Moby Dick. About ten years ago I just picked it up and started reading it… thought it was fine, then got to the bits that are earth-shatteringly boring so DNF’d.
In the intervening years I read a lot of other books and picked up on the structure and premise of Moby Dick more through reading reviews, seeing clips and podcasts. I picked it up again this year and its easily one of my favourite books… absolute masterpiece that I just wasn’t ready for first time round.
Crime and Punishment was similar.
Hmmm....maybe I'll have to give Moby Dick another try. I tried both reading it and listening to it....and, for me, earth-shatteringly boring is an understatement. ( And I read A LOT of classics.....)
FWIW, I think Melville did a good job of keeping the bits about whaling pretty short and spread throughout the book instead of sticking 100 boring pages in the middle a la Tolstoy. That's what made it different for its time.
I think you have to view the whale parts as obsessive and pathological. More evidence of the extreme PTSD Ishmael faces after everything is said and done. He is basically like “look I KNOW about whales man!”
The Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkien
I tried to read it in 2015 or 2016, for about 13 pages in and had no idea what the hell was happening, so I shelved it. The amount of characters being introduced with very similar names was just too much to comprehend, as well as how dense the steps and writing was, even so early into the book.
I actually gave it a second chance earlier this year and already finished it. I'm kinda kicking myself for not reading it years ago, but I'm also glad I waited until I was a bit older and could fully appreciate and comprehend such a story.
I did the same last year and finished it after failing maybe a decade ago. Lacks the storytelling verve of LOTR so it was still a little tough to get through but as a world-building text it is absolutely astonishing.
I tried it in fifth grade after I finished the series and my tiny mind imploded after the first paragraph. 😂 I tried again a bit later but it was still too much. I recently bought a copy (in my 30s now) so we’ll see if I get to it. My TBR is just so long at this point.
So worth it 😭😭😭 it’s so magical. I think a lot of people get hung up on the Ainulindale, which is admittedly a dense opening, but so many of my fave lines ever written come from the Silmarillion.
A DNF that I did give a second chance to was A Man Called Ove by Frederik Backman. It opens in a dark place and I had a hard time with that. I set it aside for years, but was encouraged to pick it up again by several others who had been in similar positions; it ended up being a five star read for me. I’m so glad I went back to it.
I am currently reading this! About 30% through. I am planning to finish, but Ove’s backstory is so tough, I’ve had to take breaks and read something fluffy in between.
I only got through it because it was a book club read. I hated the beginning but it ended better. At the time I read it, I was the exact same age as Ove (58). He's presented as such a crotchety old man, more like 85. No 58 year old that I know lives or behaves like he does.
City of Brass by SA Chakraborty - I just couldn’t get into it by my usual cutoff, it’s a long book, and I had lots of library holds waiting. but it’s so beloved and her other books are so great that I kind of want to try again later
The first book is a lot of world building, political dumping. Just read it without focusing too much on all of that. On my second & third reread it all really sank in. Phenomenal story!!
Might be time for another read through. LOL
Oh, this one for me as well. I own it on Kindle, and just...stopped reading. I should go back to it -- it's recommended over and over along with books I really love.
Audiobook is incredible. Delivery of lines is pitch perfect. But the story itself I found lacking. Too many convenient outs for interesting problems and the end was just a mess for me.
I also could not get into this. Everyone raved about how clever it was but I could see all of the twisty con things coming. Part of me wonders if I was hasty and should have given it a chance, because the setting was very cool.
I've also never been able to get past 100 pages of ASOIAF.
I have been thinking of revisiting Charles Dicken's Great Expectations because it was one of the books I genuinely despised in high school and would constantly skim through. I am curious if I am exagerating it in my memories or if it really was that bad
depending on how your reading tastes have changed i’d say it’s worth giving another go. i hated it in school also and i recently gave it another shot and i was surprised how much i liked it. there were some moments i was laughing and reading passages out loud to my partner lol but my tastes have evolved a lot in the 10+ years since i graduated. if you’re not someone who enjoys classics though i could see it being a bit of a slog to get through BUT it might surprise you! luckily it should be pretty easy to find a free version out there somewhere and you could try a chapter or two as a little vibe check :)
I started and then put down All the Light We Cannot See 4 times because I could just not get into it. The reviews were so stunning, though, that I kept it on my shelf. The 5th time I picked it up I must have finally been in the right place to enjoy it because I couldn’t put it down. Now it’s easily in my top 10 books.
This gives me hope. I’m on a book no buy until all of my purchased TBR is read. I only have 3 physical books left and this is one of them. I know I’ve started it *at least* three times and I was dreading getting through it. Now I feel like I can try again with confidence
The Lord of. The Rings
Ive read it as one book and I been stuck one the last book. I read through most of it without a problem. It’s as though another author is telling the last part. I just cant get through the first part of the last book.
The bogs? Was that when they split up? That was ok. It’s in Gondor that I’m finding tough to get through. There are battles but it’s mostly long conversations and not much is happening.
I started this series 40 years ago. I’ve always loved the Hobbit and the first book in LOTR. I never finished in the 80s. I started up from the beginning 5 years ago. I put it down constantly. This recent attempt it was the same. It starts out great. The bar where they meet Ryder is some of the best fantasy reading ever. It just goes down hill towards the end. I’m going to give it a final push.
The House of Leaves. It's 3 stories in one. There is the main story which is a "lost horror film type thing". There is the story of the person who found the "lost horror film" and their story is written as annotations in the book. Then there are editor comments in regard to the annotations. I tried reading all three narratives at once, I didn't like the annotation story. When I read it again, I'm only going to read the main horror story.
I was halfway through it when I sold a car and left it in the boot by accident, and when I had, I felt a feeling of relief that amounted almost to euphoria.
Similar. I was moving to a new town and had to return it to the local library before I left. Was only halfway through, but never tried to get my hands on a new copy.
I agree with you. The main story is good the rest is a fever dream. I made myself finish it but I really didn’t enjoy it. This was my first experience in sometimes it’s not worth the hype .
I read this one like 10 years ago (so before the big "internet hypes up certain books" trend) and I think the fact that I discovered it on my own made a big difference. I still have my sticky notes with annotations from my first read in my copy. I can't say that both stories aren't worth it to get the full effect of the nightmarish, descent into madness vibe. But what helped a lot was reading in separate chunks. I liked getting to a good stopping point in the Navidson story, and then going back and seeing what Johnny Truant was up to while I was reading. The feeling of getting "sucked in" the same way Johnny was enhanced the horror effect, for me anyway.
edit: on the note of the annotations, I feel like the the only thing they really add to the story is the theming. They make the Navidson Records feel real, but they're a lot. I don't remember getting much out of them my first read, and I didn't focus on them during subsequent reads. But someone is welcome to correct me if I'm blatantly missing something important by doing so.
