Top Ten Books to Avoid

[Nicoletta]

Lorena wrote: "Ok, Bookworms grab your bats and sharpen your pitchforks!

5.The Glass Castle book in a summary, my mom was a sick woman who refused to get help, my father was an alcoholic who didn't give a crap..."



OMG... The priviledge of youth was terrible.

[Angela Sunshine]

I agree wholeheartedly about Eat, Pray, Love. I just could not finish it.

I also felt that way about Love in the Time of Cholera. I know it's wildly popular, but I couldn't seem to engage. I tried to watch the movie after the book attempt, and found the same reaction with the movie!

Another book everyone seemed to love but me was The DaVinci Code. I muddled through, but did not enjoy it at all. *shrugs*

(just looked through some really old posts and see that DaVinci Code was mentioned. Yay, I'm not alone!)

[Joel]

Jayme wrote: "Hmmm, I think I only have a top two list. And they are:

The English Patient

They're the only books where I wish I could get the life I wasted reading them back."

Noooo! The English Patient is such a gorgeous book. I know there are jokes about how boring the movie is, but the book, aside from being beautifully written, packs in so many more interesting characters and details. I think it's one of about three books that actually made me cry.

[Kathy]

Oh, I almost forgot.....
The Birthing House by Christopher Ransom
A good start but then such a disappointment!

[Carol]

In defense of Moby Dick, I saw it as a challenge and was very happy and proud that I finally finished it. :)

kudos to you Kathy I still haven't finished it.

[Kathy]

Carol (akittykat) wrote: "In defense of Moby Dick, I saw it as a challenge and was very happy and proud that I finally finished it. :)

kudos to you Kathy I still haven't finished it."

Don't be discouraged, Carol. I had to take a break from it and then went back recharged and tore right through it. :)

[Carol]

Kathy I have tried to charge through the book so many times, it is sad. In high school I used cliff notes, and over the years have thought I need to really read this thing. I don't foresee that happening unless I am on a deserted island with nothing else to read after I have counted all the grains of sand.

[Kathy]

Carol (akittykat) wrote: "Kathy I have tried to charge through the book so many times, it is sad. In high school I used cliff notes, and over the years have thought I need to really read this thing. I don't foresee that hap..."

Awwww. I'm sorry. My father always used to say that you shouldn't force a book. It might not work for you right now, but if you force it you will hate it and resent it. Stop and try again another time if you want. Sometimes when you do that, you enjoy a book because the time is right. That happened with me and Phantom of the Opera. The first time I tried it, I just couldn't get into it. I tried again a few years later and couldn't put it down. Who knows.

[Timothy]

Angelasunshine needn't worry, I don't know anyone who did like the De Vinci Code, it was one of the biggest 'hypes' of my life time [and I'm over 60!:] it didn't sell anywhere near as many as was claimed at the time.
All the best Paul Rix [oldgeezer:]

[Becky]

I liked it. I didn't think it was amazing, but it was quick and easy reading.

[[deleted user]]

I've only got two to offer: A Million Little Pieces, for being completely vapid, and The Time Traveller's Wife, for having characters almost as annoying as Edward and Bella (though I've not read the Twilight books, I've heard enough about them =P).

[Timothy]

Fair enough Becky, it would be a dull world if we all liked the same thing, but I still think it was more hype than substance.
Happy reading, All the best, Paul Rix [oldgeezer:]

[Clare]

My Couldn't even finish list includes:

1. Bell Canto by Ann Patchett
2. Truck by Michael Perry. (How is this man successful? His writing is pure pomposity! Don't people have editors anymore?)
3. The Road by Cormac McCarthy (Don't kick me out, Lori. I love dystopian fiction, but The Road was soooo boring.)
4. The Raw Shark Texts by Stephen Hall
5 The Pretend Wife by Bridget Hall
6. Any erotica by Jina Bacarr. See the Blonde Geisha for proof.
7. Driving over Lemons by Chris Stewart
8. The Girls' Guide to Hunting and Fishing - Melissa Banks
9. The Glory St. Clair, Vampire series by Gerry Bartlett
10. Growing Up by Russell Baker

I like all sorts of books, but don't waste my time reading beyond 50 pages since there are so many other good books out there.

