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What is the most tedious book you have ever read?

368 replies

Figmentofmyimagination · 26/02/2015 20:12

I am going out on a limb here for my first thread - I am struggling through The Well of Loneliness by Radcliffe hall. Aargh. I read it out of "historical interest" because I was interested by her boldness and by the obscenity trial etc but bloody hell she should have got herself an editor. The writing is truly dire. I am not sure I am actually going to make it to the end.

OP posts:
SlightlyJaded · 27/02/2015 22:55

God yes! How could I have forgotten the tedium-feet that is Birdsong...

Dire

FatCunt · 27/02/2015 22:48

I quite enjoyed American Psycho (except the tedious musical criticism chapters).

Greydog · 27/02/2015 22:36

Two chapters of unbelievable turgid shit and Wolf Hall went in the bin. American Psycho went on the fire.

Postchildrenpregranny · 27/02/2015 22:34

Me tooHugandroll
Just had to read The Girl who saved the King of Sweden for Book Group . Non of us enjoyed it (12 60ish women) we dcided it might appeal to a younger age group ..

FamiliesShareGerms · 27/02/2015 22:30

Girl Anatomy is the most tedious book I've read for a long time. The one star Amazon reviews sum it up. It's one of those that you actually resent taking up your valuable reading time

MehsMum · 27/02/2015 22:11

Hester by Margaret Oliphant.
That is one Oxford Classic to ignore forever. Longwinded, dull, boring, dreary, repetitive, monotonous... you get the picture.

tumbletumble · 27/02/2015 22:07

Another vote for A Prayer for Owen Meany. It took me ages to finish as I kept falling asleep whenever I was reading it.

MissMuffetisin · 27/02/2015 21:36

I've now made a rule that if I'm still bored after 2 chapters I give up . Life's too short, and there are too many other books I want time to try !

AlwaysWashing · 27/02/2015 21:25

Shantaram - oh yaaaaaaaawn!

Provencalroseparadox · 27/02/2015 21:22

Judy Collins' autobiography.

I picked it up on a book shelf in a holiday villa. I disliked her from the get go. By the end I positively loathed her. Self absorbed, self centered, hideous self apologist.

Meow75 · 27/02/2015 21:18

Doris Lessing - The Grass is Singing. Been to my friend's book gp a few times and this was her choice. She first read it at uni, UEA. What a load of pointless shite!!!

Pride and Prejudice - I love the movie with Colin Firth but CANNOT get past chapter 5 of the novel.

The Reader - what is it for? Seen the film and that was ... Just as dull despite the fact that I wanted to watch it for the later part of the story.

Birdsong - didn't get to the end. Made my depression much worse.

Of Mice & Men - I just hate it!!

Eat Pray Love - less than 100 pages and I wanted to rip it into 7 million pieces!!!

Wuthering Heights - so abusive. Not a love story AT ALL , imo.

Can't read any Dickens whatsoever. 42 pages to describe a door and yet I loved the adaptation of Bleak House in 2005/6, and am going to see it on stage a week on Tuesday.

Shall I stop now?!?!

ScrambledEggAndToast · 27/02/2015 21:03

The dictionary.

confusedandemployed · 27/02/2015 20:55

I have to echo 50 shades and, in particular, fucking Gone Girl. Such badly drawn characters.

But, 8 pages in and no Cider With Rosie?!!! Jeeeesus that is turgid. Three pages describing a blade of grass or something?!! Give me strength.

TallboyMcChesty · 27/02/2015 20:46

I was enjoying it too Remus - I just couldn't keep awake! Grin I think it became a Pavlovian response.

RemusLupinsBiggestGroupie · 27/02/2015 20:43

I really enjoyed, 'The Trial.'

Sonnet · 27/02/2015 20:41

You are spot on HugandRoll - The hundred year old man who climbed out of the window was total shite! I got three quarters of the way through and binned it in disgust!

TallboyMcChesty · 27/02/2015 20:41

Couldn't get past the second page of 50 Shades - the writing was deeply awful.

Never finished 'The Trial' as I fell asleep within a few pages every time I picked it up. After getting about 2/3rds through, I gave up.

Likeaninjanow · 27/02/2015 20:38

Love Gatsby though. I've read it three times.

applecatchers36 · 27/02/2015 20:37

I love the TV adaptation but gave up with Wolf Hall half way through.

Kept falling asleep trying to read it...

Likeaninjanow · 27/02/2015 20:37

I think I've wiped most of it from my mind! It was just too...confusing & hard!!

RemusLupinsBiggestGroupie · 27/02/2015 20:35

Owen Meany would have made a good short story. It made a bloody awful novel though. I think it had one good bit (the car) and a reasonably interesting (although fairly obvious to anybody with half a brain cell and therefore not a twist) ending. Very frustrating.

Quangle · 27/02/2015 20:35

Oh yeah A Prayer for Owen Meany made me furious - so boring yet so weird

Likeaninjanow · 27/02/2015 20:32

I've enjoyed lots of the books mentioned so far. A Prayer For Owen Meany however, is the most boring, tedious book I've ever read. Until the final 2 chapters...which are amazing. A complete mind fuck.

RemusLupinsBiggestGroupie · 27/02/2015 20:31

I loathed, 'Gatsby' the first time I read it, and quite liked it the second time.

PunkrockerGirl · 27/02/2015 20:30

LOTR
And yes, anything that's won the Booker prize is invariably a pile of meaningless, pretentious shite.

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