TBR. I'm a sucker for Russian authors."Is it the gloom you like or the vodka? :)
Oh, I'd love to know what you think of it as an adult. :)
ME too! Maybe I will push it a little ahead of my pile!
Maybe we should all make a vow to re-read one book which we previously read when we were younger and to which we gave a low rating based on our memories of the reading experience? See what I mean? I would *almost* be willing to re-read Moby-Dick. Almost.
El wrote: "Donna, I don't think I've seen many people to give anything less than 5-stars to To Kill a Mockingbird. I don't even want to trash you... I'm just... wow. :)"Donna I would love to hear what you think also. It is one of my favorite books.
Matthew, you gave 4-stars to Moby Dick but 2-stars to Anne of Green Gables? Is this one of those "I'm a boy" things? :)
LOL. I was always wanred not to re-read a book from when you were younger because you may have a different take on it but I guess that should only go for the ones htat you loved and maybe now you won't love it. Dies that make sense???I loved The Bell Jar when I was younger and I am afraind that if I re-read it I may not feel the same.
Mary wrote: "Maybe we should all make a vow to re-read one book which we previously read when we were younger and to which we gave a low rating based on our memories of the reading experience? See what I mean? ..."I am going to reread The Grapes of Wrath soon. I don't even remember the characters or plot, I just know that I hated it when I read it 15 or so years ago. I'm really curious to see if my opinion has changed.
Mary, I think I'd be more willing to staple my eyelids to the wall before re-reading Moby Dick. It's not that I couldn't appreciate it - I appreciated it just fine... but not enough that I need to read it again.I hated Gulliver's Travels in high school and my father made me promise I would give that a second chance as an adult. I still haven't, but I'll make good on that promise someday.
Cait, I really liked The Grapes of Wrath. A friend in college had to read it for one of her classes and she bitched about it the entire time and how much she hated it, etc. So when she finished it I stole it from her dorm room, read it, loved it, and forever after told her how lame she was. All in good fun, of course.
Jayme wrote: "Ew, Jennifer...4 stars for Moby Dick and the English Patient? Gross. Those books were terrible. And 2 stars for Poisonwood Bible and The Gargoyle makes me sad too, I thought those were both pretty ..."Hi Jayme. Yep...love Moby Dick! Of course it might be tainted by my fondness for Gregory Peck. I read the book long before I ever watched the film though. It is a book I intend to re-read, so maybe the outcome will be different but I am fond of the novel. The English Patient, as a novel, was horribly tainted by the movie. That's my story and I'm sticking to it! Okay, The Poisonwood Bible - I have read this book twice. The first time(when it first came out)I hated, loathed and despised it. The second reading was just last summer and, while my reaction wasn't as strong this time around, it still didn't do much for me. The oldest sister was a whiny pain in the arse, the mother was a weak annoyance and the father was crazy. The other three girls were interesting characters but the book went on too long in certain areas with nothing accomplished. I really wanted to like it as I respect Kingsolver's work. Oh, shoot, you had to open The Gargoyle issue?? LOL!! That was my most loathed book of last year. I thought it over-hyped, over-written and over-loved. I think Davidson had a great premise but, to me, clearly felt the need to cram absolutely everything he learned during research into the book. He also, to my absolute annoyance, dumbed things down and felt the need to plainly tell us things. ACK! No trust in the reader to be smart enough to figure it out for ourselves.
Phew. That was a lot of ground to cover!!
Alex wrote: "Hey Jennifer! Good of you to step up. That should be a rule: if you lurk more than twice, you have to post so we can all pick on you too. Some of us are getting sick of picking on each other..."
Hi Alex. I agree it should be a rule! Lurkers need to get in the game! Plus, fresh blood is always reinvigorating! LOL!
Okay, The Life of Pi? *SIGH* It is definitely not one of my favourite books. I don't even have a good argument against it at the moment other than it felt to 'precious'.
It's unfortunate because, being Canadian, I want to highly endorse Canadian fiction. In this post I have slammed three Canadian writers and three of their LARGE novels. It hurts me to do that - right to the core of my being. Hey, wait a minute - are you guys going through my books and pulling out my Canadian books just to hear me criticize them??? I'm on to you now! LOL!!!
