Anyone else have a book (or books) that they want to read but just never seem to actually get around to reading? Any books you feel like you ought to read but never do?
Probably unpopular, but for me it’s classic Russian literature- War and Peace, Crime and Punishment and the like. I know they’re supposed to be amazing, but I just can’t work up the energy to read them. I think Anna Karenina soured me on Russian literature; the middle portion of that book with Levin on the farm was such a drag that I’m hesitant about the other books.
What about you?
I can feel Infinite Jest staring at me every time I walk past the bookshelf. I will read it… one day…
This is one of mine as well. Eventually I’ll get to it, ha ha!
I’ve started and stopped Ulysses 3 times now. I think it’s a retirement project at this point.
Btw, I found War and Peace much more readable than Karenina.
I had a similar experience with Ulysses. It took me about a year, with lots of breaks to read other books. There were parts I found enjoyable, but mostly I just like being able to say that I read it. Finnegan’s Wake on the other hand, I don’t think I’ll ever get around to.
Ulysses was a retirement project for me. The best advice I got about the book was from an Irish friend - who’s read it multiple times - who told me to just read the book and enjoy the story and not get bogged down in the significance.
I’m the idiot who read the last chapter after a few pints on Bloomsday and posted updates here. I actually quite enjoyed it! As a result it’s now off my shelf and I’m going to read it in tandem with a friend of mine this summer. Wanna join our readalong? I could post weekly updates here.
I keep putting off reading the Sanderson Secret Project books. I’m super excited, but I haven’t opened any of the three yet.
Finally started the mistborn series after a year of wanting to get back into reading, absolutely loving it
I just finished the first 3 in the series and they were pretty fun. Lead me to reading war breaker and now starting stormlight archive
Hope you enjoy!!
Tress was a delight imo
Same here!!! Reminded me again after waking up to the email about new content this morning.
… okay, off-topic, but I have to say that if you didn’t like Anna Karenina, there are a lot of “classic” novels you might not like. If it’s just Levin, and you liked other aspects, that’s reasonable, since part of the point of the book is how widely people’s perspectives vary, and how that contributes to unhappy families. The variation means that everyone is going to find at least one of the characters unsympathetic. I had a love-hate relationship with most of the characters, but I enjoy that experience, and I know not everyone does. I recommend doing the first page (or first chapter) test on Russian literature: if you finish the first page (or chapter), and have no desire to flip to the next one, don’t. The world is full of amazing books, and you don’t owe it to anyone to read anything specific.
On topic, for me, choosing what to read is complicated by not always being able to read a book with my eyeballs (health issues), and not being able to enjoy certain books as audiobooks. So I spend a lot of time going, “is this book worth a possible migraine?” or trying something as an audiobook, and finding I don’t like it that way. Then I might leave something on the shelf or in my queue with the vague idea that I’ll give it another try when I have more patience, but I am not patient with books. I eventually get around to stuff people have recommended, but I have realized that it doesn’t actually make me a better person to read the things I am expected to read (YMMV), so I just… don’t, and try to be honest with myself about what I should have on my “to read” list. There’s no point in having it on the list if I know, deep down, that I am not interested.
Oh I have no problem finding plenty of books and classics that I like, ha ha! Just that Anna Karenina was going along so well and then there was this huge boring (to me, anyway) diversion to Levin on the farm when I was way more interested in what Anna was up to! I finished the book, but that middle part was a struggle!
Ah, gotcha, the farm bit definitely was a bit of a change of pace, lol. I don’t know how a novel with that many characters should be structured, but possibly a huge section of just one character wasn’t ideal. I’m glad you enjoyed the rest.
I’ve been working my way through Perdido Street Station after a friend recommended it to me. It’s a fictional story set in a fictional industrial revolution era setting.
The world building is top notch, the prose is excellent, and I’m enjoying the story. But there is just SO much body horror. Some of it is minor, like a main character whose race has human bodies but beetle-like heads.
Others are not so minor, like a wealthy man whose body is formed from many other species limbs attached to him like Picasso’s worst nightmare. Also the draconian magistrates of this city/society punish people by turning them into a race called “Remade”. People who have their bodies altered/deformed by integrating materials (like metal) or body parts (same species or otherwise) as a form of legal punishment.
It really is a fantastic read but the pronouncement of the aforementioned theme means I have to take breaks.
For me it’s American Gods by Terry Pratchett
This book took me multiple tries - I kept coming back as I heard it was good but couldn’t get into it. Finally managed with the Audible full cast audiobook. In the end: worth it, though not an all-time favorite.
I think it’s by Neil Gaiman, and I bogged down about 1/3 of the way through it.
Not sure if it counts as I read it as a child, but Terry Pratchett’s Discworld series
Read it so long ago it was like reading it for the first time again when I picked it up a month or so ago.
I will finish it!
I’ve been slowly working my way through the Mabinogion. The tales in it are interesting, but the writing is so disjointed, confusing, and unengaging. The medieval translation doesn’t help…
I’ve been putting off reading Infinite Jest for years. One of these days I will read it!
but for me it’s classic Russian literature- War and Peace, Crime and Punishment and the like.
Same here! And I’ll bet we’re not the only ones.
Joyce’s Ulysses is one. I’d started Finnegan’s Wake years ago but unfortunately never got past the first 20ish pages. Not that I couldn’t go forward, like you with Anna Karenina or me with Moby Dick (“Sorry, your honor, I just couldn’t finish it!”). I think I was distracted by something else at that point in my life.
Camus’ The Plague is another. There’re certainly hundreds of others that just don’t come to mind at the moment.
Wow…this post is making feel like a philistine!
When I was in High School, I read Ulysses purely out of spite. I got told it was a nigh incomprehensible series of Random events that seemed to not have anything to do with one another, and that there were entire college courses dedicated just to understanding what the hell Joyce was talking about.
So, I have read Ulysses, in that I have dragged my weary eyes from one end of the book to the other. Didn’t understand any of it though. I’ve tried to read Finnegan Wake like, three times; but without fail as soon as I get to the sound of Thunder a quarter of the way down the first page my brain just shuts off and refuses to let us go any further down that rabbit hole.
I remember trying to read War and Peace. I made it through the first…act? More than a chapter, but it was only like, 1/5 of the book.
The writing would describe a 20 second scene from the perspective of every person in the room in excruciating detail. It was very interesting to read, but painfully slow.
As for me, I bought a copy of Dune months ago, which ive never read. And I keep putting off reading Cultural Acceleration. Thats non-fiction but sounds really interesting.
Dune took me a couple of attempts. What helped me was reading all the glossaries and notes in the back first- gave me a lot more context before the book which throws a lot at you in the beginning.
Books.
For real though, I’ve been meaning to read Red Rising and East of Eden. It’s been too long since I’ve read a book lol
Oh, oh, and Neuromancer!
“Children of time” has had my attention for a while now… along with trying to corral my infinite scrolling in my post Reddit world, your post just pushed the right button at the right time… I’m going to start it right now
The Three Body Problem series.
The Expanse series.
The Storm light Archives.
Many others I’m sure I’m forgetting at the moment.
I absolutely loved the three body problems series. Last full book series I actually read…like 3 years ago.
Anything that isn’t some form of romance or trash. It’s been a minute since I’ve read anything that I’d consider having literary importance…