[Ems Loves to Read]

Oh boy. Where to even start!?

1. Mein Kampf(had to read it for school. Ugh.)
2. Animal Farm
3. Brave New World
4. Heart of Darkness
5. Interview With the Vampire
6. 1984
7. Of Mice and Men
8. The Grapes of Wrath
9. My Antonia
10. Hard Times

Like someone else said, I mean absolutely no disrespect to anyone who loves these books. They're just ones that I had a very hard time with and didn't enjoy in the least. I will say though that I finished them all!

[Kathy]

No, disrespect taken, Emily. I just find it fascinating how different people are and how books touch people differently. 5 of your list I love. It's really interesting. My father used to have an expression about something not being "your cup of tea." Very, very true! :)

[Tammy AZ]

Sarah wrote: "I've only got two to offer: A Million Little Pieces, for being completely vapid, and The Time Traveller's Wife, for having characters almost as annoying as Edward and Bella (though I've not read th..."

Ahh another Twilight hater - couldn't stand that book but I'm definitely in the minority here.

[MissJessie]

The Handmaiden's Tale -- absolutely could not get into it and gave up.

The Time Traveler's Wife - boring boring boring. Left it on a ship I was vacationing on.

The Almond - supposed to be a look into a woman's life in the Muslim world; basically just badly written porn (and I don't dislike well written porn.)

Anything by Dean Koonz -- and you all have already said all that needed to be said on that.

The Submissive Wife - trying to understand this form of marriage and Christianity; I don't.

[Jamaie]

...I only skimmed the ending. This book would literally put me to sleep with boredom. Awful...just awful.

[Heather]

Saving Fish from Drowning- love Amy Tan hated this one
The Shipping News- yikes
The House of the Spirits- tried multiple times
The Corrections
The Celestine Prophecy- what was the point anyway?
The Heart is a Lonely Hunter
Running w/ Scissors(the worst!)
3 cups of tea- fell asleep

[Heather]

Dan Browns books- pure fluff, no substance but I finished both for some reason.....maybe to see what all the hype was about?

I abandoned Atonement and hated the movie- I thought maybe the actors could save the story???!!!???but it was a really bad story

I loved Shes Come undone- read it more that once
and I'm shocked to find that one on many peoples lists

[Les]

I've been exceptionally lucky this year. I've read 57 books so far and the only one that's been a clunker has been One Hundred Years of Solitude. I just couldn't buy into the supernatural nonsense. (And all the characters with the same name.)

[Angela Sunshine]

Paul wrote: "Angelasunshine needn't worry, I don't know anyone who did like the De Vinci Code, it was one of the biggest 'hypes' of my life time [and I'm over 60!:] it didn't sell anywhere near as many as was c..."

Thanks, Paul! :-)

[Angela Sunshine]

Les wrote: "I've been exceptionally lucky this year. I've read 57 books so far and the only one that's been a clunker has been One Hundred Years of Solitude. I just couldn't buy into the supernatu..."

I couldn't get into One Hundred Years of Solitude OR Love in the Time of Cholera. I guess he's just not the author for me.

[Melissa]

At the moment I cannot think of a list of ten books NOT to read...I know there are certain books I could not make it through at the moment I cannot think of them however. I'm just going to make a couple comments on certain books listed -- remember, however, I do respect everyone's opinions on novels they like or dislike...I'm just inputting my own opinions here.

First of all, I can't believe how many people have stated they didn't enjoy "She's Come Undone" by Wally Lamb. I absolutely LOVED that novel. Of course, the main character resembled me in so many ways so I could relate. I have also loved all of Wally Lamb's other novels. I think he is a super writer.

"The Road" by Cormac McCarthy -- really? People hate this novel? Wow, I found it truly fascinating, a superb tale of father's love for his son...I must admit though, I enjoy post apocolyptic (cannot spell today!!! SORRY!) novels and movies ("The Road" movie is so very good by the way). Yes, "The Road" is extremely depressing and there are very morbid visions involved in the novel but I still think it is a genuis book.

