I also tried to read The Satanic Verses, in fact, i believe i posted it up on the reading thread a year ago... i could not get myself into it... at all... bluh... it remains unfinished, and i imagine will for my lifetime... no desire to change that course...
I am simply amazed that a non-Dutch speaker has read anything by a Dutch writer. I'm also agreed on everything you say, with the exception of Dickens. David Copperfield is one of my favourite books of all time.
As for Dutch writers, RIP Jan Wolkers (the author of Turks Fruit/Turkish Delight). He died two days ago.
James Joyce's "Ulysses" have attacked three times and, each time, eventually threw it into the mire in disgust. Reading it was like trying to hunt out the few edible pieces of shrimp in a Taiwanese Sea Cucumber & Anacin stew. His "Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man" is good, but as for the rest....Fuggedaboutit. Mao's "Little Red Book". Yes, it is Little. Yes, the Beijingistas used to pump it out in a bright and vivid shade of Red. But it is not a Book. It is not even a collection of aphorisms potentially useful in small doses. It is a potent narcoleptic. Never could chunk through the whole thing. Anything by Noam Chomsky not related to linguistics. These "extracurricular" works of his have all the sobriety and judicious calm of "Mein Kamp", the elegant style of "The Protocols of the Elders of Zion", the wit and verve of "Materialism and Empirio-Criticism: Critical Comments on a Reactionary Philosophy". Whether a letter to the editor, or a screed before a gaggle of ANSWERites, or an exhortatory lesson to his Boyz in Black, after but a few paragraphs the need for wine, women, or at least sweet dreamless sleep, is overpowering. Yup, Joyce, Ze, Noam....the deadliest literary Trifecta of these works and days
I gave up The Satanic Verses a couple days ago after 100 pages. Did not like it at all - weird plot and I didn't like Rushdie's style of writing.
And not because he's a Spurs fan? Taught the book a few times, he seems to be hit or miss for my students--they either love him or are annoyed by him.
Attila: The Barbarian King Who Challenged Rome, by John Man Way too many unnecessary tangents early on, as if he was trying to justify however many pages he might have been pledged to write.
Very disappointed in the audio version of Bob Newhart's "I Shouldn'T Be Doing This", read by the author. I guess I can take Newhart in small doses, but his reading of hos own book was so painful to listen to that I did not even finish the first cd.
On the Road by Jack Kerouac I know many people consider this book to be a classic but it is the first book in a while that I just could not finish. I fought through the halfway mark and had to call it quits. The book was mainly, we did this, then we did that, and then we did this. I found it very boring.
I enjoy Michael Crichton's work, but the audio version of "Next" was so bad I only got through a few tracks on the disc. I will likely try to read it after a bit, if I can get the reader's voice out of my head.
What a great thread. I've abandoned quite a few books in my time, but usually with the intention of finishing them someday. The last one I stopped reading with no intention of ever picking it up again was this one -- This piece of crap was so badly written, and the author's interpretation of Lolita left a lot to be desired.
Good call. I bailed on that one when, bored, I skimmed ahead and came across a line that referred to baseball's 1919 world cup being fixed. That could be her editor's fault as much as hers, but still...
I tried reading that book but I had to stop after about 50 pages. I held on to it so I can try again but it was a little much for me.
The first time I read the book I almost gave up on it too, but persisted and enjoyed it. Ecco is a fantastic writer, but he is very slow in his build up and at times boring.
I have to say that reading this thread makes me feel better about the many books I felt I had to read but couldn't finish.
I have tried numerous times. I have failed each and every time. I am now convinced that it is the worst book ever written. Beats out "Frankenstein" by a hair.
