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brad786 wrote:A friend of mine once presented me with a book "A Thousand Splendid Suns", written by Khaled Hosseini. After hearing a very positive review about this book from friend, I started to read it but was disappointed with it. It's not like it is badly written or something but I didn't connect myself with the book.
And yet, I loved that book (though not as much as The Kite Runner). Thank goodness it's different strokes for different folks, or writers would all have to write along similar lines, and that would be boring.
Read a book I thought I should like but didn't? More than I wish to admit, but more so recently.
When I was younger (I'm only 25 by the way, so I'm referring to when I was about 10 to 14ish), I remember liking just about everything I ever opened. Perhaps I was in my "sponge" phase and just soaked it all up with nothing to compare them to. Now though, my tastes are either refined or (how I truly feel) spoiled. I wish every book I picked up lit up my world like it used to.
EDIT: But enough of all that negativity, the mention of "The Kite Runner" does bring up some good news for me at least. Conversely, that book was one I read expecting not to enjoy but actually found it to be a good read.
Mind if add a suggestion to your topic, Carrie? Add in a book you didn't expect to enjoy but pleasantly found it to be worthwhile!
Last edited by tbughi1 on 04 Dec 2012, 15:30, edited 1 time in total.
brad786..I can understand you not be able to connect with "A Thousand Splendid Suns" I just loved the novel, for female readers it was so very popular. I am sure that you would enjoy "The Kite Runner"by the same author.
Dato..I shall track down a copy of Catch 22, I read it as a young girl(many moons ago) and was blown away by it, till this day the term Catch22 is still used, and understood by all, I am sure that this would be a first for any novel!!
tbughi1 wrote:
Mind if add a suggestion to your topic, Carrie? Add in a book you didn't expect to enjoy but pleasantly found it to be worthwhile!
That would be another great conversation. Ironically for me, my favorite book fits that description. I put off reading "A Fine Balance" by Rohinton Mistry for a long time, even though my mother kept urging me to read it. Didn't seem like my type of book, but I finally pulled it off the shelf and gave it a go. So glad I did, because I now claim it as my favorite!
I thought that given the hype 50 shades got it would suck you in but i barely got through the first chapter without falling asleep and forced myself to read on to find no interesting story.
I was also recomended to read twilight (wernt we all) i found the 1st book ok ... the 2nd ok ... the 3rd the same as all of them and although it is an addicting series and i wont argue that yes i was slightly obsessed while reading them ... i put the last book down and realised that the storyline had been dragged through hours of dialog when it could have been condensed into 2 or 3 really good books ... i think its a great book just poorly written.
TBH i have a list the length of my arm and thats why im here
I Need good book suggestions so plz guys help me out
Caddy X
Books that have become cultish and revered - 'The Magus' by John Fowler. This was a 'book club' read, we have six members, 3 read the complete work (myself included) and the other 3 didn't finish it - choosing not to because they felt it was too 'out there'. One of our members said it was the worst book she had ever endeavored to read and was convinced 'Fowler' had to be on drugs when he wrote it.
My own opinion was mixed - I didn't hate it, I kept thinking there would be resolution at the end of the book and as the final pages drew near the author led me down that path and then up and left. All a big tease - the book ended and I felt cheated.
-- 05 Dec 2012, 14:10 --
Carrie R wrote:
tbughi1 wrote:
Hi Carrie,
I have both books (Kite Runner & A Fine Balance) and haven't read either one to date. Thanks for the positive comments, I'll definitely move them to the top of the pile.
Mind if add a suggestion to your topic, Carrie? Add in a book you didn't expect to enjoy but pleasantly found it to be worthwhile!
That would be another great conversation. Ironically for me, my favorite book fits that description. I put off reading "A Fine Balance" by Rohinton Mistry for a long time, even though my mother kept urging me to read it. Didn't seem like my type of book, but I finally pulled it off the shelf and gave it a go. So glad I did, because I now claim it as my favorite!
cshiredhands wrote:
I have a 50 page/5 chapter rule - if the book doesn't grab me by then I move on, no matter how much it was recommended!
I think I need to adopt your strategy. I still feel bad if I don't finish a book. Not sure why. I don't feel bad if I don't finish a movie. I guess I keep thinking, "Hold on; it might get better..."
I take any and all suggestions from Oprah's Book Club. When I read Back Roads by Tawni O'Dell I thought " What was Oprah Thinking" and that was the last suggestion I took from her. The book sucked. I try to stick to the same genre for pleasure reading, every now and then I will branch out with suggestions from friends. I have found that following my own mind is the best way to go. My mantra for this is "just because a person more achieved doesn't mean they are more believed".
My reading time is tooo valuable to waste if I am not enjoying a novel, I just discard, and keep trying, if the book does not grab me with the first chapter it is usually a castaway, to be returned to the library or recycled. BTW I have never had luck with Oprah's recommendations. This method of mine is great in whittling down my TBR steeples.
The older I get the harder I am to please!!
An author that people rave about is Australian writer Peter Carey, the only novel of his that I really enjoyed was "Jack Maggs" and I have really tried a few.
Carrie "A Fine Balance" sounds interesting, I had a looksee on Goodreads and it has great praise however it has lot's of pages, another thing with me is that I only like slimish novels, I have ordered it on audio for my husband.
I can recommend Irish writer Jennifer Johnston, she writes my size and all so very special, I began with "The Christmas Tree" from then on I was hooked, I have read most of her novels.
I read Catch 22 years ago and was entirely disappointed. What I found so odd was that there were plenty of hidden jokes which I understood, an interesting storyline, well-developed characters... And yet I just couldn`t stand it. I felt liek I had to force myself to read every page. It was the first and only book I`ve ever given up on without finishing.
"just because a person more achieved doesn't mean they are more believed".
