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The Hundred Year Old Man who got on my Wick

44 replies

KurriKurri · 16/06/2015 16:17

Am sure there have been other threads as it has been around for a while and very hyped, but I've only just read it - as a book club read.

I hated it - didn't get the joke (well I got it, but wasn't sure why it needed to be repeated to the point of tedium) didn't like the old man, thought it was a Forrest Gump rip off but much less charming. Maybe it lost something in translation, but it was not for me at all. I am sure everyone at book club will love it and I will look like a right old misery.

Anyway if you haven't read it, I unrecommend it, if you have what did you think - am I being very unfair? ?

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Heels99 · 16/06/2015 16:20

BorIng, gave up on it

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CoteDAzur · 16/06/2015 16:20

100 year old man who did... what?

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SonceyD0g · 16/06/2015 16:26

I liked it and learnt a lot of obscure historical stuff. It's a farce and if you accept that from the beginning then it's enjoyable. Depends on your sense of humour I suppose. We read it at book group too. People either liked it or hated it.

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LMGTFY · 16/06/2015 16:28

I actually enjoyed it, definitely not my usual type of read but then I never go for anything serious.

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PacificDogwood · 16/06/2015 16:30

I did kink of enjoy it, but thought it could have been half as long.
Got a bit boring and was a one trick pony.
Won't be reading the author's other book - cannot remember his name or the name of the book Grin

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Gumnast2014 · 16/06/2015 16:31

Much Preferred Harold fry

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PointyBirds · 16/06/2015 16:35

I gave up on it fairly early on too. I didn't like the character (not always necessary) and had no interest in what happened to him (definitely necessary)

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DuchessofMalfi · 16/06/2015 18:02

I thought it was quite funny but it did drag a little in places - could have done with a bit more editing.

You might like A Man Called Ove by Frederik Backman better. But, again, that's probably a marmite book too.

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hackmum · 16/06/2015 18:04

I thought it was brilliant. The repetition of the joke was the whole point - it became more and more outlandish as the book went on.

Haven't seen Forrest Gump but it struck me (from my knowledge of it) as being rather mawkish. I may be wrong of course.

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greensnail · 16/06/2015 18:07

I loved the book. Watched the film with dh a few weeks ago and loved that too but dh wasHmm

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DuchessofMalfi · 16/06/2015 18:08

I haven't seen Forrest Gump either - doesn't appeal (can't stand Tom Hanks).

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KurriKurri · 16/06/2015 18:16

Forrest Gump is rather mawkish hackmum IMO, I didn't particularly like it either Grin - but felt this basically took the same idea.
I think all the 'you will roar with laughter continuously' reviews gave me high expectations of it, and it felt a real let down.

I would have given up after the first hundred pages if it hadn't been a book club read. So I persevered - and I have to say it did pick up a little bit, but then went on far to long (agree about editing Duchess). I preferred the current story rather to the flashback story, but just got very bored with all the killing and blowing stuff up.

Not my thing - but then I have loved stuff that others in my group have hated - much more fun to have books we can argue about Grin

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Whathaveilost · 16/06/2015 18:18

I gave up on the book but enjoyed the film.

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Whathaveilost · 16/06/2015 18:20

coteDAzure
The 100 yer old man who climbed out of a window and never went back.

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Earthbound · 16/06/2015 18:20

I thought it was boring, boring, boring. I finished it because I was reading it for a book club but sort of wish I hadn't bothered.

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tumbletumble · 16/06/2015 18:21

I found it pretty tedious too.

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KanyesVest · 16/06/2015 18:27

I'm so glad I'm not the only one who wished he'd just stayed put. I lost the will to continue about half way through, which I almost never do. I have to admit though, my mum's incessant raving about it may have predisposed me to being tetchy about it.. Childish? Me?

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greenhill · 16/06/2015 18:40

It was very patchy and I wondered how much had been lost in translation, it certainly needed a more thorough editor to reduce the verbiage, but some of the set pieces around well documented historical events were quite clever. I found that I could only stand reading it in really small bursts after a while, so it dragged on for weeks and I'd read longer, more gripping books as I'd ploughed through the one hundred years of slight tedium.

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Seriouslyffs · 16/06/2015 19:00

It's very 'book club'
I'm currently chewing my arm off as I plough through the girl who saved the king of sweden.
It's like the film, grand Budapest hotel and I hated that too.

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angryangryyoungwoman · 16/06/2015 19:01

Boring book, good film though. Imo

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CaptainHolt · 16/06/2015 19:02

I hated it. It was like reading Mrs. Pepperpot where the same thing happens chapter after chapter, except Mrs Pepperpot is quite sweet.

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HugAndRoll · 16/06/2015 19:19

I couldn't stand it either and couldn't finish it. I gave up when they were planning on moving with the woman and the elephant, it was just dull.

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maudpringles · 16/06/2015 21:07

That is the exact point I gave up on also (elephant )
My friend raved about this book and I felt really bad when she asked about it and I said I didn't finish it

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5Foot5 · 16/06/2015 22:45

Oh I found the book very entertaining indeed. I didn't know there was a film.

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Pinkcatgirl · 22/06/2015 17:04

I found it dull too. I kept trying and trying and eventually realised I had been reading it for over a year. And now sitting here thinking about it again I'm not entirely sure whether I finished it or gave up at about 95% of the way through, which I've never done before in my life!

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