What is your least favorite book on the Great American Reads list?
What is your least favorite book on the Great American Reads list?
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What is your least favorite book on the Great American Reads list?
Of the ones I read, “Catcher in the Rye”
@Wendy hated that book along with The Great Gatsby
Ruth Edwards I read the Great Gatsby when I was in high school and wasn’t fond of it. Years later I saw the movie and liked it so I reread the book. While still not one of my favorites, I had a greater appreciation or maybe understanding of it.
@Ruth, haha I loved both of these!
I loved Gatsby
The Count of Monte Cristo is at the top of my favorites on that list
Least favorite?
Least favorite was Da Vinci Code. The book was good but there are others more deserving of being on the list
Loved Count of Monte Christo. Will read again
Outlander
Fifty Shades. Not because of the subject matter or because I’m some book purist, because it did get thousands of people to read who might not normally do so.I just thought it was poorly written and haphazardly edited. I just couldn’t stomach the crappy dialogue.
highlights a toxic relationship as well. dangerous imo, but not much to do about it.
Exactly. It isn’t like you can’t find well-written books on that same topic, but you can’t make people’s minds up for them.
Yes exactly, not the content, some have the same kind of style, but are well written and edited. This was not. How many times can the same thing be said, and and missed by editing, really?
They some how found a great publicist is all can say. I read it because of all the hype, somehow every talk show featured it.
Same. The writing was sooo bad. I wanted to take out a pen and start making editing notes… instead I just deleted it and moved on with my life. Only read about the first 5-6 chapters.
I plogged through until chapter 10. Just couldn’t take anymore.
I picked it up at an airport once- terrible writing
Flowers in the attic
Jane Eyre
You’ve read it?
@Susanna yes, beginning to end.
The series by James Patterson With.
Of the 43 I read, there are several I didn’t like. But I guess DaVinci Code. Bored me to tears, I barely finished it, and now I don’t remember a thing.
Shades of Grey Series
Couldn’t get into Catch 22.
I guess I like all the ones I read because if I didn’t, I wouldn’t have read them. The only one I couldn’t read was 50 Shades of Gray. I got to page 2 and the writing was so bad I could not continue.
50 Shades or Twilight. Both are just so terrible written.
The DaVinci Code.. so poorly written ..followed closely by Ayn Rand.. felt totally bored when reading her 50 years ago..
I had read 97 of the 100.. now 99..
Yes! The Da Vinci Code! I understand it’s fiction but get some of the obvious facts correct!
I’m impressed!
@Jeri .. and beyond unsettled, but not surprised at it’s continuing popularity!
@Kathleenellen agreed!
So @Kathleenellen, which book is left?
Fifty Shades of Gray, Heart of Darkness and Twilight
A Confederacy of Dunces
Have you read? Funny and tragic simultaneously.
It is hard to get into this book if you are not from the Nola area. I loved it!
@Susanna I read it all, I just didn’t think it was funny. Maybe it caught me at a bad time, or maybe it was just over my head.
@Annette I lived in Baton Rouge for 4 years & now that you bring it up I did enjoy the New Orleans references.
Susanna Mc in our book club you either thought it was a masterpiece or “meh.” Not many in between.
@Rock it’s pretty quirky, maybe just caught you at the wrong time.
I didn’t like it either.
Tried 4x. Never got into it
Too many to pick one but these: 1984, The Count of Monte Cristo, The Martian, The Outsiders, Ready Player One,
Seriously, 1984?
Yup…read it for the first time when i was about 7-8 and it definitely opened my mind to the meaning of human connection, especially having missed out on it myself. Whew. The old movie was great too. Watched that in 7th grade and loved it.
What?? I love all of those books. The Count of Monte Cristo being one of my favorites of all time. May I ask why you didn’t enjoy them?
@Jade you put 1984 on the list of books that don’t belong?
@Jade This is about your least favorite book on the Great American Reads list. Do you mean you liked 1984 or you didn’t?
It didn’t pull the entire status. my phone only shows in text and says favorite books from the garl. I had to pull it on my laptop to see what you’re talking about. .
@Jade ahh, okay. We have the same taste in books then, these were all excellent. ?
Yes! the sad thing is that when i was going through the list there were too many i said Ew to
The Martian was just a playback of the movie. I think it was written from the screenplay.
No it was written as a serial on a blog and then turned into a book then a movie
That’s a really weird assumption to make, even without knowing that the book was published four years before the movie was released.
Books are often made into movies, but I can’t think of an instance of a screenplay being turned into a book.
Screenplays are turned into books, but that isn’t the case for The Martian. You should read the effort he put into getting his first book published. It’s fascinating and shows his dedication.
There are some I have never read and have no interest reading but of those I have read my least favorites are The Great Gatsby and Gone with the Wind.
Twilight
And 50 Shades. Not books of the same caliber as the rest.
50Shades. Doesn’t belong on the list in my opinion.
Well, I guess a lot of people thought it did, if they voted for it. PBS didn’t make this list, the public did.
@Susan no accounting for taste, I guess. ?
@Sally for sure!
Of the ones I’ve read, 50 shades. I don’t judge books that I haven’t.
The Shack, Clan of the Cave Bear, Lovely Bones, 50 Shades, quite a few.
50 shades was the most terribly written and edited book I’ve ever tried to read. That book had no editor…if it did that editor needs another career.
@Shannon I totally agree!
what is the list?
@Tara the great American read
Catcher in the Rye
Twilight and 50 shades
yep, this
I didn’t read either.