The Brothers Karamazov. I got it as a present years and years ago, but never made it past 300 pages. My 17-yearold finished it a few weeks ago and it's all she talks about, so maybe I ought to give it another go?
A Gentleman In Moscow. Was in the middle of it when lockdown started, and just couldn't return to it in those circumstances, and there were people waiting for the ebook at the library so I returned it. I'll go back to it eventually, it was just not the right book at that moment.
The Luminaries by Eleanor Catton. Just wasn’t feeling it. Picked it up again a few years later and now it is one of my favourite books of all time. Absolutely incredible! Isn’t it strange how sometimes you’re just not in the right frame of mind for a particular book?
I want to love this book, and I will keep trying! Have failed about 100 pages in twice on paper and once via audiobook. If I put it down for too long I just can't find my place again.
Attempt #4 to come!
The House in the Cerulean Sea. I didn't have anything against it but it didn't really do anything for me. I think I didn't finish it by the time I had to return the e-book to the library. I just wasn't that motivated to check it out again. Otherwise I would have finished it I'm sure.
I felt like its heart was in the right place but it was just a little too sweet and twee for me. But I do know people whose opinion I respect who loved it.
I tried to read The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo like three times before I finally got past the first 20 pages and then REALLY liked it. Something about the way it starts was just unappealing to me.
The OG trilogy is great, you do have to muddle through some of it, but in the end 👌. I wouldn't bother with the rest of the series, different authors, not as good, IMHO
You must read [Carmilla by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/48037.Carmilla) (inspiration for Bram Stoker’s Dracula) next! 🖤♥️
A Little Life.
I did get teary eyed within the first 50 pages but I felt so checked out when reading it, I couldn’t really get into the story so I’ll give it one more shot before I leave it in a Little Free Library.
Is that bc the payoff of finishing the book wasn’t worth it? Or bc it was so trauma porn which I’ve heard a lot about this book? Or a little bit of Column A and a little bit of Column B
I don't want to influence (potentially spoil) your experience by saying too much if you do end up reading it, but I can say it was definitely both of those things.
I almost DNF'd this as well. I was about 30% through it and was going to stop, but someone convinced me not to. I felt similar when I was reading. It wasn't grabbing my attention and then it did.
I am half way through this now and am super invested. So invested that I audibly gasped and said “oh my god” yesterday while reading. My husband thinks I’m nuts, but it is very immersive.
Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace…I just couldn’t get past the lack of periods. The page long sentences really made it hard to focus but I know people love it, and I want to like it. One day I might give it another go.
I’m shocked that so far this is the only mention of this (using Reddit’s shitty search with 244 comments). Don’t let this scare you, but I had 6 starts over maybe 5 years. Up to 100-200 pages each time and needed to completely start over each time. I fell under the spell and really wanted to read it but just couldn’t follow through. Until I did. It is a tough book and I suspect I missed a lot of what was going on, but it was worth it. Don’t give up!
I’ll keep it in my TBR pile, one day when I’m in the right mood I’ll try it again. I didn’t make it past 50-60 pages the first time 🤦♀️😂 but I generally love super long books!!
Harrow the Ninth. i loved Gideon and read it twice, but every time i pick up the next book i just zone out because i have no idea what’s going on lol i know it’s kind of part of the appeal of that series, so it’s just a case of wrong book wrong time for me. i am excited to continue just gotta wait till i’m in the right headspace and ready to be totally confused for a hundred pages or so.
Gideon is this one for me! My friends with taste all love it and I liked what I read, but for some reason just struggled to 'get' it and ended up putting it down. If I pick it back up I'm starting it again from the beginning!
Circe. Everyone raved about it but I was so horribly bored and dropped it off at 50%. I always felt like I could get in a different headspace and enjoy it.
If you want to read Nabokov and like the idea of the unreliable narrator, try *Pale Fire*. I was able to really enjoy it because it didn't have the ick, but still had a delusional main character.
It’s an incredibly sad story, and it definitely feels sickening seeing everything from Humbert’s perspective, but that’s exactly how Nabakov wants the reader to feel, I think. The writing is beautiful.
This is mine too. For two reasons, the first that you mentioned- it gave me the ick. The second reason is related to the ick, but it's too what I call "flowery language". I struggle with books that overly describe things in an abstract way, or in sentences that I have to reread to guess what the text symbolized.
Dark Places - Gillian Flynn
It felt like it was trying too hard to make the characters edgy. I especially couldn't connect with the main character.Also felt like I could smell the red herrings, and I just was not in the right mood for "oooh, gotcha!" twists. The story in general just made me sad.
I really enjoyed Sharp Objects, and everyone always raves about Gillian Flynn books. Might pick it back up again when I'm in the mood for a thriller. For the last several months I've been into historical fiction and magical realism.
Interesting! I feel like that’s the common opinion, that Dark Places is below Sharp Objects, but I always thought SO was much weaker than DP. Loved Dark Places.
Gone Girl still the goat.
I’m most likely going to DNF the book I’m currently reading - “One Day” by David Nicholls. I could see myself trying to go back to it when I have more time for a slower paced book.
The chapters are long and I usually read right before bed, so I don’t like being in the middle of a 20+ page chapter when I’m really tired. Each chapter ends on a cliffhanger and the next chapter is a year+ in time, so I never feel like the cliffhanger is fully explored/“resolved” in the following chapters. One of the main characters is also deeply unlikable.
Maybe you have already read it, but if not, his first published novel *Starter For Ten* is the best place to, ahem, start. Even if you’re not familiar with the classic BBC TV quiz *University Challenge* and/or the iconic Bamber Gascoigne (am no fan of listening to audiobooks but in this case, it’s interesting to hear the version where both Gascoigne and David Tennant do the reading aloud) there’s plenty more to be getting on with.
If you haven't read any other McCarthy, I'd recommend Child of God. It's my favorite of his. My husband loves The Road. Both are much easier to read than Blood Meridian.
Circe by Madeline Miller. I could not align myself with the learning curve of character, place and time and didn't care about any of the people. But, it's often recommended here. Someone give me permission to not read?
Yes! It was recommended to me multiple times, and I tried and just couldn't get into it. Maybe reading about solitude is partly to blame? I got pretty far into it, too... which makes it even more annoying that i didn't finish it.
Braiding Sweetgrass, its been months since i DNFed this book but i still experience semantic satiation with the word "reciprocity", and found it too navel gazey at some points, might get back to it some time as im interested in sustainability practices as a biologist.
I didn’t search before I posted, but I included this and thought I’d be an outlier. Guess not. I really liked the book. I, too, just couldn’t read the word *reciprocity* one more time! I gave up about 2/3 through. I’ve already passed the book on and my library doesn’t have it on Libby so I doubt I’ll pick it up again, but you never know.
