LIST books you abandoned?

[Diane]

I just abandoned the audiobook of White Tiger by Arabind Adiga. Not because it wasn't good content but the white man narrating with a (bad) Indian accent was far too distracting. I will try again later with a paper copy. :)

[Andrea]

I've come really close to abandoning White Teeth by Zadie Smith a few times. But I'm a stubborn one so I've pushed through and have about 60 pages left.

[Aitziber]

I always knew Twilight was terrible, but I ended up picking it up to mock it. I couldn't get through it, it was so boring that I couldn't even be bothered to MST it.

I abandoned Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs: A Low Culture Manifesto. I ordered it off Amazon because it was supposed to offer a deeper insight into pop culture. Instead, I found myself hating all that Klosterman had to say about anything. I don't even remember what exactly had me so bothered, either, just that I've rarely been so annoyed reading a book.

[Elizabeth (Alaska)]

Aitziber wrote: "I always knew Twilight was terrible, but I ended up picking it up to mock it. I couldn't get through it, it was so boring that I couldn't even be bothered to MST it.

I abandoned [boo..."

Not list books.

[Karena]

I just gave up on The Shipping News. I gave it 100 pages and just couldn't get into it which bothers me because I rarely pull a DNF and I couldn't pick up on what bothered me about it.

[Aitziber]

Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "Aitziber wrote: "I always knew Twilight was terrible, but I ended up picking it up to mock it. I couldn't get through it, it was so boring that I couldn't even be bothered to MST it.
..."

I know, sorry! I forgot which group I was commenting to. I don't think I've abandoned a list book yet.

[Lauren]

I gave up on Libra by Don DeLillo twice this summer. I'm about 100 pages in, and I just can't get into it, which is strange, because I absolutely LOVED Underworld. I'll try to pick it up later in the year.

A lot of the books people have mentioned abandoning are books I absolutely LOVED: Anna Karenina, Love in the Time of Cholera!

A book I hated on the list was Crime and Punishment. And I did not like Grapes of Wrath. I wonder why East of Eden by Steinbeck is not on the list. It is such a well constructed book, and so much better than Grapes of Wrath!

[Haley]

I actually was trying to read White Teeth, our book for next month, but I got a third of the way through it and it is just AWFUL. I have absolutely no idea what this book is about, and I do not CARE. Putting it away. Sorry guys, I hope you like it better than I do!

[Tej]

SPOILER ALERT RE White Teeth: I was very close to the end and knew someone was going to die but wasn't sure who. It occurred to me that I didn't care about any of the characters. No one had any redeeming qualities so I thought it really didn't matter to me which one died. But then I paused and thought, wait, there is one character I would hate to see die. Yup. He was the one!

[Erika]

Karena wrote: "I just gave up on The Shipping News. I gave it 100 pages and just couldn't get into it which bothers me because I rarely pull a DNF and I couldn't pick up on what bothered me about it."

I had this problem with The Shipping News at first, and I trudged through it. It ended up being not so bad, but not one of my favorites.

[Erika]

Shameful confession: There are 3 books that I've started multiple times and haven't been able to finish. Two of them are on my to-read list for this year, so hopefully I can get through them!

One Hundred Years of Solitude (I loved Love in the Time of Cholera though!)
Cloud Atlas
Look Homeward, Angel This is especially terrible, because I am from North Carolina and Wolfe and I share the same alma mater!

I know that most of these are generally adored; I just can't get into them.

[Andrea]

Haley wrote: "I actually was trying to read White Teeth, our book for next month, but I got a third of the way through it and it is just AWFUL. I have absolutely no idea what this book is about, and I do not CAR..."

Glad it was not just me. I suffered through the entire thing, and still had just about no idea.

[Dutchling]

I don't understand the concept of abandoning LIST books. Isn't the goal of this to read all 1001 of them?

[Elizabeth (Alaska)]

Dutchling wrote: "I don't understand the concept of abandoning LIST books. Isn't the goal of this to read all 1001 of them?"

My goal is to find good literature to read and this list includes a wide variety.

[Diane]

Dutchling wrote: "I don't understand the concept of abandoning LIST books. Isn't the goal of this to read all 1001 of them?"

I will second Elizabeth (Alaska)'s response paraphrased as:
to find good, seminal, important books instead of filling my reading life with series and plonk.
I've found amazing authors I likely would not have found otherwise. For me personally, I want to read far more of J.M. Coetzee, José Saramago, and Miyuki Miyabe and I think I have only one or two more Dashiell Hammett novels left to read.

And I will add 2 more comments:
1. Not all books are for all readers. I'm not a fan of magical realism, so I have not attempted One Hundred Years of Solitude yet. I'm working my way up to it. :) Readers who bristle at graphic sex should probably wait to pick up Crash.

2. As a reader, I'm not always ready for a book. I have put books back on the shelf frustrated or bored only to come back to them years later and LOVE them. :) Sometimes this forum is nice to say to oneself (and shout at the ether) "I didn't get that book either!!" :)

[Andrea]

Diane wrote: "Dutchling wrote: "I don't understand the concept of abandoning LIST books. Isn't the goal of this to read all 1001 of them?"

