Anything Goes discussion

tell us any book that you have given up on recently because it got so dull and it was dragging a bit to much...

I tried to get into the Silmarillion by JRR Tolkien, I gave up after the first 30 or so pages, I just really couldn't get the hang of it or the language it is written in, it's seems as if it's written in Old English for some reason.

If you get through a 100 pages it gets better, very marginally !

Ice wrote: "If you get through a 100 pages it gets better, very marginally !"

Lifes not long enough to read books like that :-)) I loved The Hobbit and Lord Of The Rings but The Silmarillion just didn't seem to have the same thrall over me. Oh well, it is still there on the shelf, one day perhaps I'll give it another go.

Well, it happened so far a few times...
First example that comes to mind is , and comes to think about it, I have not idea why I've ordered this book originally! I did not like the look of it, really. It was horrible! The writing! [if you have it, you may check out my review and decide for yourself if you want to read it] The plot (LOL, excuse me: there was no plot!) ! All horrible! So I abandoned it after 30 pages (which is about 1/5 of the book, it isn't thick). But couple of months later I picked it up again, willing to give it another chance. This turned out to be the worst decision of my life. Such a waste of time!
Another one is Amy Tan's , which I did not expect to leave, because her reputation states she is a very good author. Very appreciated one, anyway. I wouldn't call it abandon, this poor love story did not last more than 60 pages (which was a whole new record of boredom).
Let me see, any more? Oh, yes -
Like , but totally out of its poor league - I have abandoned a novel I should have liked - or at least accept, in some way. I am not sure if anyone has read it (no, I am sure, but I'm not sure who's gonna read this post,so) - but it was not the book for me, sadly. 40 pages and we were done. The movie was fine, though, which is quite strange, but alright. Are you ready? I am talking about . I know, right! Of all classics, I have had to give up on this one... I guess it's just hopeless (Or am I?).
Anyhow, books are meant to be read - don't take me as a role model this case :)
Oh, oh! And how could I possibly forget ? I must admit: this is a decision I regret on the one hand, but to my alibi I must state that it wasn't gripping as I expected it to be. I love the plot and the idea (umm, and the movies!) but something about the book just hadn't had the same effect on my, alas. I should have liked it, but I didn't. No matter what I did - including reading it both in English and in Hebrew - it did not get any better, one way or another. Such a disappointment.
Anyone feels the same way?

Trevor wrote: "I tried to get into the Silmarillion by JRR Tolkien, I gave up after the first 30 or so pages, I just really couldn't get the hang of it or the language it is written in, it's seems as if it's writ..."

I have the same problem with Old Tolk, sadly...

I gave up on , twice. The first time at around 60 pages, but I was told it was completely brilliant by a friend so I had a further go. The second time I tried an audiobook for my commute to work and after some 3hours, gave up the will to live. I know others love it, but for me, it didn't work.

Kyle wrote: "I gave up on , not only because it was drawn out and boring, but because it was too dark, disturbing and utterly depressing. I know a lot of King fans praise this book..."

Blimey - that's one of the best!

Ditto with Silmarillion. These days I try to vet the book before launching into it. Time is too short to waste ...

I gave up on Delta of Venus, which I was reading for a genre challenge in another group. Supposed to be classic erotica, but was so boring!

i gave up on the black house as the chapters were very long winded and it was not grabbing my attention throughout the chapters but i did get up to chapter 10 of the book. at least i tried to to finish it.

I wish I had the power to give up on books more! I regret finishing The Trial and The Flame Alphabet most. It felt like Ulysses was pushing me away with every page but I'm glad I struggled through with it. If anyone's had problems with Ulysses, try printing a synopsis and taking it with you so you know what you're reading and why it's so clever- I found it makes it much easier!

Like Leo I'm not good at giving up on books, in the roughly 33 years that I have been reading I've done it twice that I can recall.
A couple of years ago I gave up on House of Leaves and a few days ago I gave up on Tomb of Alexander, got about four chapters in and had to give up. Didn't have a problem with the hunt for alexander's tomb or the fact that it is trashy fiction, it was the flashbacks to a previous life that did it.

I hate having to say "enough is enough" and at one time, I felt so bad if I gave up on a book. It doesn't happen so often now, although some of the books on my "currently reading" list have been there for a long time! They'll stay there, because I do intend to finish them...just not sure when!

Before I Go To Sleep One of the worst books I've tried to read!

Karen wrote: "Like Leo I'm not good at giving up on books, in the roughly 33 years that I have been reading I've done it twice that I can recall.
A couple of years ago I gave up on House of Leaves and a few day..."

I loved House of Leaves. I have just given up on a waterstones read and review that I won, really got on my nerves, Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn, really not for me!

Kat wrote: "Before I Go To Sleep One of the worst books I've tried to read!"

I loved this one!

I loved Before I Go To Sleep too. Just as well we all have different tastes isn't it? Otherwise the waiting times for library books would be horrendous.

JackieB wrote: "I loved Before I Go To Sleep too. Just as well we all have different tastes isn't it? Otherwise the waiting times for library books would be horrendous."