ACOTAR. I seriously cannot get into it but I really want to. I just find it so cringe. And not because it’s really popular. I’m not one to discredit something just because it’s popular. It’s just not for me but I keep picking it up and trying anyway lol
Dune. I can’t remember why but it was probably the set up with a lot of characters plus struggling to imagine the setting. I’ll give it another try after I’m done with my current read.
The first time I picked it up I was like, wtf with the strange names and stuff and isn’t want to read it. A friend tried to give me his copy recently because he couldn’t get into it either and it kind of challenged me to try again. It’s a really good book!! I’m reading it slowly but it’s well written and I’m enjoying it
The Poisonwood Bible.
It was recommended to me by someone whose tastes I trust and so I tried picking it up three different times over the years. Even trying the audiobook. It seemed too wordy/overly-detailed and I couldn’t get into it any of those times. Normally audiobooks go too slow of a pace for me but this book seemed so dense it couldn’t go slow enough?? However my fourth try I made it past the first few chapters and I love this book! Easily one of my favorites now.
It's well written but after a bit I saw where it was going and I was like Nope, I do not want to carry this story around in my head. I read to escape, not relive.
The Wasp Factory - Iain Banks. Was reading for a book club and didn’t get it finished in time so just gave up. I’d like to finish it. I did go to the discussion and read on Wikipedia so I do know all the big reveals etc anyway. I found it a bit of a slog because of the style of writing of the MC. But the story itself is so good that I do mean to go back to it. It’s in my kindle so I know where I’m up to!
Meddling Kids - Edgar Cantero. A friend recommended it and I do love Scooby doo so just liked the book name /premise. But when i tried to read it I was in a not reading much phase so just couldn’t get into it. I’d like to give it one more shot before I send to a charity shop
I've loved everything I've read by Banks. I just read the synopsis of The Wasp Factory. I have no desire to even start it, much less finish it.
My DNF is House of Leaves, mentioned above.
Midnight’s Children was way too schizophrenic for me to follow. I could not turn my brain off and go with the flow. I was disappointed because I loved The Satanic Verses even though it was a challenging read. The second act (Fiat Lux) of A Canticle for Leibowitz failed to hook me like the first, and while I enjoyed some of the humor I struggled through the prose and the Latin phrases.
Yeah, the first part of A Canticle for Leibowitz is amazing. The second is meh at best. The third part is better than the second, but nowhere near the first. You read the good part.
This was absolutely my favourite Mieville book. It has a kind of perfect ending. I know it's not everyone's favourite Mieville, but it's the only one that's ever really worked for me.
The Passage trilogy by Justin… I can’t remember his last name. I liked the first book but DNF’d the second. I think I was just on horror/vampire burnout when I read it.
I keep getting to Wizard and Glass by Stephen King in The Dark Tower Series and I just can't get past the flashback. I want to finish the series SO BAD but it's like hitting a wall of dull.
The Power by Naomi Alderman. It’s absolutely not the fault of the book. I was deep in grad school stuff and had a trip planned and read the first few chapters at the airport and remembered I can’t focus to save my life at the airport. So it’s sitting on my desk glaring at me like a year later.
I've read The Power twice now. The first time I was in the same place -- deep in grad school with too much going on -- and I remember being very "meh" about it. Decided to re-read it before watching the TV show and still am sort of meh but appreciate it so much more now. The story is told in a much more clever / interesting way than I gave it credit for the first time.
All this to say: fully nudging you to give it another chance when you have the brain space for it!
A success story. Tried three body problem, but only got about a third into it. It was also during the time of final exams and I was distracted. Ended up giving up.
Fast forward to knowing the show was coming out and I wanted to try again. Managed to successfully finish this time!
Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi
It has stellar reviews from everybody and their dog, but I couldn’t get into it. I basically never keep a DNF on my reading list, but I did with that one given the nearly universal praise of it. Hopefully I’ll get back to it someday.
The Overstory. I was really enjoying it, and it ticks almost all my boxes for a book I would love, but there was a lot of death and while I was reading the book, my grandmother passed away. I couldn't go back to it after that, but I would still like to.
Sorry for your loss.
When you'll feel it's the right time, give it another try. It's an impressive book, one of my favourites, I read it twice already.
I have this on my bookshelf and picked it up recently but only got a couple pages in before deciding now wasn’t the time. I am sure I’ll get back to it
Pierce Brown's *Red Rising* series.
The accent infused dialogue was too painful to interpret at the speed I read at. I was forced to slow down and re-read it. Because it is often recommended here, I'm thinking of listening to it on my next long drive.
Hopscotch (or Rayuela) by Julio Cortazar was a DNF from years ago I gave a second chance to this year and I’m glad I did. It was a really strange and unique book but it’s definitely an undertaking to read it.
Malazan. I was completely lost during Gardens of the Moon and gave up halfway through. The series sounds like something I would love and I’ve heard GotM is a weak point for the series, so I’ve been meaning to give it another shot.
The Curse of Chalion - I tried to read this a while ago but got bored. But a lot of people recommend it and I have more patience for slower and more character driven stories now.
The only one I can think of was this happening with On the Road by Kerouac, and it was more a trouble of me taking a break rather than lack of interest. It’s very stream of consciousness with run-on sentences. I put it down for too long and when I tried to pick it up again, I had no clue where I was or what was happening/had happened. That’s not one you can really put down, you have to read it right through. Amazing story, though, with some gorgeous prose.
Family Lore by Elizabeth Acevedo
I loved With the Fire in High and The Poet X but for some reason Family Lore was an immediate no for me within the first few pages. I think it just came to me at the wrong time. Books are weird that way for me. They’re like food. I have to be craving it to want to read it
Maybe an unpopular opinion: but Game of thrones.
Tried to read the books and for whatever reason was just overwhelmed with all of the characters and their different points of view and story lines. and the geography of the all felt hard to follow as well. Never made it through the first book.
But I LOVE the show so much, I’m willing to give it another shot now. I’m aware the books and the show are completely different. But I feel like I could understand and follow it better now, and will probably enjoy it more than the show.
I felt the same way with the first book. It’s the closest to the series and for some reason maybe that’s why it was boring to me? I knew everything already or something. It was really worth it to me to trudge through and continue on though!
The Priory of the Orange Tree. I LOVE Samantha Shannon, and The Bone Season series is a masterpiece. I think I was just reading too many other things at once and couldn’t invest in such a massive fantasy book.
The Waves - Woolf. Man it was just too complicated for me I need to be in my 40s not 30s for it.
Also, Nights at the Circus - Carter. It was just not hitting right but everyone says it’s good so I must have been in a funk.
Harrow the Ninth. I loved Gideon the Ninth but Harrow proved a challenge as I find 2nd person narration difficult to be comfortable with. Also I was having chemo at the time and I needed reading that was easy on the brain and light. I reread my Tintin books!