I will second Elizabeth (Alaska)'s response paraphrased as:
to find go..."

what she said :)


I've found that the books I have given up on, I pick them up after some time and I somehow manage to make my way through it. Doesn't mean that I enjoy it anymore but it doesn't seem as painful as it initially was. So I think part of the abandoning of books comes from what you're currently itching to read and whether this book is a good fit.

That being said, I do want to read the entire list so I do plan on going back to any book that I first abandoned.

[Cataluna6]

If I'm not loving a book I try listening to the audio as well. Sometime hearing the story, (if narrated well), makes it more appealing and easy to get through.

They're not 1001 books, but I love the narrator for the Elvis Cole/ Joe Pike series by Robert Crais. I'm happy to read the books, but I'd rather listen to them. He is fantastic and it just makes the story come alive.

[Daniel]

Ulysses and Middlemarch

[Angelique]

The books that I have put down will eventually be read. I have been trying to read Moby Dick forever now and I get farther every time I try. Sometimes I pick up a book and I am just not in the mood for that authors' style of writing.

[Jean]

byBarbara Kingsolver. Tried the book and the audio but neither was my cup of tea.

[Dee]

Jean wrote: "byBarbara Kingsolver. Tried the book and the audio but neither was my cup of tea."

This is one of my favourite books ever, though it took me several attempts over a period of about five years to get into it.

[Jean]

David wrote: "Jean wrote: "byBarbara Kingsolver. Tried the book and the audio but neither was my cup of tea."

This is one of my favourite books ever, though i..."

Just couldn't get into it.

[Jean]

David wrote: "Jean wrote: "byBarbara Kingsolver. Tried the book and the audio but neither was my cup of tea."

This is one of my favourite books ever, though i..."

Just couldn't get into it. Did not like the characters nor the setting. I guess it's true, all books are not for everyone. Glad you enjoyed it though.

[Tej]

Erika wrote: "Shameful confession: There are 3 books that I've started multiple times and haven't been able to finish. Two of them are on my to-read list for this year, so hopefully I can get through them!

[boo..." I din't care for Look Homeward, Angel but I did like You Can't Go Home Again!

[Faye]

I just finished gulliver's travels! Although I did finish it felt like giving up several times. I wish I had now. It didn't get any better.

[Elizabeth (Alaska)]

Faye wrote: "I just finished gulliver's travels! Although I did finish it felt like giving up several times. I wish I had now. It didn't get any better."

I felt exactly the same way. I was too stubborn to give up, but wish I had not even started it.

[Becky]

What Maisie Knew
The Idiot

I've slogged through a few of the list books wondering what I was missing. Others I've read and couldn't begin to tell you what they were about.

I agree with trying to listen to a book that doesn't grab you when you read it - a good narrator can make all the difference!

[Aarti]

So far I've only abandoned Arabian Nights

[Kayla]

I wouldn't say I've abandoned it per say, but I'm having a rather difficult time getting through 1Q84 in one chunk of time. So I read it for a few weeks and then abandon it for a couple other books and then revisit it about once a month. It's taking me a quite a while this way, but it's working. I wouldn't say I'm not enjoying it because it's actually very good, I think it's more that it's so large and there's so many other books that I want to be reading also that I have a hard time committing to it fully lol.

[Wendy]

I gave up on The Iron Heel by Jack London. It's not even very long, but 200ish pages of soapbox is too much. I figure I got the gist of it, anyway.

[Tej]

Wendy wrote: "I gave up on The Iron Heel by Jack London. It's not even very long, but 200ish pages of soapbox is too much. I figure I got the gist of it, anyway."

I agree; I didn't care for it much either. However, I did really enjoy Martin Eden.

[Annina]

I have to gave up Gulliver's Travels. It was so boring.

[Ursula]

Two books I have tried more than once and will not be going back to are Middlesex and A Confederacy of Dunces. For Middlesex, I was dragging myself through it and putting it down for longer and longer periods of time until finally, about 30 pages from the end, I looked at it and seriously asked myself if I cared what happened. The answer was a resounding no.

A Confederacy of Dunces, I have tried to read in print twice and I also tried listening to the audio. I just cannot stand it. I cannot subject myself to trying again to spend any time with Ignatius T. Reilly.

I've dropped other books, but I'll try them again. Those two are *done*.

[Colleen]

Ugh. Vanity Fair. Got through 15% and I'm bored.

[Samantha]

I hate to say this, but I'm halfway through The Temple of My Familiar and I want to quit. I'm bored, but I wish I wasn't! this book has a GREAT rating. Can someone tell me what I'm not getting?

[Julia]

I love Stephen King. I've read almost all his books. But there is one book I simply can not read: The Stand. I have tried 3 times. I've tried to watch the many mini-series, but I just can't get past the first hour (mini-series) or 150 pages (book). I pride myself on completing every book I've ever attempted to read. It may take me a few years, but I get through them. The Stand? Twenty years, and I have come to the conclusion this is one book I will never read through to the end.