I also loved "The Shipping News." Granted, it did take me awhile to get involved with the storyline. Once I did, I was hooked.

Oh -- the "Twilight" series. I read these novels during a time when I needed to read pure fluff and that is what I got. I expected nothing more from the novels then a teenage angst and romance with a few vampires and werewolves thrown in. I wasn't expecting to read prize winning literature so I enjoyed them for what they were. They are geared towards pre-teens and teenage girls, for the most part, and I understood that prior to reading the first novel. I'm glad these novels were able to get teenagers interested in reading again.

Finally, I cannot believe people are mentioniing how much they hate Dean Koontz novels. This is the man who first hooked me on horror novels. When I was younger (pre-teen), after reading "Phantoms" and "Dark Fall," I purchased every one of his novels that I could. I think he has just become a better writer with each novel -- "Fear Nothing" and "Seize the Night" are superb and extremely unique novels. Yes, I freely admit, Koontz has had his off novels, but they are a rarity.

Again, these are just MY opinions.

Melissa

[Becky]

Dean Koontz is very popular, but he misses the mark for me in most of the books I've read of his... I just can't relate to his characters because they don't seem like real people to me, and also seem to repeat throughout his works. The independent and strong woman who trusts nobody and can only rely on herself... the sensitive but still strong man who breaks through her barriers to not only help her survive, but love too... the precocious and almost-geniuslike child... the EVIL BAD MAN... the golden retriever... etc.

I need to believe in the characters or at least understand them, if I am to enjoy a book, and in most cases his characters do nothing for me, unfortunately. He's a plot writer, and that's OK, but doesn't work for me.

Stephen King is the man who hooked ME on horror as a pre-teen, although I read Koontz too back then. But King is a character writer, and this is a huge contributing factor as to why I love him to this day. His characters are as close to real people as fictional characters can be. I DREAM about them. I love that. :)

"She's Come Undone" was just OK for me. I read that one after having read Lamb's MUCH BETTER "I Know This Much Is True" (which is a favorite of mine), and just couldn't really like Dolores in SCU. I don't mean the manipulation or anything, I can get past that, but I just couldn't find anything redeeming in her at all. *shrug*

"The Road" is good, but I don't like the style it was written in. My rating and review here is based on my immediately-after-reading reaction, and is much nicer than I feel about the book now. LOL The more I think about it, the more I dislike it for the writing style, but I will admit that the STORY is moving and interesting and very good.

Just my own opinions... :)

[Someoneyouknow]

My list :
1. War and Peace - the most boring and long book I've read. It's really terrible!
2. The Cement Garden - it's terrible from end to start and incest...ugh!
3. Anna Karenina - long, boring
4. The Old Man and the Sea - is there anything more dull than reading about an old man, alone, struggling with the sea?
5. The Great Gatsby - the whole story seemed very dry to me, it lacked emotions
6. The Red and the Black - the main character was really repelling
7. Any book by Barbara Cartland, she wrote extremely predictable cliche fiction.
8. Jedynaczka by Andrzej Klawitter - a Polish book about teens, moralizing and unrealistic
9. Anne of Green Gables - terrible main character

[Melissa]

Becky wrote: "Dean Koontz is very popular, but he misses the mark for me in most of the books I've read of his... I just can't relate to his characters because they don't seem like real people to me, and also se..."

I love Dean Koontz's character Chris Snow from the "Fear Nothing" and "Seize the Night" novels. I think he was brilliantly written and was hopeful that a third novel in the series would happen -- so far it hasn't. As for the golden retriever, well that was based on Trixie, Dean Koontz's own dog and you could tell, by his devotion to dogs in his novels, how much he loved her. Sadly she did pass away.

Oh, I love Stephen King. I just was introduced to Dean Koontz before Stephen King...I don't, honestly, know how that happened! Fluke of nature I guess. My all time favorite novel is "The Stand" and you are correct, Stephen King is a character writer. They stand out as real people and I actually care about them, especially in "The Stand." That is why, when I first heard they were going ahead and making a miniseries based on "The Stand," I was upset. I figured there was NO way they could capture the characters I love on film. They did and they did a superb job of doing so, in my opinion. A lot of younger people, just now reading "The Stand, " want the miniseries remade, casting younger, more popular actors. I actually laughed at some of their suggestions. I just don't think they can come close to improving on a darn near perfect miniseries.