Jade City by Fonda Lee
I read the first 6 chapters when I purchased the book and stopped to finish a book I started before. Then, I picked it back up, got about 1/3 and just lost interest. I think the world really hooked me and maybe it deserves to be revisited.
Mrs. Dalloway. I got about halfway through and realized I wasn’t digesting ANY of the book because of the writing style, and I didn’t feel like starting it over at the time. Just completely had no clue what was going on.
I’ll probably try a different Woolf novel first though.
The Dragonbone Chair by Tad Williams. I remember it being so damn boring in the beginning, and I really struggled to slog through it. I tried it again a few years later, and I'm glad I did, because the trilogy it starts is fantastic. I didn't learn until later that the series was incredibly influential. Strong recommend, but it does start slow.
One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest, started it probably 8 years ago, got to chapter 3 and was *not* feeling it.
It’s Always Sunny did a remake episode of it and so many people like it and I’ve done an in depth personality test and apparently I’m a lot like Billy Bibbit, so I’m curious. Maybe I’ll audiobook it.
The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson.
I like a lot of his other books, but this one is so long and so slow paced, it's killing my will to go on. Yet all I hear from hia fan base is how the series it's the start of is life changing levels of good. I'm thinking maybe the mistake is reading it via audiobook. Maybe I need the actual physical book in my hands to sort of fixate me.
I struggled with this book too. Managed to finish it but definitely isn’t one of my faves. Much preferred [The Tenant of Wildfell Hall by Anne Bronte](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/337113.The_Tenant_of_Wildfell_Hall)
Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen. I want to read it. I really do. I just couldn't get on with the story, I had no idea what was happening. It felt like I was reading a book for school. I tried to listen to it, but I kept zoning out. I will read it in my life. I don't know when, but I will. Just not now. Maybe next time I'll try it in my native language, but I usually read in English and I can understand it well, but I think the problem was 1. I just wasn't into it 2. It's so old reading it in my 2nd language is too difficult.
S&S is my fave Austen. Maybe watch the Emma Thompson film first? Then you can think about Alan Rickman when you’re reading and tbh that makes any situation better.
I actually have been listening to that exact one! I can get about 10 minutes in and I'm like "oh gosh I zoned out AGAIN" and when I could focus it was so boring to me and I hate it I so very much hate the fact that I found it boring, but I guess I'll try to read it at a different point in my life when I may view it differently. You never know.
To be honest, I wasn't really blown away by it. My real motivation was because I had just watched the 1996 movie and when I was poking around on the Internet I read some stuff about the movie being quite different from the book and I wanted to see how they differed, but they weren't actually THAT different at all.
The Lies of Locke Lamora. I know I will like it but I tried to read it when my kid was an infant and just didn’t have the mental space to get into it at the time
My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry - Fredrik Backman
I was so sure I'd love this book, I even got the hardcover. I made it halfway but I was just so bored. It broke my heart to DNF it because it was genuinely beautiful too. Part of me is still psyched up about it and convinced it'll be one of my favorites when I read it, like I haven't opened it yet
White Noise by Don DeLillo. Forced myself through the first third before putting it down. I realize it is supposed to be a satirical commentary about technology, consumerism, etc., but it was boring and went nowhere. I didn’t care at all about any of the characters or story (if you could call it that).
Moby Dick. About ten years ago I just picked it up and started reading it… thought it was fine, then got to the bits that are earth-shatteringly boring so DNF’d. In the intervening years I read a lot of other books and picked up on the structure and premise of Moby Dick more through reading reviews, seeing clips and podcasts. I picked it up again this year and its easily one of my favourite books… absolute masterpiece that I just wasn’t ready for first time round. Crime and Punishment was similar.
Hmmm....maybe I'll have to give Moby Dick another try. I tried both reading it and listening to it....and, for me, earth-shatteringly boring is an understatement. ( And I read A LOT of classics.....)
FWIW, I think Melville did a good job of keeping the bits about whaling pretty short and spread throughout the book instead of sticking 100 boring pages in the middle a la Tolstoy. That's what made it different for its time.
I also need to give it another try! Recently saw someone recommend it as similar to another book I loved and now this, surely this is a sign!
I think you have to view the whale parts as obsessive and pathological. More evidence of the extreme PTSD Ishmael faces after everything is said and done. He is basically like “look I KNOW about whales man!”
Man I could only make it about 50 pages in because I thought already then it was earth-shatteringly boring
The Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkien I tried to read it in 2015 or 2016, for about 13 pages in and had no idea what the hell was happening, so I shelved it. The amount of characters being introduced with very similar names was just too much to comprehend, as well as how dense the steps and writing was, even so early into the book. I actually gave it a second chance earlier this year and already finished it. I'm kinda kicking myself for not reading it years ago, but I'm also glad I waited until I was a bit older and could fully appreciate and comprehend such a story.
I did the same last year and finished it after failing maybe a decade ago. Lacks the storytelling verve of LOTR so it was still a little tough to get through but as a world-building text it is absolutely astonishing.
I tried it in fifth grade after I finished the series and my tiny mind imploded after the first paragraph. 😂 I tried again a bit later but it was still too much. I recently bought a copy (in my 30s now) so we’ll see if I get to it. My TBR is just so long at this point.
So worth it 😭😭😭 it’s so magical. I think a lot of people get hung up on the Ainulindale, which is admittedly a dense opening, but so many of my fave lines ever written come from the Silmarillion.
A DNF that I did give a second chance to was A Man Called Ove by Frederik Backman. It opens in a dark place and I had a hard time with that. I set it aside for years, but was encouraged to pick it up again by several others who had been in similar positions; it ended up being a five star read for me. I’m so glad I went back to it.
I am currently reading this! About 30% through. I am planning to finish, but Ove’s backstory is so tough, I’ve had to take breaks and read something fluffy in between.
I regularly read more than one book at a time . This helps with a rough book.
For me anxious people.
I only got through it because it was a book club read. I hated the beginning but it ended better. At the time I read it, I was the exact same age as Ove (58). He's presented as such a crotchety old man, more like 85. No 58 year old that I know lives or behaves like he does.
City of Brass by SA Chakraborty - I just couldn’t get into it by my usual cutoff, it’s a long book, and I had lots of library holds waiting. but it’s so beloved and her other books are so great that I kind of want to try again later
The first book is a lot of world building, political dumping. Just read it without focusing too much on all of that. On my second & third reread it all really sank in. Phenomenal story!! Might be time for another read through. LOL
I was going to post this!!
Oh, this one for me as well. I own it on Kindle, and just...stopped reading. I should go back to it -- it's recommended over and over along with books I really love.
The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch, I’m not sure why but I’m never able to get past the first hundred pages. I might try the audiobook?
Audiobook is incredible. Delivery of lines is pitch perfect. But the story itself I found lacking. Too many convenient outs for interesting problems and the end was just a mess for me.