I am not challenged by the wordiness, the length or breadth. I've read wordier and longer. Simply put. I can't get past the snot. Stephen King is poetically descriptive. Unfortunately, his energetic depictions of the phlegmy epidemic are a bit too realistic and hit too close to my nasal cavities.

I tried skimming past all that, to no avail. I reach my limit at page 150 every time. Watching any of the mini-series, I reach my limit within the first 45 minutes. My nasal cavities seize, and my imagination goes into overload, when I read the (very) descriptive passages about how folks choke on their own snot.

Suffice it to say. Thrice is enough for me; three times I've tried reading it. And three times I've tried watching it. Nevermore, quoth I.

[Mandy]

I have had a very similar experience Julia, watched the tv mini series ok but there is something about the book....I will probably give it another go - but it may haveto be the last book left on the list for me to do it.

[Elizabeth (Alaska)]

Julia wrote: "I love Stephen King. I've read almost all his books. But there is one book I simply can not read: The Stand. I have tried 3 times. I've tried to watch the many mini-series, but I just..."

I don't believe that's a list book anyway.

[Erika]

Just gave up Martin Chuzzlewit by Dickens. I can see why this was removed from the list after the 2006 edition. I love Dickens, but I got a little over a third into this one and just couldn't take it anymore.

[Tej]

Samantha wrote: "I hate to say this, but I'm halfway through The Temple of My Familiar and I want to quit. I'm bored, but I wish I wasn't! this book has a GREAT rating. Can someone tell me what I'm not getting?"

Have you read The Color Purple first? If not, you should as The Temple of My Familiar is a sequel.

[Inder]

I abandoned Oliver Twist (although I like Dickens generally, I just couldn't make it!), Les Miserables (but I plan to get back to that at some point), Aesop's Fables (fun at first, then progressively more tedious), and who knows what else! Sometimes I just have to let something go in favor of other reading. Life is short. :-)

[Linda]

Inder wrote: "I abandoned Oliver Twist (although I like Dickens generally, I just couldn't make it!), Les Miserables (but I plan to get back to that at some point), [book:Aesop's Fabl..."

I'm 3/4 of the way through Les Mis right now, with a reading schedule of roughly 75 pages per week. Sometimes I want to just keep reading ahead of the schedule because there is great action, but there are definitely some chapters where I've had to skim to get through, and honestly there are some parts where I really didn't understand what Hugo was even talking about!

[Inder]

Linda wrote: "Inder wrote: "I abandoned Oliver Twist (although I like Dickens generally, I just couldn't make it!), Les Miserables (but I plan to get back to that at some point), [boo..."

Linda, I was trying to explain it to a friend. It's like boring, boring, boring, boring, MIND BLOWN, wait a minute, what just happened?!! The beautiful parts take my breath away! But I did end up putting it down during a slow part and forgetting about it. I know I'll pick it up again, though. It was too good.

[Linda]

Inder wrote: "It's like boring, boring, boring, boring, MIND BLOWN, wait a minute, what just happened?!!"

Ha ha! Yeah, you described it perfectly. I try to power through through the boring chapters, then just know in the back of my mind that there is bound to be some action in the next chapter. Any chapter titled something like "A Few Pages of History" or "Argot" or "On the Battlefield of Waterloo" , I know I'm in for a section of skimming.

[Emily]

I was an English major and sad to say, that I've only read 57 books on the list! I abandoned Sexing the Cherry when I was in college and I will never attempt it again. Refuse to read Lolita and Clockwork Orange. Lolita because the premise doesn't interest me, and Clockwork Orange because after 20 minutes into the movie, I couldn't handle it. I don't think I'll be able to handle the book.

[Davin]

I hate to say it, but I think I'm going to abandon Cain by Jose Saramago. Writing the stories of the old testament is ending up being more of a thought experiment than a novel. It's too bad, because I liked Blindness a bunch, and this had a strong beginning. As the stories went on and on though, it began to grate on me.I'm about halfway through.

[Alana]

Les Mis is a tough read, for sure, but it's worth it. There are some very long, tedious sections (which I tend to listen to while doing the dishes or something, so I have an activity to keep me occupied) but the "story" sections are fantastic! Beautiful book, well worth reading at least once.

[Kat]

I tried and failed at reading 'La Regenta' this week, this is the very first time I've abandoned a book and I'm not quite sure what to think of myself. I don't know, I just found it bad. Really, really bad. I think when you dread your commute even more because of the book you're reading it's probably for the best that you put it down (and never pick it up again).

[Sandi]

Kat wrote: "I tried and failed at reading 'La Regenta' this week"

I have a German translation waiting on my bedside table. What did you not like about it?

[RachelvlehcaR]

I'm sad to say that I've finally abandoned North and South. I had a very hard time getting into the book, after reading a few chapters I found it to be the biggest chore ever. I just avoided it and would pass it up for a bunch of other books, including a Parasite zombie(ish) book, instead of reading it.

Last night I came to the conclusion I'm just not going to read it and re-shelf it, most likely it will just a be a dust collector but perhaps I'll read it but I seem slim chances in that. Reading shouldn't be a chore and disliked.