Secret History by Donna Tartt. Suitable for teen?

[Verona82]

Hello,

Has anyone read the above book? Dd wants to read it but not sure if appropriate. Is it ok for a young teen?

Many thanks

@SirVixofVixHall what order did you read them in? I read The Goldfinch when it was first published. For some reason I'd never read The Secret History, but knew it's reputation and leapt on it after enjoying The Goldfinch so much. I was so underwhelmed! But I wonder if that's because in the intervening years its been appropriated by other novelists, so if just didn't seem that innovative or special 20 years on.

I read all her books in the order they were published, I can hardly remember the middle one, weirdly.
I loved The Goldfinch, even though it was slightly less engaging after a certain point.

I absolutely loved The Secret History but DNF The Goldfinch. I have always intended to go back to it, but it hasn't happened yet - I loved the intelligence and the growing sense of malice in The Secret History and The Goldfinch didn't have the same appeal - it was a bit boring. I do find that I need to be in the right headspace to read a very long book (ADHD), so it may just have been that and I will enjoy it when I eventually go back. I have never been tempted to read The Little Friend!

God no it’s awful! Slow and ploddy and pretentious. I was gutted as had wanted to read it for ages and I hated it! So many better books out there!

I'm always unsure what effects reading supposedly unsuitable books are meant to have! Is it like the moral panic surrounding video games encouraging violent behaviour irl? Having read 'Lace' at the age of 13 I can happily report that I haven't spent my adult life storming into rooms shouting 'Which one of you butches is my mother?' No ill effects at all!

Well I mean I wouldn’t want my 11 year old reading Naked Lunch. I think a young teen reading something like Palahniuk or American Psycho might not pick up the subtext and see the characters as ‘cool’ or get the wrong ideas. So I guess I think certain books need to have a level of understanding to appreciate them rather than be disturbed/upset/confused and take the wrong message away.

Not that I think it particularly applies to The Secret History, although I do think if young teen means 13 year old they’re unlikely to really comprehend it and are more likely to romanticise it. But I don’t think it’s damaging with this particular novel.

I really loathed it as well, I would never want to touch or read it again.

😂@pigalow27 . Although I have to ask, how do feel about goldfish?

A very good book, I read it many years ago. I'm sure it is fine for a teenager but do people police the books that teens read? I never did though we talked about books, I was an avid reader; my parents didn't with me (but they were not interested). I'm 73 and read 'Lady Chatterley's Lover' at 12. I left it lying around too and parents never even picked it up and looked (they were good in other ways)!

Donna Tartt's next book was, in my opinion, not so good and I was disappointed.