Just what I was thinking! I really enjoyed Before I Go To Sleep too.

I enjoyed Before I Go To Sleep but I didn't like the characters.

I really liked Before I Go To Sleep too - I did guess the end though.

Kat wrote: "Before I Go To Sleep One of the worst books I've tried to read!"

Oh, I agree but I wasted my time reading the whole thing. I am going to give up on Artemis Fowl. It may just be me as we have another fire burning here in Colorado and I don't feel too good. It started today at noon and we could see the smoke curling horribly up and around Pike's Peak.

A Fraction of the Whole - starts out brilliantly but then becomes nothing, kinds pops like a soap bubble and i had to chuck it

Great Expectations - a abandoned this about 45 pages from the end, i just completely stopped caring. i find Dickens never ends his books well, they always drag beyond the point of my interest - though I do love the journey

The Quincunx - i think I may have been too young (22) when I tried this, I really should give it another go

Sandyboy wrote: "A Fraction of the Whole - starts out brilliantly but then becomes nothing, kinds pops like a soap bubble and i had to chuck it

Great Expectations - a abandoned this about 45 pages from the end ..."

Don't know the first, but sorry you didn't enjoy the Dickens--getting to the end gave it closure of a sort though it's not a happy-ever-after finish.

Quincunx has tempted me in the past, but I've always had something else on the go. Like you, I may have to give it another chance.

I got to page 170 of Empire of the Saviours by A.J. Dalton I totally lost the plot! I had no idea who was who, it was jumping around and was just confusing me!

Sadly Twilight is a book that is way too "hot" of demand... -_-

But I swore to myself I wasn't going to get into that on goodreads anymore - so moving on and locking away my thoughts in the naughty jar.

The book that utterly pissed me off, it wasn't just boring, but it was a horrible retelling of the classic Cinderella story was If I Have a Wicked Stepmother, Where's My Prince? by Melissa Kantor, don't get me wrong, Melissa has written good books (Girlfriend Material being in my 'favorites' shelf).. but this was just... -rubs bridge of nose- It wasn't good.. she gave into the peer pressure halfway and went to a party dressed in something her step-sisters picked out for her.. I thought I was going to like this book.. it was Cinderella but with more of a Cinderella Story (with Selena Gomez) kind of twist.. the 'not so popular tomboyish' type of girl versus the 'popular'.

The second book that I dropped was The Stand by Stephen King. I'm usually a Stephen King fanatic, but I just got SO bored with the book.. and please, don't think it's because it's 'good vs. evil' 'god vs. devil' and I just don't like it because I'm not christian. I've read some good 'god vs. devil' books and liked them. I can't explain why I thought it was boring, but it was... the only other Stephen King novel I read and didn't like I can't remember the title of.. it was one of his movies, that I liked the movie (somewhat) to.. I was stuck having to go to a psychaitric hospital, and they don't allow hard backed books into the hospital - which 98% of my books are. So I just grabbed one and read it... it was horrible too... I believe it was Desperation, but could be wrong...

I've given up on several this year. Not becuase they were boring, but because the story just wasn't what I wanted to read at the time. I've not picked the back up for the same reason. Here are a few:

Dead Man's Walk by Larry McMurtry

The Steampunk Detective by Darrell Pitt (This one was just too much like the Sherlock Holmes book it is based off of)

Alien Blue by DeAnna Knippling

How far into a book do you get before you count it as read for the Goodreads book challenge?

Bridgette wrote: "tell us any book that you have given up on recently because it got so dull and it was dragging a bit to much..."

Matthew Quirk's The 500 - I have no patience with con schemes. I did not realize that was the theme of it. I thought it was a political thriller, but it seems to be a game of con artists, disguised as Harvard Law School superbrains.
I disliked the narrator from the very start - he can't fathom how the hell he got into Harvard. (He is so modest, you see.) The son of a con man, he is surrounded by sons of power brokers, in school because of their lineage.
While this may have been so 100 years ago I have friends who are Harvard Law School graduates with no ties to the 1% or to those who grovel to them to get ahead.

Mark wrote: "Ok i'm probably gonna get slapped on the wrist for this but The Face by Dean Koontz. It was actually not to bad at first but my god it turned into utter waffle of pages about what phone line belon..."

I've felt the same way about John Grisham and a few other authors. Did their book get published just because the publishers were banking on name recognition?

i'm more of a Magnuss Magnusson 'i've started so i'll finish' kinda man,however I could never be arsed with Dean Koontz either. any book that's a chore shouldn't be read by the person who finds it wearisome. i'll stick to Mr Men

funny I was just thinking of throwing out my currently reading book The End of Eternity while still on page 52.


Karin wrote: I've felt the same way about John Grisham and a few other authors. Did their book get published just because the publishers were banking on name recognition? o man that was like another lifetime, I can't remember much about John Grisham books, he usually did like law fiction, right?