Again, I write, this thread was a brilliant idea. I am off to look at people's shelves. I need ammunition to counter the attacks. LOL!
I've been putting off reading The Gargoyle because it's one of those everyone is raving about. Maybe now I should, just so I can talk about it.
Mary, don't do it! Moby Dick is still terrible. I promise.I love that people who don't comment a lot are submitting themselves for abuse in this thread...let's see...
Chantelle, my only complaint with you is 5 stars for memoirs of a Geisha. If there was a prize for worst ending ever, this book would win it.
And Mayakda, only 2 stars for The Gargoyle? That's a shame, I sooooo loved that book!
Oh, Alex!(Sorry, I had to start with your shelves, didn't I?)
2 stars for A Confederacy of Dunces?? Wha-ha?? That book is hysterical! beyond "I don't get what the big deal is", tell us what you really think!
Sorry, Jennifer. I think Alex was being generous with his 2-stars. I gave it only 1.
Jennifer, nicely said. I still stand by my loving of those books, but I agree with some of your comments. The crazy family in Poisonwood Bible just made me love that book more. So entertainingly disfunctional. And I loved all the detail from The Gargoyle, there was a lot of it, but I thought he made it interesting. Especially all the burn treatment stuff. It made me queasy, but in a good way. It looks like I'm going to have to do a lot of defending for this book. That's sad!And I will always loathe Moby Dick and wonder how it ever got to be a classic. Good story, but terribly terribly written. The English Patient is the one book I couldn't finish, it was soooo boring. I've never seen the movie.
And Mayakda, only 2 stars for The Gargoyle? That's a shame, I sooooo loved that book!"Bah! Too literary.
I don't understand how you could give The Princess Bride 4 stars. Admit it, the book stinks! The movie, though, is the pinnacle of Mt. Awesome.
Yeah, I didn't know how to rate Princess Bride. It's my favourite movie, how could I give the book a bad rating. I could maybe bare to put it down to 3 stars...
I have to disagree, both the movie and the book of Princess Bride are the pinnacle of excellence. They are both divine! 5 stars all the way!!!!!!!
Sitting in the car waiting for my preschooler to get out of class and had to put in my two cents worth on the most recent books mentioned.I really enjoyed The Gargoyle, couldn't even make it halfway through The Poisonwood Bible (doubtful I'll ever pick it up again) and I've never read The Life of Pi or Moby Dick. I LOVED Hannibal, read it the day it came out, cover to cover!!!
Stacey wrote: "Sitting in the car waiting for my preschooler to get out of class and had to put in my two cents worth on the most recent books mentioned.I really enjoyed The Gargoyle, couldn't even make it ha..."
Have you read the rest of Thomas Harris' books? They are great (except maybe for Black Sunday?
I agree on the 5 stars for The Princess Bride - both the book and the movie are genius. I'm trying to think what aspect of the book could suck and it just makes me sad to try to dissect it like that. :)
Chantelle, my only complaint with you is 5 stars for memoirs of a Geisha. If there was a prize for worst ending ever, this book would win it.Jayme, lol, that, along with The Red Tent, was the first book I read that wasn't young adult or, well, crap. LOL. Those two books were the first to really make me start delving into new books that were outside of the realm of things I usually read, so I have an inordinate fondness for both of them. I couldn't possibly give it less than 5 stars. :D
El wrote: "Sorry, Jennifer. I think Alex was being generous with his 2-stars. I gave it only 1."ACK!! (LOL!) I really adore Confederacy. Clearly my sense of humour feels akin to Toole's writing. I do get that it is a book which divides readers, but I am always curious as to why those who don't like it, don't like it?
El wrote: "I agree on the 5 stars for The Princess Bride - both the book and the movie are genius. I'm trying to think what aspect of the book could suck and it just makes me sad to try to dissect it like th..."Well, don't cry, but the book drags, with the back and forth about his father and whatnot, and Goldman is vicious to Buttercup, imo. A huge woman-hating vibe comes out in his writing in the book in a way that does not in the screen-play.
Chantelle, that's a good enough reason to give a book 5 stars. You're forgiven.
