What is the most tedious book you have ever read?

[Figmentofmyimagination]

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.

Sebastian Faulks: Human Traces.

I forced myself to finish it but it is without doubt the most tedious book I have ever read. And I've read a few.

Another vote for Life after Life.

YY to The Children's Book.
Couldn't get anywhere near the first few pages of The Book Thief.

Forget my earlier comment about The Handmaid's Tale - I've just finished reading How to be both. What a load of pretentious crap.

Nostromo by Joseph Conrad and Midnight's Children by Salman Rushdie. I have tried (and failed) on several occasions to read them but found them stultifyingly dull.

Unusually, I saw the film of Cloud Atlas before reading the book. Loved the film - hated the book! Tedious is exactly the word I would use to describe it.

Started We Need To Talk About Kevin but have abandoned it now. I can tel something has happened but the style of writing is so dull I can't be bothered finding out what.

Hated -
The Slap
The Secret History
Wolf Hall
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
The Hundred year old Man
Americanah didn't get past the first chapter
Gone Girl ( but loved her other books)
The Casual Vacancy
The House of the Mosque
The Book of You
Before We Met
Atonement ( but LOVED the film, only example of the film being better than the book imo)

Loved -
We need to talk about Kevin
The Poisonwoon Bible (I read it at least once a year!) can't believe it was described as unreadable

Capn do try and finish We Need To Talk About Kevin.
Like you I found it tedious but a friend encouraged me to persevere.
It was worth it. There is a twist.

Moby Dick.

Persuasion by Jane Austen.

Even the fact that it was required reading for university didn't encourage me to finish it.

I finished Jonathan Norrell and poisonwood bible but found both really bloody tedious and was just relieved they were finally over

The Historian, however, is one of my all time faves, and the book thief, life after life, labyrinth

Moby Dick. Clearly I am a philistine but I just couldn't manage it, page after page saying not much at all, intolerable.

Oh Whitecandles - I loved Persuasion, but maybe that's because I haven't had to study it in depth

Oh Duchess...I just dislike Austen in general really. One of my favourite periods of literature but...no. Just can't get into her at all.

The Name of the Rose -turgid. Also Midnight's Children, Lorna Doone, the Children's Book....

Atonement - I couldn't finish it.

I loved The Historian!

The Historian defeated me. I finished it but it was a struggle. I should have enjoyed it, it had all the ingredients of a good story but it didn't work for me.