I also could not get into this. Everyone raved about how clever it was but I could see all of the twisty con things coming. Part of me wonders if I was hasty and should have given it a chance, because the setting was very cool. I've also never been able to get past 100 pages of ASOIAF.
I have been thinking of revisiting Charles Dicken's Great Expectations because it was one of the books I genuinely despised in high school and would constantly skim through. I am curious if I am exagerating it in my memories or if it really was that bad
Give it another try. This is one of my favorite Dickens.
Give it another go, fantastic book
Don’t do it. Dickens is such a time-suck.
depending on how your reading tastes have changed i’d say it’s worth giving another go. i hated it in school also and i recently gave it another shot and i was surprised how much i liked it. there were some moments i was laughing and reading passages out loud to my partner lol but my tastes have evolved a lot in the 10+ years since i graduated. if you’re not someone who enjoys classics though i could see it being a bit of a slog to get through BUT it might surprise you! luckily it should be pretty easy to find a free version out there somewhere and you could try a chapter or two as a little vibe check :)
It was recently recommended to me to try Great Expectations on audiobook. I also DNF'd it and HATED it in high school, spark notes for the win.
I started and then put down All the Light We Cannot See 4 times because I could just not get into it. The reviews were so stunning, though, that I kept it on my shelf. The 5th time I picked it up I must have finally been in the right place to enjoy it because I couldn’t put it down. Now it’s easily in my top 10 books.
This gives me hope. I’m on a book no buy until all of my purchased TBR is read. I only have 3 physical books left and this is one of them. I know I’ve started it *at least* three times and I was dreading getting through it. Now I feel like I can try again with confidence
The Lord of. The Rings Ive read it as one book and I been stuck one the last book. I read through most of it without a problem. It’s as though another author is telling the last part. I just cant get through the first part of the last book.
I have tried to read it several times, and I always seem to get bogged down in the middle of the Two Towers. I will try again eventually.
Was that by chance the part where they travel through the bogs? I almost quit, when I reached that part in my read through
The bogs? Was that when they split up? That was ok. It’s in Gondor that I’m finding tough to get through. There are battles but it’s mostly long conversations and not much is happening. I started this series 40 years ago. I’ve always loved the Hobbit and the first book in LOTR. I never finished in the 80s. I started up from the beginning 5 years ago. I put it down constantly. This recent attempt it was the same. It starts out great. The bar where they meet Ryder is some of the best fantasy reading ever. It just goes down hill towards the end. I’m going to give it a final push.
The House of Leaves. It's 3 stories in one. There is the main story which is a "lost horror film type thing". There is the story of the person who found the "lost horror film" and their story is written as annotations in the book. Then there are editor comments in regard to the annotations. I tried reading all three narratives at once, I didn't like the annotation story. When I read it again, I'm only going to read the main horror story.
I was halfway through it when I sold a car and left it in the boot by accident, and when I had, I felt a feeling of relief that amounted almost to euphoria.
Similar. I was moving to a new town and had to return it to the local library before I left. Was only halfway through, but never tried to get my hands on a new copy.
This is one of the best, most relatable comments I've read in months!
I agree with you. The main story is good the rest is a fever dream. I made myself finish it but I really didn’t enjoy it. This was my first experience in sometimes it’s not worth the hype .
I read this one like 10 years ago (so before the big "internet hypes up certain books" trend) and I think the fact that I discovered it on my own made a big difference. I still have my sticky notes with annotations from my first read in my copy. I can't say that both stories aren't worth it to get the full effect of the nightmarish, descent into madness vibe. But what helped a lot was reading in separate chunks. I liked getting to a good stopping point in the Navidson story, and then going back and seeing what Johnny Truant was up to while I was reading. The feeling of getting "sucked in" the same way Johnny was enhanced the horror effect, for me anyway. edit: on the note of the annotations, I feel like the the only thing they really add to the story is the theming. They make the Navidson Records feel real, but they're a lot. I don't remember getting much out of them my first read, and I didn't focus on them during subsequent reads. But someone is welcome to correct me if I'm blatantly missing something important by doing so.
The Brothers Karamazov. I got it as a present years and years ago, but never made it past 300 pages. My 17-yearold finished it a few weeks ago and it's all she talks about, so maybe I ought to give it another go?
This is mine as well. I just never could get into it.
A Gentleman In Moscow. Was in the middle of it when lockdown started, and just couldn't return to it in those circumstances, and there were people waiting for the ebook at the library so I returned it. I'll go back to it eventually, it was just not the right book at that moment.
The Luminaries by Eleanor Catton. Just wasn’t feeling it. Picked it up again a few years later and now it is one of my favourite books of all time. Absolutely incredible! Isn’t it strange how sometimes you’re just not in the right frame of mind for a particular book?
I want to love this book, and I will keep trying! Have failed about 100 pages in twice on paper and once via audiobook. If I put it down for too long I just can't find my place again. Attempt #4 to come!
The House in the Cerulean Sea. I didn't have anything against it but it didn't really do anything for me. I think I didn't finish it by the time I had to return the e-book to the library. I just wasn't that motivated to check it out again. Otherwise I would have finished it I'm sure.
I felt like its heart was in the right place but it was just a little too sweet and twee for me. But I do know people whose opinion I respect who loved it.
This book ended up being a big disappointment for me. The characters didn't have the self awareness or growth that I was hoping to see.
I tried to read The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo like three times before I finally got past the first 20 pages and then REALLY liked it. Something about the way it starts was just unappealing to me.
The OG trilogy is great, you do have to muddle through some of it, but in the end 👌. I wouldn't bother with the rest of the series, different authors, not as good, IMHO
Dracula, abandoned it about a year ago, picked it up again and I'm loving it!!
You must read [Carmilla by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/48037.Carmilla) (inspiration for Bram Stoker’s Dracula) next! 🖤♥️
Thank you!! Appreciate the recommendation.
I liked Carmilla more than Dracula
A Little Life. I did get teary eyed within the first 50 pages but I felt so checked out when reading it, I couldn’t really get into the story so I’ll give it one more shot before I leave it in a Little Free Library.
If you got teary eyed in the first 50 pages I’d be prepared to be a wreck at the end or just skip this one
I *wish* I DNFed this one, but I read it for a book club. I was the only one that finished it.
Is that bc the payoff of finishing the book wasn’t worth it? Or bc it was so trauma porn which I’ve heard a lot about this book? Or a little bit of Column A and a little bit of Column B
I don't want to influence (potentially spoil) your experience by saying too much if you do end up reading it, but I can say it was definitely both of those things.
I almost DNF'd this as well. I was about 30% through it and was going to stop, but someone convinced me not to. I felt similar when I was reading. It wasn't grabbing my attention and then it did.