Fifty Shades of Grey is boring me stupid. I am about 30% in and have really no idea why I am reading it. No storyline, no imagination and just unbelievable...I keep saying to myself 'why am I reading this trash?'. I think it is going to end up on my 'could not finish' shelf!

Lynne - The Book Squirrel wrote: "Fifty Shades of Grey is boring me stupid. I am about 30% in and have really no idea why I am reading it. No storyline, no imagination and just unbelievable...I keep saying to myself 'why am I read..."

Is it worth completing it just so you can vent your spleen in a review? Has it really no redeeming features?!

There are books which are good, sometimes really good. There are books which are so bad they're good! And there are books which are neither good nor bad but merely a waste of time, should you get to the end. I believe the technical term for the last category, much as I hate the word, is 'meh'.

You won't ever catch me using that irritating word in a critique, but it is very expressive. I suspect, Lynne, that is the word you are searching for...

@Chris, I never completed it and didn't rate it either. No stars and its on my Couldn't finish shelf along with others I in my opinion I felt a waste of time.

http://www.goodreads.com/review/list/...

Lynne - The Book Squirrel wrote: "@Chris, I never completed it and didn't rate it either. No stars and its on my Couldn't finish shelf along with others I in my opinion I felt a waste of time.

http://www.goodreads.com/review/list/..."

Oh dear, that's a lot of books. Still, life's too short when there's so much else to read and enjoy!

I've been trying to finish The Royal Victorians: King Edward Vii, His Family And Friends which I started way back in the beginning of June. So close to finishing but I only read it when I feel guilty about not finishing it yet. It is very dry/boring but....

Karen M wrote: "I've been trying to finish The Royal Victorians: King Edward Vii, His Family And Friends which I started way back in the beginning of June. So close to finishing but I only read it when I feel gui..."

Do you need to finish it? I know some readers do need to finish books they've started, but I began to ditch books if they weren't working for me. It doesn't mean they're bad books, they're just not right for you.

JackieB wrote: "Karen M wrote: "I've been trying to finish The Royal Victorians: King Edward Vii, His Family And Friends which I started way back in the beginning of June. So close to finishing but I only read it..."

I think I'm looking at it as a challenge to finish it. I only have about sixty pages left but I do consider putting it back on the shelf. I probably will make a decision soon. LOL

Finding it really hard to get enthused by The Children's Book by A S Byatt, so have put it aside for the moment. I suspect that if and when I go back to it I'll have to start from the beginning again. (That way I can pretend I haven't really given up on a runner-up in the Man Booker Prize!)

Read a mildly interesting review today trying to address the question "Why bother with difficult books at all?" (http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2012/...). Ironically, I found it quite hard to complete the review itself!

I gave up on The Poisonwood Bible...twice and Midwives.

I got 2/3rds of the way through Our Mutual Friend and just couldn't read any more. That was several years ago - may give it another go....if I feel strong enough:)

Chris wrote: "Finding it really hard to get enthused by The Children's Book by A S Byatt, so have put it aside for the moment. I suspect that if and when I go back to it I'll have to start from the beginning aga..."

That article was interesting, but I'm not convinced that difficult books are always good for us. Some are just badly written, or just not something which interests us. I think I'll still be ditching books which don't hold my interest. Oddly though, I've read both the books mentioned as difficult and enjoyed them both. Just goes to show - tastes differ.

JackieB wrote: "That article was interesting, but I'm not convinced that difficult books are always good for us. Some are just badly written, or just not something which interests us. I think I'll still be ditching books which don't hold my interest. Oddly though, I've read both the books mentioned as difficult and enjoyed them both. Just goes to show - tastes differ..."

Yes, it's also your mood plus your capacity to absorb what's on the page. I often choose non-fiction books instead of fiction as bedtime reading (nearly finished Popular Culture in Early Modern Europe by Peter Burke, since you ask!) but I suspect that's not everybody's idea of fun! I like a bit of escapism before I go to sleep and anything that stops me fretting about everyday worries is good.

I recently gave up on our quarterly classic Moll Flanders. Not because it was boring, but it didn't seem worth the effort. All bawdy wench and really quite unlikeable, although I know others like it well enough.

I gave up on the 50 shades trilogy. Just couldn't get into them at all, even though loads of people rave about them.

i got about a fifth of the way through fifty shades and thought it was pointless, meaningless garbage, why people love it i dont know it is demeaning and should not be made into a movie

Chris wrote: "I gave up on , twice. The first time at around 60 pages, but I was told it was completely brilliant by a friend so I had a further go. The second time I tried an audioboo..."

I gave up on Outlander too Chris I found it so boring, though my friend is eating up and loving the whole series. I may try it again at some point

Thanks for that Karen, I was beginning to think I was a freak!

I gave up on Mary Queen of Scots it wound up being non fiction and I seem to need my books to be fiction to keep my interest.

I've only ever stopped reading 2 books. One was called "Does my Bum Look Big in This?" and the other was "Glamorama" by that "American Psycho" guy. I cannot stand protagonists who have absolutely nothing sympathetic about them.