Again, these are just my opinions....

Melissa

[Julie]

Heather, I did not like Running with Scissors either.
Believe it or not I have never read a book by Dean Koontz.

[Kathryn]

okay so maybe it was just the mindset that i was in at the time, school, work, buying a house. For the life of me I could not get into

Three Cups of Tea

I want to try and read it again, since everyone loved it, but the thought makes me cringe!

[Becky]

Melissa, I've never read the Chris Snow novels, so I can't really comment on those ones. I do like DK, generally, he just doesn't really hold a candle to other authors I've read. That being said, "Intensity" is a GREAT book, and is one of the first I recommend to people who read suspense and thrillers.

I agree with you about The Stand... it was pretty near perfect, and it would be a shame to remake it just for the sake of remaking it. I'm not really a fan of movies based on books, but I can watch that mini-series over and over and over. And I have! :)

[Sissy]

Hi - new here - sad to see some of my favorites popping up so often! War and Peace & Anna Karenina - two of my faves!! But its very interesting to see how many people I agree with. I have more than 10 and I feel there are others that could easily be switched depending on the day - (Lolita, Moll Flanders, The Shipping News).

1 - Robinson Crusoe, Robinson Crusoe, Robinson Crusoe. UGH. What a waste - I kept waiting for something to happen, and nothing. Not worth reading even though its a classic.
2 - Crime and Punishment. I remember forcing myself to get through and hating myself for it afterwards. LOL
3 - Pillars of the Earth - I know this is a favorite of A LOT of people, but I could not stand this book. The sex, the time it takes to get anywhere in the story. I think what really finally doomed it forever in my mind was the 'I've always thought my breasts were too large' line. UGHHHHH. A bad attempt at soft porn attempting to parade under the excuse of the middle ages.
4 - Unbearable Lightness of Being. Vapid.
5 - Wuthering Heights. Highly overrated.
6 - Austerlitz. Takes at least 140 pages to get to a plot - and 10 pages later whatever plot was finally started has completely disappeared.
7 - The Book Thief - one of the few books I couldn't even finish. I know its a favorite, but oh so juvenile and trivalizing.
8 - The English Patient - Slow and overrated.
9 - She's Come Undone. I didn't mind Lamb's I Know this Much is True - but Undone I couldn't stand.
10 - Choke. Horrible. Talk about overkill.
11 - Love in the Time of Cholera. I like 100 Years of Solitude - but this? No good. I don't like the main character. I am not happy when he finally connects with his lost love. I utterly dislike him and think he is simply a dirty dirty old man.

[Max]

I find it ironic/amusing how many classics are on these lists! Trust me, my list fares no better. Also I'm a bit verbose here... bear with me!

1. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. Wow this is one of the most overrated pieces of trash I've ever tried to read. That was harsh, and I mean every word! I respect others' opinions, but I just don't understand how anyone could be captivated by this dry, predictable "mystery" that is so laden with cliched characters and situations that I wanted to rip the book apart. Stay away, guys... there's nothing new here, the characters are two-dimensional and boring, and once you figure out the answers the book takes so long to answer, you'll be so upset you cared even a little bit.
2. My Sister's Keeper. Another way overrated contemporary piece. The writing is terrible and again laden with cliches (I loathe cliches in excess)... the concept is actually very interesting, but Picoult doesn't do it justice. Could have been a great book, ends up being a great time waster.
3. Wuthering Heights. None of the characters are likable, and it just dragged. on.
4. The Scarlet Letter. I can't even begin. Let's just say Hawthorne is one of the most sexist "classic" authors I can think of. And nothing interesting happens in the book, nor does Hawthorne make anything seem remotely interesting.
5. Ethan Frome. Maybe a lot of my hate stems from the person who assigned this to me in high school, and that's bad, but all I know is one minute I'm reading a boring, albeit well-written book, and the next I'm throwing it against the wall in frustration.
6. Prozac Nation. I ended up just frustrated that someone could be so selfish and oblivious and, yes, I'll use the word: whiney. I'm not oblivious about depression, I know a lot about it, so my problem with her doesn't stem from her depression. It just stems from her.
7. Breaking Dawn. I didn't list the first three of the Twilight series because even I'll admit those books kept me interested, if not riveted or at all more intelligent. But this fourth and final book... makes no sense. I put up with a lot in the first three books, but I was okay with it because it was kitsch literature that I was reading, just a way to pass time. This was just... painful.
8. The Phantom of the Opera. I love the Broadway musical. I love the movie. This book bears no resemblance to either. The character of the Phantom, who I fell in love with, is just destroyed. Well, I guess since the book came first that can't really be said, but... well, you get the point.
9. Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West. Again, loved the musical. The book bears no resemblance. Which is fine if the book is actually good, but... it's not.
10. The Tempest. People always say Lewis Carroll was high when he wrote Alice in Wonderland, but no one ever mentions what Shakespeare had to have been smoking when he wrote stuff like this.

[Ruby]

Okay, this is going to be more than ten. Please bear with me.

1. The Secret Life of Bees - I thought it needed a new editor and a heavy rewrite
2. Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult - won't be reading any other books by the author either
3. The Shipping News - ugh
4. Poisonwood Bible - did not appear to be set in a real Africa, more like a scary dream I didn't need to have. I liked Bean Trees a lot, but nothing since.
5. The Lovely Bones.
6. Snow Falling on Cedars
7. The Notebook - won't be reading any others by him either, did not even like the movie.
8. Fall on your Knees - I wrote a review of this one it is so bad! ha!
9. A Separate Peace - perhaps whoever picks the books for highschoolers to read should be investigated to see if they perhaps sell antidepressants or get a kickback from psychiatrists.
10. A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry - I never had India very high up on my list of possible travel, but now I loathe the very idea
11. A Secret History by Donna Tartt - reviewed this too.
12. Heart of Darkness - worst thing I was supposed to read in school, and that's saying a lot.
13. Anything by Margaret Atwood - read 3 books, didn't like any of them, although I like the movie of The Handmaid's Tale
14. The Princess Bride - awesome movie, terrible book
15. David Copperfield - pretty much put me off reading any more Dickens although I have always liked A Christmas Carol
16. several books by Edwidge Danticat - did not get me going.
17. Sophie's World - have not succeeded in reading more than a few pages at a time, never finished.
18. Thomas Hardy in general - the poetry is even worse.
19. Grendel - if you like Beowulf I think this is going to miss its mark with you (me)
20. Golden Compass - oddly enough I have liked every single book by Philip Pullman that I've found that was NOT IN THIS SERIES.
21. Practical Magic - again I liked the movie, book was entirely different and bad.

some more genre fantasy stuff now

22. The Lies of Locke Lamora - very disappointing.
23. King's Dragon by Kate Elliott - not my idea of fantasy.
24. Sorcery Rising by Jude Fisher
25. Lord of Snow and Shadows by Sarah Ash
26. Midwinter by Matthew Sturges - apparently even the author did not think this was very good
27. Seventh Son by Orson Scott Card - loved the premise of this and wanted to like it but I couldn't, also I really didn't like Folk of the Fringe, but I did like Wyrms.
28. Whitechapel Gods - wish I could find some good steampunk but so far I haven't.
29. Silver's Bane by Anne Kelleher - since reading this I have found some books put out by Luna that aren't bad, but the first flurry of them seemed to be really awful. Luna is apparently a pretty new label which is the fantasy division of Harlequin Romance. :/

I'll stop now! I read all of this and it has been very interesting. I've loved some books on people's lists, particularly I was surprised to see Russell Baker's Growing Up. Henry Miller and Anais Nin are probably not for everyone, or Proust or Illuminatus! for sure. I have a soft spot for the really weird.