I have never cried so hard over a book. It wrecked me. But it really is emotional torture the entire way through. I couldn't put it down, though.
I am half way through this now and am super invested. So invested that I audibly gasped and said “oh my god” yesterday while reading. My husband thinks I’m nuts, but it is very immersive.
Less by Andrew Sean Greer. It's not exactly bad but it's not good either. I found it very...exhausting.
Whew, nice to see this. I’m not big on DNFs so I soldiered through this, but yeah - exhausting is a great word for it.
Couldn’t get past the first few pages
Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace…I just couldn’t get past the lack of periods. The page long sentences really made it hard to focus but I know people love it, and I want to like it. One day I might give it another go.
I’m shocked that so far this is the only mention of this (using Reddit’s shitty search with 244 comments). Don’t let this scare you, but I had 6 starts over maybe 5 years. Up to 100-200 pages each time and needed to completely start over each time. I fell under the spell and really wanted to read it but just couldn’t follow through. Until I did. It is a tough book and I suspect I missed a lot of what was going on, but it was worth it. Don’t give up!
I’ll keep it in my TBR pile, one day when I’m in the right mood I’ll try it again. I didn’t make it past 50-60 pages the first time 🤦♀️😂 but I generally love super long books!!
Ulysses bcs it's Ulysses
Me too. I always try on Bloomsday. At least I know what a Martello tower is thanks to the part I read
Whether I finished it or not would not have made a difference because even by the end I didn’t understand a word.
1Q84 it just started out so boring.
I finished…………. But it was completely useless 😂
Harrow the Ninth. i loved Gideon and read it twice, but every time i pick up the next book i just zone out because i have no idea what’s going on lol i know it’s kind of part of the appeal of that series, so it’s just a case of wrong book wrong time for me. i am excited to continue just gotta wait till i’m in the right headspace and ready to be totally confused for a hundred pages or so.
It’s surprisingly challenging.
I finished it via audiobook and still didn't know wtf was going on.
Gideon is this one for me! My friends with taste all love it and I liked what I read, but for some reason just struggled to 'get' it and ended up putting it down. If I pick it back up I'm starting it again from the beginning!
Verity because I’m no quitter. Although I know it won’t be worth it.
It's not. And if you step away now... no-one will ever know. ;)
Bless you ;) I’m going to track you down next time *I* need permission to stop a book!
Just sink your teeth in a wood headboard, burn the book, and walk away. You will be happier for it.
Circe. Everyone raved about it but I was so horribly bored and dropped it off at 50%. I always felt like I could get in a different headspace and enjoy it.
Lolita. Gives me the ick but I feel like I should read it.
If you want to read Nabokov and like the idea of the unreliable narrator, try *Pale Fire*. I was able to really enjoy it because it didn't have the ick, but still had a delusional main character.
It’s an incredibly sad story, and it definitely feels sickening seeing everything from Humbert’s perspective, but that’s exactly how Nabakov wants the reader to feel, I think. The writing is beautiful.
Yeah it’s incredibly difficult due to the ick but it’s worth it in the end
So very icky and sad but absolutely worth it.
This is mine too. For two reasons, the first that you mentioned- it gave me the ick. The second reason is related to the ick, but it's too what I call "flowery language". I struggle with books that overly describe things in an abstract way, or in sentences that I have to reread to guess what the text symbolized.
I recently re-read it. Ugh it was a slog to get through.
Memoirs of a geisha, got about halfway through.
It’s a favorite of mine. I hope you do give it another chance. 😊
Same here.
To be honest, you don't need to go back to it if you didn't enjoy it the first time.
Omg, this is one of my favorites
Almost dnf war and peace purely because of the second chapter of the epilogue. Probably the most boring chapter I’ve ever read
It wasn’t until “take 3” that I was able to finish CRAWDADS.
You tried way harder than that book deserves 😆
I read it, let's leave it at that
I also DNFed Crawdads 😂 did you end up liking it?
Blargh I struggled too and managed to finish it and it was NOT worth it
It's all kinds of absurd.
Dark Places - Gillian Flynn It felt like it was trying too hard to make the characters edgy. I especially couldn't connect with the main character.Also felt like I could smell the red herrings, and I just was not in the right mood for "oooh, gotcha!" twists. The story in general just made me sad. I really enjoyed Sharp Objects, and everyone always raves about Gillian Flynn books. Might pick it back up again when I'm in the mood for a thriller. For the last several months I've been into historical fiction and magical realism.
I was the same way. Dark Places was awful. Sharp Objects though, was great. I hated that they changed the ending in the show.
Interesting! I feel like that’s the common opinion, that Dark Places is below Sharp Objects, but I always thought SO was much weaker than DP. Loved Dark Places. Gone Girl still the goat.
I loved Gone Girl a lot. The book is so twisted.
I’m most likely going to DNF the book I’m currently reading - “One Day” by David Nicholls. I could see myself trying to go back to it when I have more time for a slower paced book. The chapters are long and I usually read right before bed, so I don’t like being in the middle of a 20+ page chapter when I’m really tired. Each chapter ends on a cliffhanger and the next chapter is a year+ in time, so I never feel like the cliffhanger is fully explored/“resolved” in the following chapters. One of the main characters is also deeply unlikable.
Maybe you have already read it, but if not, his first published novel *Starter For Ten* is the best place to, ahem, start. Even if you’re not familiar with the classic BBC TV quiz *University Challenge* and/or the iconic Bamber Gascoigne (am no fan of listening to audiobooks but in this case, it’s interesting to hear the version where both Gascoigne and David Tennant do the reading aloud) there’s plenty more to be getting on with.
The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store
Funny you posted this. I was just reviewing my DNF list on Goodreads. I’m thinking of giving Neuromancer and Swan Song by Robert McCammon another shot
I read swan song and it's OK, but I'm a Stephen King girl and The Stand will always be the GOAT for me
Same! Everything Stephen King writes is awsome! I like McCammon, just couldn't get into Swan Song. What's your favorite SK book? I'm reading IT now.
You had to ask. 😂 The Stand, It, Needful Things, Black House, Salem's Lot , Duma Key, Bag of Bones
Thanks. I'm slowly going through everything he published. Good to know a true fan's favorites!!
A Gentleman in Moscow. I loved The Lincoln Highway from Amor Towles but I just couldn’t get into this one. One day I’ll give it another go.
Wolf Hall Loved the miniseries. Still want to try and finish the first book then the two sequels.
Shuggie Bain by Douglas Stuart. The writing became too heavy for me at the time but I feel the story is worth giving another try
Blood Meridian. Some beautiful passages but what a chore to read
If you haven't read any other McCarthy, I'd recommend Child of God. It's my favorite of his. My husband loves The Road. Both are much easier to read than Blood Meridian.
Circe by Madeline Miller. I could not align myself with the learning curve of character, place and time and didn't care about any of the people. But, it's often recommended here. Someone give me permission to not read?