I TRIED to read them. got to the part in twilight where edward showed bella why he doesn’t go into sunlight (he sparkles….ick) and couldn’t get past the first chapter in 50 shades
50 Shades
ditto
Ditto
Cannot believe 50 Shades is on there!
Lotta people with lousy taste.
I know plenty of people that liked it that don’t have lousy taste. At least they read some books right??
Right.
I have always said will keep saying that if it gets people who don’t typically read then it is a great book! I will never judge someone by what they read.
@Debbie me either
I know! Several people listed that as their least favorite, I think.
Where can I find the list?
https://www.pbs.org/the-great-american-read/books/#/
I have read about 35 books on the list, and my least fav has got to be The Notebook. I just don’t understand the hype.
I’d go with Catcher In The Rye. Book was torture.
Me too
So would I
A confederacy of dunces. ?
Fifty shades
50 Shades
50 shades
100 Years of Solitude or Moby Dick
Catch 22 or Catcher in the Rye. Bah!
Of the ones I’ve READ–Twilight series. Ugh…if it were just the cotton-candy read, I would be fine with it. Everyone needs those. I’ve read the first two or three books. But it got to the point where I literally couldn’t deal with the awful, dysfunctional, creepy relationships. It’s scary to think there are pre-teen and teen girls (heck, probably full-grown women) who think this is “romantic” and an enviable situation. No. No it’s not! *rant over* *drops mic*
@Carolyn I would not have let my daughter read these before age 16. As it happens she was an adult when they came out.
@Barbara I was in college before I read one (well after the movies came out)… and I thought “hey this is a fun read” and I forgot about it for a while. Then I ran into someone else who really loved them, so I tried watching the movies and reading the series. I couldn’t handle it…
My daughter gave me this last Christmas. I’m interested in comparing the two lists. https://www.popchartlab.com/products/100-essential-novels-scratch-off-chart?variant=21566419076&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIst61pZq-3QIVEoGzCh2jQwfeEAQYASABEgL2WvD_BwE
@Robbie Looks like fun–like a scratch off travel map for the mind 🙂
Moby
This ????
Moby
@Beth I just finished trudging through it!
Only read 1 passage of 50 Shades so I can’t comment on it except to say we laughed for hours over that one passage.
I go against all my friends when I say I couldn’t get into Memoirs. I read the whole book and just didn’t enjoy it.
if east of eden is on it, and something tells me it is ?, it is my least favorite
Love em all!!!
Might be.Moby Dick. I legit hated that book.
This struck me as very funny. https://www.ellentube.com/video/happy-national-book-lovers-day.html
Even though I have no desire to read 50 shades I think if you are so inclined then go ahead and read it and if you enjoy it, that’s fine. Many, many, many years ago I read The Happy Hooker and I remember enjoying it and it was funny. So as long as you are reading, read any damn thing you want to. It’s ok.
I have read about 51 of these and I can honestly say I have liked all ofvthem. The reason I haven’t read the others is because I didn’t find the synopsis interesting, most likely.
Responding to comments on Twilight, sometimes a narrator is meant to be unreliable. I agree that I didn’t like the main character and it certainly wasn’t anymore dysfunctional than Romeo and Juliet. Lol
On 50 Shades….I think it was almost a new genre to us and it was almost like Team Edward and Team Jacob or Team Aniston and Team Jolie lol. You either loved it or hated it but it definitely elicited a response so it did its job.
I didn’t read50 shades but wasn,t it supposed to be erotica based on bondage & s& m? Not even remotely a new genre.
@Susan I meant it was new for “popular” reading. Usually erotica isn’t so openly talked about but then I saw the comment above referencing The Happy Hoover and I remember that title from my childhood. Never read it. It was a “naughty” book and I was a little girl.
I wonder if Anaiis Nina’s works were as popular and talked about. I think possibly Lady Chatterleys Lover was but I think for erotica to go pop is rare.
Lady Chatterley oh definitely although not in the same way of course. ( without social media to spread it). People back then didn’t talk as openly about such things. And Story of O, my goodness! People read them, but quietly.
The *only* reason I want to read either Twilight OR Fifty Shades is to try to figure out why they are so popular. But I’ve been afraid of vampires since I was a child, and the whole idea of BDSM gives me the creeps. I have downloaded the first Twilight book onto my Kindle, but I don’t know if I’ll ever find the courage to read it. I have NO desire to read Fifty Shades.
Flowers In the Attic
Such a sad movie.
@Sarah agreed
Actually, I hated the books by Ayn Rand more; they were completely unreadable IMHO.
Agree
The ugly American
Fifty shades of grey.
I really didn’t like James Patterson’s later books. Don’t think I read Alex Cross.
He likely didn’t write them. He holds contests for writers then gets his name put on their books. ?
I think the Alex Cross ones ( at least the earlier ones) are the only ones he DID write.
I have tried twice to read James Patterson mysteries and really disliked them. I did read Sam’s Letters to Jennifer that he wrote and enjoyed it–not a mystery at all and so different from the others.
@Kathy, I wondered how he was able to come out with books so often! I have refused to read any of JP’s later books because they are released so quickly, my thinking was “how good can they be? How much thought/effort could he really have put into them?” Knowing they weren’t actually written by him, and just have his name makes me kind of angry, actually.
He has a team of writers. This is why I won’t read him. He treats readers like they are stupid with his two page chapters. IMHO.
Definitely 50 Shades. I’d also say the James Patterson series. I’m not a fan.
Great Gatsby
“HEART OF DARKNESS” by Joseph Conrad. Though a short book, it was excruciating to read. UGH! ?
Yes, it’s on my Never want to read list.