[Ruby]

And I do like the Twilight books, Catch-22, all of the Anita Blake series, The Yearling... (looking around to see if tennis rackets are flying towards my head) :)

[Sissy]

Michelle wrote: "I find it ironic/amusing how many classics are on these lists! Trust me, my list fares no better. Also I'm a bit verbose here... bear with me!

1. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. Wo..."


Completely agree with you on Dragon Tattoo. I kept waiting for the kick to start in having heard so many times that it was "so amazing" and "couldn't put it down" book. Never happened. Also agree on Phantom - I kept thinking, they made a musical out of this? Very disappointing!!

[Ruby]

I thought of two more bad f/sf books (in my opinion, although I think they have some fans):

The Briar King by Greg Keyes
Ariel: a novel of the Change by Steven R. Boyett

[Ruby]

More very popular books I didn't like!

The Mists of Avalon (or anything) by Marion Zimmer Bradley - I want to absolutely murder Morgan throughout the book, additionally I read two other unrelated books by her and didn't like them either.

Redwall series - the thing with every kind of animal being uniformly nice, cool people except rats are all evil became an apparently unintended extended metaphor for racial bigotry to me. Also I like rats, I used to have some pet ones.

[Jayme]

Aw, I loved both those books, Ruby! Mists of Avalon was soooo good, although I'll agree that I haven't found anything else by her that I really love. And Redwall, I only read the first one, but I found it pretty adorable.

[[deleted user]]

1:Twilight and sequels
2:Romeo and Juliet
3:Jane Eyre
4:The Messenger by Marcus Zusak
5:Anne of Green Gables and sequels
6:Little Men and Jo's Boys (Little Women was okay but the other two...)

Those are all that I have for now.
Oh, Redwall! The first few books were really good but they all had the same plot. Eventually the books just ran together.

[Kaion]

I *loved* Redwall as a kid. Though yeah, the formula does run thin (I never liked the badgers/Salamandastron stories much). But the original = love.

Ruby wrote: "...Redwall series - the thing with every kind of animal being uniformly nice, cool people except rats are all evil became an apparently unintended extended metaphor for racial bigotry to me. Also I like rats, I used to have some pet ones...."

So are you complaining they are too similarly nice (not having enough distinction between species) or are too different (EVIL! GOOD!).

Note: I like rats too. It's just a thing. If they were like imaginary mythical creatures like chimeras vs. basilisks, I wouldn't really blink either.

[Joel]

Ruby wrote: "14. The Princess Bride - awesome movie, terrible book"

Now that's surprising. I thought TPB was one of the most faithful book-to-movie translations ever. William Goldman even did the screenplay adaptation himself.

[Ruby]

Joel wrote: "Ruby wrote: "14. The Princess Bride - awesome movie, terrible book"

Now that's surprising. I thought TPB was one of the most faithful book-to-movie translations ever. William Goldman even did the ..."

Except that they have exactly opposite meanings! The movie takes it all entirely seriously, genre humorous fantasy, and the book has only that little part in the middle and all around is loathsomeness and cynicism. It nearly ruined the movie for me as well.

Jayme, I almost never like anything to do with Merlin or Avalon, I'm just really really picky on that subject. And The Mists of Avalon was a total downer and that whiny little do-nothing as Morgan LeFay.... NOT, haha. Redwall is so simplistic. Why should all of a species be "good" or "evil"? That would only make sense if it were some kind of Animal Farm-ish analogy or metaphor. Archetypes like from Aesop. Instead it is just lazy world-building, it seems. Rather than have real, individual protagonists and villains, let's have ciphers instead. :(

[Jayme]

I see your point, Ruby, but stand by my love of both books. I do agree with you about Princess Bride though. That is one of my all time favourite movies, but I didn't like the book either.

[Melissa]

I'm not one to tell people what they can or cannot like when it comes to ANYTHING but some of the novels that have been listed here are truly shocking! Just to name a few that I'm rather confused at why they are being hated:

1)The Princess Bride - I felt this book was truly amazing and felt the film was very true to the novel.

2) Anita Blake, the Vampire Hunter series by Laurell K. Hamilton - I really don't understand why certain people don't enjoy this series. Its about a strong female, has a very unique twist on the supernatural and I, personally, cannot put any of these books down once I begin reading them.