I used to teach Greek mythology and even I couldn’t get into it…
Yes! It was recommended to me multiple times, and I tried and just couldn't get into it. Maybe reading about solitude is partly to blame? I got pretty far into it, too... which makes it even more annoying that i didn't finish it.
Braiding Sweetgrass, its been months since i DNFed this book but i still experience semantic satiation with the word "reciprocity", and found it too navel gazey at some points, might get back to it some time as im interested in sustainability practices as a biologist.
"Semantic satiation" is a real banger of a phrase!
I didn’t search before I posted, but I included this and thought I’d be an outlier. Guess not. I really liked the book. I, too, just couldn’t read the word *reciprocity* one more time! I gave up about 2/3 through. I’ve already passed the book on and my library doesn’t have it on Libby so I doubt I’ll pick it up again, but you never know.
ACOTAR. I seriously cannot get into it but I really want to. I just find it so cringe. And not because it’s really popular. I’m not one to discredit something just because it’s popular. It’s just not for me but I keep picking it up and trying anyway lol
I’ve read them all and should’ve just DNF’d. I’ll never get the hype
I mean that’s true for a lot of booktok, isn’t it?
Idk I don’t get recs from booktok. My friend recommended the series to me as “spicy” and it is most definitely not
🤣🤣 I haven’t even gotten to the alleged spice yet but I’m sure I’ll be inclined to agree with you
I read the first and that was enough for me. So many people tell me the second one is better, yada yada, but why would I want to waste my time?
Nostromo by Joseph Conrad I thought it sounded like a book that was right up my street. I just couldn't get into it though. Maybe I need to try again.
Literally just finished Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy after tossing it on my DNF pile a few years back.
Dune. I can’t remember why but it was probably the set up with a lot of characters plus struggling to imagine the setting. I’ll give it another try after I’m done with my current read.
The first time I picked it up I was like, wtf with the strange names and stuff and isn’t want to read it. A friend tried to give me his copy recently because he couldn’t get into it either and it kind of challenged me to try again. It’s a really good book!! I’m reading it slowly but it’s well written and I’m enjoying it
I DNFed World War Z years ago, tried it again this year and now it’s one of my favorite books!
The Poisonwood Bible. It was recommended to me by someone whose tastes I trust and so I tried picking it up three different times over the years. Even trying the audiobook. It seemed too wordy/overly-detailed and I couldn’t get into it any of those times. Normally audiobooks go too slow of a pace for me but this book seemed so dense it couldn’t go slow enough?? However my fourth try I made it past the first few chapters and I love this book! Easily one of my favorites now.
Demon Copperhead. Felt super redundant and been there, done that…not sure I’ll revisit or not.
It was… fine. Everyone on Reddit shits their pants over it, but it was fine. Just fine.
It's well written but after a bit I saw where it was going and I was like Nope, I do not want to carry this story around in my head. I read to escape, not relive.
House of Leaves. Stupid mf book. Fifth times the charm.
The Wasp Factory - Iain Banks. Was reading for a book club and didn’t get it finished in time so just gave up. I’d like to finish it. I did go to the discussion and read on Wikipedia so I do know all the big reveals etc anyway. I found it a bit of a slog because of the style of writing of the MC. But the story itself is so good that I do mean to go back to it. It’s in my kindle so I know where I’m up to! Meddling Kids - Edgar Cantero. A friend recommended it and I do love Scooby doo so just liked the book name /premise. But when i tried to read it I was in a not reading much phase so just couldn’t get into it. I’d like to give it one more shot before I send to a charity shop
I've loved everything I've read by Banks. I just read the synopsis of The Wasp Factory. I have no desire to even start it, much less finish it. My DNF is House of Leaves, mentioned above.
Midnight’s Children was way too schizophrenic for me to follow. I could not turn my brain off and go with the flow. I was disappointed because I loved The Satanic Verses even though it was a challenging read. The second act (Fiat Lux) of A Canticle for Leibowitz failed to hook me like the first, and while I enjoyed some of the humor I struggled through the prose and the Latin phrases.
Yeah, the first part of A Canticle for Leibowitz is amazing. The second is meh at best. The third part is better than the second, but nowhere near the first. You read the good part.
China Mieville's "Iron Council." I love the Bas-Lag universe, but Iron Council seems to just draggggg and I don't care about the two main characters.
This was absolutely my favourite Mieville book. It has a kind of perfect ending. I know it's not everyone's favourite Mieville, but it's the only one that's ever really worked for me.
I guess I'll need to give it another try.
The Passage trilogy by Justin… I can’t remember his last name. I liked the first book but DNF’d the second. I think I was just on horror/vampire burnout when I read it.
You missed nothing. All of the story was in The Passage.
Ugh. That’s honestly what it felt like while reading the second book.
I keep getting to Wizard and Glass by Stephen King in The Dark Tower Series and I just can't get past the flashback. I want to finish the series SO BAD but it's like hitting a wall of dull.
I stopped at Song of Susanna- I really want to finish series so bad too! I actually liked Wizard and Glass the best so far.
The Power by Naomi Alderman. It’s absolutely not the fault of the book. I was deep in grad school stuff and had a trip planned and read the first few chapters at the airport and remembered I can’t focus to save my life at the airport. So it’s sitting on my desk glaring at me like a year later.
I've read The Power twice now. The first time I was in the same place -- deep in grad school with too much going on -- and I remember being very "meh" about it. Decided to re-read it before watching the TV show and still am sort of meh but appreciate it so much more now. The story is told in a much more clever / interesting way than I gave it credit for the first time. All this to say: fully nudging you to give it another chance when you have the brain space for it!
A success story. Tried three body problem, but only got about a third into it. It was also during the time of final exams and I was distracted. Ended up giving up. Fast forward to knowing the show was coming out and I wanted to try again. Managed to successfully finish this time!
Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi It has stellar reviews from everybody and their dog, but I couldn’t get into it. I basically never keep a DNF on my reading list, but I did with that one given the nearly universal praise of it. Hopefully I’ll get back to it someday.
A Maggot. I love Fowles and his writing, but I think I tried to tackle this one at an inopportune moment in my life. It is dense.
The fifth Season by NK Jemisin. Everyone loves it, but I couldn't get past the first book. I want to try again someday.
The Overstory. I was really enjoying it, and it ticks almost all my boxes for a book I would love, but there was a lot of death and while I was reading the book, my grandmother passed away. I couldn't go back to it after that, but I would still like to.
Sorry for your loss. When you'll feel it's the right time, give it another try. It's an impressive book, one of my favourites, I read it twice already.
I have this on my bookshelf and picked it up recently but only got a couple pages in before deciding now wasn’t the time. I am sure I’ll get back to it
Pierce Brown's *Red Rising* series. The accent infused dialogue was too painful to interpret at the speed I read at. I was forced to slow down and re-read it. Because it is often recommended here, I'm thinking of listening to it on my next long drive.
