Shall I persevere with The Goldfinch?

[anothergilmore]

I'm about half way through and I loved it at first but God I can't read any more boring over detailed shite about his drug use! Is the rest of the book going to be like this or does it get better again?

If I should just throw in the towel does anyone have any good recommendations?

Books I love include - wool trilogy, life after life, time travellers wife, outlander series, I capture the castle and also Marian Keyes.

I loved it! But I love that kind of Updike, Franzen vibe. I've read most of MK's as well! The writing is beautiful, but I lacked momentum moving forward with it so I had a few other books on the go as well.

It's absolutely fantastic. I have it on my list of favourite books alongside the Time Travellers Wife so we must have similar taste. Persevere!

I would give up. I wished I had.

So far I'm leaning towards giving up but only because I have so little time to read at the moment and I really don't want to waste it. I'll be so annoyed if I get to the end of the book and think 'well that was a waste of time'. But equally I really did enjoy the book at first, it's just got a bit bogged down in the middle.

The drug fuelled middle bit is a bore! But the 'third third' is much better. It really is a book of three parts, start is great, middle drags, end of good.

end is good

I loved it. But will also confess to being of the Updike, Franzen vibe, much like storm. And I listened to it on audiobook which may have helped!

I loved it, why not speed read a chapter or two till it grabs you again.

The end is better but I have to say I didn't love it.
It was worth finishing though.
I left it for a while and went back th it.

It's my all-time favourite novel and though I usually say to people to abandon books they're not enjoying, in this case I'd advise the same as some other posters and try to push through the drug section.

I love this book, agreed I didn't enjoy the middle section..but it gets better again!

Persist, it is worth it. I enjoyed The Secret History more though. I'm currently halfway through the Little Friend

I would give up

Having enjoyed Donna Tartt's previous two novels, I thought I would love this one. I didn't. It isn't a bad novel at all. I just didn't like it.

I'd say push through if you can. I agree with others that the end is better than the middle section, and actually, the ending is quite satisfying, so it is worth it. I hated all the drug-use stuff though (and wanted to slap him!).

I won't be re-reading it (ever) though.

I would say carry on - I loved it and I also love all the other books you say you like too (though I haven't read the Wool trilogy so I'm now off to look that up!). His drug use/abuse does get a bit tedious I agree but it's worth sticking with.

If you like Kate Atkinson then Behind the Scenes at the Museum and A God in Ruins are also excellent. I just read The Essex Serpent too and thought it was fantastic. All of Mhairi McFarlane's books are very good if you like Marian Keyes...she has a similar sense of humour I think and her books are all hilarious.

i hated it and thought it was highly over rated. A load of pretentious drivel IMHO.

Hated TTTW as well.

I loved it personally, so I say perservere. Mind you, if you don't like a novel after 100 pages there's no chance, in my book.

Definitely persevere.

That was two weeks of my life I'll never get back. Boring load of old shite! Loved the first third and which I had stopped there.

It gets better again. Stick with it, it's great.

I have read up to half way... And keep trying to go back to it...but keep giving up again.

I was going to start the same thread OP.

I am on about 80%. I speed read a few chapters last night and am just getting back into it slowly.

If it doesn't pick up quickly again tonight though I am going forwards to the last 90% and finishing it off.

Life and reading time is too short.

I loved it too. Took me an age to read, probably 6 months of picking it up and reading a few pages but I was so engrossed by the end. I found the same with secret history - slow burners but very good stories.

I hated it too,though it hugely over rated.

Finished it- eventually. It's ok but I did wonder if it was worth the effort. Not exactly earth shattering .