Jennifer, I found Confederacy just a mean book. I don't like books that ask the reader to be amused by the character('s) downfalls or flaws. It always makes me so sad. I'm okay with flawed characters, but I don't think those things should be a source of entertainment - makes me feel like a bully. I was always the kid that was made fun of, so I'm especially sensitive to others' feelings. Ignatius J. Reilly is a douche to be sure, but that doesn't mean I want to laugh at him. I had too much empathy, but alternately did not care what happened to him either. Weird, I know.I was reamed on one of my reviews on GR of a similar book and accused of being superficial. Now, this guy was out to stir up trouble as I found he had left similar comments for other people on their reviews of the same book, and I have no patience for that. However, like I told him, it's not that I expect all of the characters I read to be upstanding characters or whatever, but I do insist on them being interesting. Reilly was certainly not interesting to me, and I was angry that he was the butt of all jokes, even in all of his douchality. :)
Mayakda, it's interesting what you say about Buttercup since I just went on and on about how I felt Reilly in Confederacy of Dunces was horribly abused by the writer and the readers. I didn't get that same vibe from Buttercup's treatment. I do agree that some of the side notes about the "author's" relationship to his family were mean-spirited (I especially didn't like how he kept calling his son fat or whatever), but was able to take that in stride in this instance.Man, now you've made me feel like a hypocrite.
Hi Chantelle! Thanks for being brave enough to delurk! I compared our books, and you're a very generous grader for the things we have in common! The only one I'd nitpick about would be the Da Vinci Code. That book made me so angry every time it went off on a tangent and spoiled what little sense of tension/adventure it had managed to build up in the meantime.And Jennifer, while I am totally with you on the One Hundred Years of Solitude and Life of Pi hate, only three stars for The Help? I only picked it up because of this book club, and then I couldn't put it down!
El wrote: "Jennifer, I found Confederacy just a mean book. I don't like books that ask the reader to be amused by the character('s) downfalls or flaws. It always makes me so sad..."El, I think that is the best explanation I have ever heard/read against the book. I have never viewed the novel from that perspective. I am very empathetic by nature, questionable sense of humour aside, and I never felt sorry for Ignatius but I did want him to succeed. I found the book to be more a statement against a corrupt society than a personal dig against Ignatius and his quirks. It's, to me, like a version of Don Quixote. Your contrasting feelings are interesting but, I suspect, a product of you not being invested in the novel by the point your opinions were formed. Maybe?
Jennifer, I definitely was not invested in the novel so you're probably right about that thought. And I loved Don Quixote, but again didn't feel like it was mean-spirited. We were meant to laugh at Don Quixote and Sancho Panza, but like we do when we see Laurel and Hardy or Abbott and Costello movies, and not kick them when they're down.I also thought The Shipping News was mean-spirited (his kids were so mean!!), and I see that's one you rated higher than I did also. I think we're beginning to see a trend. :)
I had to read Don Quixote for Spanish class--in Spanish--so, again, not-so-good memories. I enjoyed the actual stories once I figured them out but the translation process...blech!
El wrote: "I've been putting off reading The Gargoyle because it's one of those everyone is raving about. Maybe now I should, just so I can talk about it."El, so yeas my rating of 'Anne of Green Gables' probably did have to do with my gender... I'll re-read it though as it has been awhile. We'll see. Definately read the 'Gargoyle' though. A very interesting book from a lot of different angles. Just stick with it through the first couple of chapters...a little grizzly at first.
Liz wrote: "So I'm going to subject myself to judgment and say that I gave two stars to Farenheit 451. I read it in high school during a finals week and I don't think I properly absorbed it (especially since ..."I couldn't get through Fahrenheit 451 when I was 14. Read it as an adult and had a greater appreciation.
Hi Chantelle! Thanks for being brave enough to delurk! I compared our books, and you're a very generous grader for the things we have in common! The only one I'd nitpick about would be the Da Vinci Code. That book made me so angry every time it went off on a tangent and spoiled what little sense of tension/adventure it had managed to build up in the meantime.LOL, I know it. I think generous grading is a trait that has gotten me through teaching middle school! :p Seriously, yeah, I know I sound like I keep making excuses for all of my books, but Da Vinci Code to me was this fascinating look into the behind-the-scenes Catholicism that I gave it the points for that alone. Told you, I'm easy.