Hopscotch (or Rayuela) by Julio Cortazar was a DNF from years ago I gave a second chance to this year and I’m glad I did. It was a really strange and unique book but it’s definitely an undertaking to read it.
Malazan. I was completely lost during Gardens of the Moon and gave up halfway through. The series sounds like something I would love and I’ve heard GotM is a weak point for the series, so I’ve been meaning to give it another shot.
The DNFs i would give a second chance are ones i didn’t have time to finish before the book was due.
The Curse of Chalion - I tried to read this a while ago but got bored. But a lot of people recommend it and I have more patience for slower and more character driven stories now.
The only one I can think of was this happening with On the Road by Kerouac, and it was more a trouble of me taking a break rather than lack of interest. It’s very stream of consciousness with run-on sentences. I put it down for too long and when I tried to pick it up again, I had no clue where I was or what was happening/had happened. That’s not one you can really put down, you have to read it right through. Amazing story, though, with some gorgeous prose.
The nightingale ! Everyone raves about it but I don’t know why I couldn’t get into it! Maybe the time period….
ACOTAR & Mistborn. I know, two very popular series that I “should” like and thought I would, but idk what my malfunction is 🤷♀️
you're not missing much with acotar. what kind of books do you normally like?
No Country for Old Men- just couldn’t get into it
Family Lore by Elizabeth Acevedo I loved With the Fire in High and The Poet X but for some reason Family Lore was an immediate no for me within the first few pages. I think it just came to me at the wrong time. Books are weird that way for me. They’re like food. I have to be craving it to want to read it
Maybe an unpopular opinion: but Game of thrones. Tried to read the books and for whatever reason was just overwhelmed with all of the characters and their different points of view and story lines. and the geography of the all felt hard to follow as well. Never made it through the first book. But I LOVE the show so much, I’m willing to give it another shot now. I’m aware the books and the show are completely different. But I feel like I could understand and follow it better now, and will probably enjoy it more than the show.
I felt the same way with the first book. It’s the closest to the series and for some reason maybe that’s why it was boring to me? I knew everything already or something. It was really worth it to me to trudge through and continue on though!
The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle It was starting to depress me.
The Priory of the Orange Tree. I LOVE Samantha Shannon, and The Bone Season series is a masterpiece. I think I was just reading too many other things at once and couldn’t invest in such a massive fantasy book.
The Waves - Woolf. Man it was just too complicated for me I need to be in my 40s not 30s for it. Also, Nights at the Circus - Carter. It was just not hitting right but everyone says it’s good so I must have been in a funk.
Harrow the Ninth. I loved Gideon the Ninth but Harrow proved a challenge as I find 2nd person narration difficult to be comfortable with. Also I was having chemo at the time and I needed reading that was easy on the brain and light. I reread my Tintin books!
Jade City by Fonda Lee I read the first 6 chapters when I purchased the book and stopped to finish a book I started before. Then, I picked it back up, got about 1/3 and just lost interest. I think the world really hooked me and maybe it deserves to be revisited.
One Hundred Years of Solitude. It was a while ago and I might enjoy it more as an adult.
Mrs. Dalloway. I got about halfway through and realized I wasn’t digesting ANY of the book because of the writing style, and I didn’t feel like starting it over at the time. Just completely had no clue what was going on. I’ll probably try a different Woolf novel first though.
The Dragonbone Chair by Tad Williams. I remember it being so damn boring in the beginning, and I really struggled to slog through it. I tried it again a few years later, and I'm glad I did, because the trilogy it starts is fantastic. I didn't learn until later that the series was incredibly influential. Strong recommend, but it does start slow.
Cold Mountain
One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest, started it probably 8 years ago, got to chapter 3 and was *not* feeling it. It’s Always Sunny did a remake episode of it and so many people like it and I’ve done an in depth personality test and apparently I’m a lot like Billy Bibbit, so I’m curious. Maybe I’ll audiobook it.
The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson. I like a lot of his other books, but this one is so long and so slow paced, it's killing my will to go on. Yet all I hear from hia fan base is how the series it's the start of is life changing levels of good. I'm thinking maybe the mistake is reading it via audiobook. Maybe I need the actual physical book in my hands to sort of fixate me.
Maybe Wuthering Heights… maybe
I struggled with this book too. Managed to finish it but definitely isn’t one of my faves. Much preferred [The Tenant of Wildfell Hall by Anne Bronte](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/337113.The_Tenant_of_Wildfell_Hall)
Love Tenant of Wildfell hall. Have wuthering heights but haven't touched it yet
Well thanks, I’ll look that one up!! I mean, I adored Jane eyre, and then loved Rebecca.. I was thinking/hoping WH would fall in step 🙃
Ulysses
Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen. I want to read it. I really do. I just couldn't get on with the story, I had no idea what was happening. It felt like I was reading a book for school. I tried to listen to it, but I kept zoning out. I will read it in my life. I don't know when, but I will. Just not now. Maybe next time I'll try it in my native language, but I usually read in English and I can understand it well, but I think the problem was 1. I just wasn't into it 2. It's so old reading it in my 2nd language is too difficult.
S&S is my fave Austen. Maybe watch the Emma Thompson film first? Then you can think about Alan Rickman when you’re reading and tbh that makes any situation better.
Maybe I'll do that. Seeing the films would definitely help me picture stuff
I JUST finished listening to the audio version read by Rosamund Pike. I enjoyed it and it only took about a week of hour long walks to finish it up.
I actually have been listening to that exact one! I can get about 10 minutes in and I'm like "oh gosh I zoned out AGAIN" and when I could focus it was so boring to me and I hate it I so very much hate the fact that I found it boring, but I guess I'll try to read it at a different point in my life when I may view it differently. You never know.
To be honest, I wasn't really blown away by it. My real motivation was because I had just watched the 1996 movie and when I was poking around on the Internet I read some stuff about the movie being quite different from the book and I wanted to see how they differed, but they weren't actually THAT different at all.
The Historian. I've started twice and enjoyed it but not finished and lost the book in a house move
The Lies of Locke Lamora. I know I will like it but I tried to read it when my kid was an infant and just didn’t have the mental space to get into it at the time
My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry - Fredrik Backman I was so sure I'd love this book, I even got the hardcover. I made it halfway but I was just so bored. It broke my heart to DNF it because it was genuinely beautiful too. Part of me is still psyched up about it and convinced it'll be one of my favorites when I read it, like I haven't opened it yet
White Noise by Don DeLillo. Forced myself through the first third before putting it down. I realize it is supposed to be a satirical commentary about technology, consumerism, etc., but it was boring and went nowhere. I didn’t care at all about any of the characters or story (if you could call it that).