3) The "Twilight" series by Stephanie Meyer. YES, I realize these are pure fluff novels and they are mainly aimed at pre-teen and teenage girls, but I enjoyed them and read them at a time when I needed a distraction. A very horrible time in my life (which I will not go into details about now) were I couldn't concentrate on a "real" novel...I needed fluff. I thought the novels were a unique take on vampires and werewolves and a neat little love story. No, they are not award winning novels by any means but they are far from being the worst novels ever written, in my opinion.

4) Anything by Margaret Atwood - read 3 books, didn't like any of them, although I like the movie of The Handmaid's Tale. -- I personally really enjoy Margaret Atwood's writings and I was first introduced to her by reading "The Handmaid's Tale." While I did enjoy the movie, it didn't do the novel any justice. I did have a recent bad experience with one of her novels and that was "Oryx and Crake" -- horrible novel and I love, usually, post apocalyptic novels and films.

5) The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold. -- I simply cannot fathom someone not enjoying this horrifically sad yet uplifting novel...I found it to be darn near perfect.

6) My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult. -- Another novel I LOVED...I even enjoyed the movie and I normally HATE Cameron Diaz. Terribly sad novel, yet very realistic and compelling. I also enjoy the majority of Jodi Picoult's other novels. I don't think one book should turn you off an author completely. If I based my likes of an author on ONE novel, I would not read some of the brilliant novels I have.

7) Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West by Gregory Maguire. -- I absolutely love this novel and this entire series. I didn't think I would since I thought it would be attacking my all time favorite movie, "The Wizard of Oz" but it didn't. Far from it. The musical was actually based on the novel so I just cannot grasp how you can enjoy the musical yet not the novel it was based on.

8) She's Come Undone by Wally Lamb -- Another post about how horrific this novel was...I have to disagree, again. I thought this novel was brilliant and I could relate to the main character in more ways then one. I think Wally Lamb is a superb novelist and look forward to each of his new novels. I just don't understand the hate for this particular one.

Anyway -- these are just my opinions and I do NOT mean to offend ANYONE by stating what I have. I'm just trying to understand why these novels are hated so much.

[Max]

Melissa wrote: "I'm not one to tell people what they can or cannot like when it comes to ANYTHING but some of the novels that have been listed here are truly shocking! Just to name a few that I'm rather confused ..."

I know the musical was based on Maguire's Wicked, but honestly the two were extremely different. I read the novel about two years ago, so I can't get into the specifics, but I know for a fact that the book only resembled the musical in basic premise. It's the same thing with Phantom of the Opera: if you read the book and saw the musical, you'd see that the only similarity is the shell of the two... the characters and the plot overview.

As for My Sister's Keeper, I remember that read vividly. Like I said in my post, the concept was interesting. But Picoult isn't a very good writer, in my opinion. There are too many cliched lines, the "love story" was completely unnecessary... in fact, there were a lot of unnecessary details in this book. Picoult just seems to try too hard.

These are just my opinions. I dislike the books, not the fact that you like them. :)

[Kaion]

I disliked Wicked so much I read it twice to make sure. But all this talk makes me wonder if I should get off my ass and go see the musical. Worth it, Michelle?

[Max]

I'd say so! I'd hate to contribute to a terrible night if you end up hating it, but I really disliked the novel, but loved the play. The play is pretty kitsch-y... but it's Broadway, I assume you'd expect that.

[Sue]

Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert. I'm sure there are others but that is the one I can think of right now.

[Sissy]

The ending of Wicked the musical is quite different from Wicked the book. I can understand why people would prefer the musical for that reason.

I highly enjoyed both the book and the musical. As for the follow up novels in the Wicked series - yuck. =)

[M.]

The Red Badge of Courage, Stephen Crane
The Princess Bride (although the movie is outstanding), William Goldman
The Jungle, Upton Sinclair
All the Anita Blake Vampire Hunter books, Laurell K. Hamilton (granted, I only got through 2 of them, but could they really get that much better that I would end up loving them?)