What I find so fascinating about this thread is how people explain their rating system. For me, I just want the book to affect me. If it stirs up any type of emotion, I tend to give it a highter rating.
El wrote: "I also thought The Shipping News was mean-spirited (his kids were so mean!!), and I see that's one you rated higher than I did also. I think we're beginning to see a trend. :) "Hi El!
Uh-oh, clearly I have a need to give high ratings to books which feature a man who is an societal underdog, especially if he is a large, lump of a man and particularly if the setting plays almost as large a role in the book as the main character. Shoot! I am found out, again!
I liked The Shipping News for the humanity in the story - warts and all. I also really liked Proulx's style and the Newfoundland backdrop. In Confederacy, I also really liked the New Orleans Toole portrayed. Hmmm...
I really should give The Shipping News another read. At the time I was so disgusted by Quoyle's children that I couldn't even enjoy the rest of the book. I have a feeling it's Proulx as a writer I don't care for - I also read That Old Ace in the Hole and didn't think highly of it either.Like Eliza, I've been interested in the defense of books here. No one has gotten defensive, and it's all been good ol' fashioned fun. I wonder, though, since everyone is able to defend or attack books here with high quality why so many people don't write reviews when they rate them? And I mean that all across GR, not just directed at people in this thread. But maybe someone here who doesn't review can answer? I'm just curious. The reviews are my favorite part.
I love *reading* the reviews, I guess I don't review because I don't think anyone would be interested in reading what I have to say. I'm *so* subjective and often like books for no good reasons, or read trash, or can't remember them well enough to write a good review.Bottom line: I'm intimidated by other reviewers?
I'm trying to write more reviews this year. Before I didn't just because simply rating them takes less time.
I can answer why I don't have many reviews - I joined goodreads pretty recently, and so I added the vast majority of my books all at once. That alone took quite a lot of time; the prospect of reviewing even a small fraction of those would be immensely time-consuming, especially because I don't want to just do a lame one-sentence review, I want to do a well-written, thoughful review. I try to go back every now and then and review something I feel particularly strongly about one way or another though.Oh, I may also avoid reviewing a book if a review already exists that says what I want to say, only in a funnier/more eloquent fashion. And I won't review something if I haven't read it recently.
Oh, Chantelle, you shouldn't be intimidated. I like knowing the reasons why people read things, even if it has very little do with the book. Maybe I'm voyeuristic that way...? A lot of my reviews consist of a giant paragraph or two about my history with a book (see my review on The Name of the Rose: Including Postscript) or why I decided to read something that goes against my normal reading habits (Twilight). Half the time I write them, afterwards I'm like, "Really? Did I just babble on for three paragraphs?" But then I think it might actually mean something to someone else - you know, if you can touch just one person, blah blah blah. I don't want to say that reading other peoples' reviews would persuade me one way or another, but they might actually put me in the mood to read it, and I always appreciate that. :)
Kari, yeah when I first joined GR I added a bunch and didn't review them. But then when I started just adding books that I had just finished I started reviewing them. I find it cathartic, but can understand why not everyone feels the same. I'm a reader and writer by nature, so I'm happy as a pig in poo if I can read even a review or two. You know, if the cereal box or shampoo bottle isn't around. :)
Donna wrote: "Stacey wrote: "Sitting in the car waiting for my preschooler to get out of class and had to put in my two cents worth on the most recent books mentioned.I really enjoyed The Gargoyle, couldn't ..."
Donna...I have only read Hannibal and Red Dragon. I haven't even thought about reading anything else of his, but will probably add his other works to my list!
The Next Best Book Club
Books mentioned in this topic
The Gargoyle (other topics)Lost Girls (other topics)
What's Up, Dawg?: How to Become a Superstar in the Music Business (other topics)
Little Girl Lost (other topics)
A Night Without Armor (other topics)
More...
Authors mentioned in this topic
Guy Gavriel Kay (other topics)Guy Gavriel Kay (other topics)
Geraldine Brooks (other topics)
Harry Turtledove (other topics)
Matthew Pearl (other topics)
More...
I loved Life of Pi, but also never understood the island. The teeth especially tripped me out.