I’ve been thinking about books I was forced to read in school, or because friends recommended them. I’m not about slamming authors. Everyone has their own tastes and there is a niche for all types. But……
BOOKS I WISH I HAD NEVER READ
1. The Great Gatsby – Am I the only person who was forced to read it, analyze it, be bored by it and want to throw it out the window? And I had to read it in high school, college and as a teacher. Is this a “guys” book?
2. Catcher in the Rye – Okay, I can understand people liking this one. But how many idiomatic and slang expressions can be smushed into each sentence?
3. Romeo and Juliet – I loved this play the first 8 million times I read it. Now I’ve reached my saturation point.
4. Bleak House – I tried and tried. But I’m not sure even lawyers could plow through that one.
5. Biographies/Autobiographies of celebrities I don’t like. But this isn’t really fair because I’ve never read any of them. I just think I wouldn’t like them.
So I will continue my vacation reading books I like. Thanks for visiting my blog…😃
saneteachers 
Sounds like I lucked out in high school. A lot of other english classes were reading The Great Gatsby, but not mine. We did have Romeo & Juliet thought. It was so hard to read and understand. Why couldn’t Shakespeare use normal English!
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Haha to Shakespeare’s English. I really like most of the plays and sonnets. But Romeo and Juliet is a lot of angst for people who’ve only known each other a week.
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I’m with you on the Gatsby book. Never could understand the appeal. Maybe you have to be really rich to appreciate it.
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I found it pretentious. But that may say more about me as a reader. We bring our own biases to the table, so to speak.
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Well, I’ll be the contrary word here because I loved Gatsby. For my money, it’s the best book I’ve ever read and for me there was no analyzing it. And no, you don’t have to be rich to appreciate it. I’m surprised your thoughts didn’t change about the book as you got older. Sometimes we read books at certain points in our lives and we get nothing from it. Reading it ten or twenty years later and it takes on a different significance. Sorry you didn’t like it but there are enough good reads out there that should keep you occupied…:)
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I don’t think that age will change it for me as I’m 61 lol. It’s probably my husband’s favorite book. Or way up there on his list. I’m a prolific reader and thought it would be fun to put books out there I couldn’t get into and hear other people’s ideas. Thanks for commenting!
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Well at least the Great Gatsby doesn’t have many pages. You could have had to read Portrait of a Lady by Henry James.
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Now I LIKED that book!
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Thank you for the heads up. Now apart from Romeo and Juliet, I haven’t come across the rest of the books! I suppose that’s a good thing? 😉
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Lots of people love those books 💟 but not me.
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I guess I’m one of those with my head on the sand and not knowing the titles you mentioned. *blush*
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Lol. I’m an English teacher so I’ve read a lot of “classic” books and many that we teach here are American authors. Bleak House, though, is by Charles Dickens and is about the legal field. I understood about one in every twenty words lol.
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There are very few (auto)biography books that’re well-written. Many of the ones that I have read contained too many pretentiously self-centered remarks, sanctimonious platitudes and other similar BS.
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Yes, biographies are better, but I have to be in the mood to read them. Don’t get me wrong, I really enjoy some and am often shocked at some of the information and how I have misjudged someone or for historical characters, how different their lives were than that portrayed in history books. Thank you for reading my blog!
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Oh no!! I sent you a comment on this but I think that I clicked out of it too soon. What I said was that I like biographies better than auto, but have to be in the mood for them. I enjoy and can be shocked at finding new information about someone or a totally different take on someone than is found in history books. Thank you for reading and commenting on my blog!
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I received both of the comments. Even biographies, there are several that are poorly written. But of course, that has to be expected in any genre. And yes, I enjoyed reading some biography books as well.
History books can be very subjective though so it’s very hard to trust them…
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I hated ALL the books we had to read at school, but then fell in love with them when there wasn’t a stick hovering over my head. Then I became an English teacher. Go figure.
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That’s funny! I’m an English teacher, too, but loved some of the books we had to read in school (but not all). I like reading books that others recommend, or at least give them a try. I much prefer that to “you have to read this or your going to fail.” Of course, I “make” my students read certain things, as well. Thank you for your interest in my blog! Yours looks great as well.
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Oh Goodness, I was supposed to read Bleak House in both High school and Uni… literally fell asleep by page two every single time I attempted it! Luckily I had my class discussion notes to get me through those modules!
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OMG YOU HAD TO READ BLEAK HOUSE IN SCHOOL?? I can see maybe in law school as free reading on the side, lol. I love Dickens and can get lost in any of his books…..with the exception of Bleak House. If I tried to get my high school students to read it, they would be snoring in a minute. I really think that if you were a lawyer, the history of law at that time would be interesting. Otherwise, zzzzzzzzz Actually, I would love to hear from someone who liked it. Thanks for you interest in my blog! I will check yours out in a few minutes.
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Yes, senior year in my advanced English class! Ugh!! Haha I usually enjoy reading almost anything, but that one I just could not get through – and believe me I tried! Thanks for checking my blog out and for the follow 🙂
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Hello.What a great post
I sometimes wonder about set books at school. Think we were often just too young to appreciate them. Shakespeare … hated it because we had to learn quotes and write essays which at that time was a waste of ink for me. Also we often had to do the dreaded book reviews. This was to prove we’d read them I expect. I did have a teacher called Mr Lanaway though. He loved books and he talked about them with knowledge, depth, humour and love. His enthusiasm gave me the literary push I needed and I have never looked back.
All the best. Kris
http://www.awritersden.wordpress.com
http://www.the1951club.org
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Thank you for your comment. I’m posting another “bookish” post today, if I can tear myself away from reading other blogs, such as yours! I’m trying to adopt a stance that books I don’t like help me enjoy and appreciate others. I am very to have found your site 😆
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