Vernon God Little - shall I persevere?

[PuhPeng]

I'm not really getting into it. I think most of it is flying over my head. Not sure I completely understand what's going on.

I don't think I'm really in the mood for anything to gritty or violent - what direction does the book take?

Maybe I'm not in the mood for it - it's not raised a smile yet...

It's been years since I read it, but remember not liking it and wondering what all the fuss was about.

wasnt this voted the top book that people started but did not finish? its not that gritty or violent from what i remember but its not that good either!

Errmm, I have read it but about 4 years ago and I think I enjoyed it??!! Sometimes its best to put it down and start again when you're not really in the mood.

It's a very strange book.

So... no overwhelming cries to keep at it then!

Ugh. There's nothing I want to read the the moment. Far too pregnant to concentrate.

Will maybe give VGL a better go another time.

It's a great book, but probably not when you're pregnant. I could only stomach trash chick lit when I was expecting dd, not demanding and happy endings. I still have about ten 'literary' books gathering dust on my bookshelf that I haven't got round to and dd is 10 months now

It's fab - keep at it.

To be honest, I didn't think it was worth it. It's a lot of fairly unsympathetic people behaving nastily. It just carries on like that as far as I can remember - read it when it was in the top 100 books and they made it sound interesting. Mind you, they made His Dark Materials sound like it was imparting some sort of profound message suitable for adults, which I thought was bollocks! I did enjoy them though, but in much the same way I enjoy dd's books.

Forget VGL, unless you find a reason to carry on.

Noooooooo

What did you like about it Zog?

I liked it too zog. It gets better

Once I'd got used to the style and the swearing, I thought it was v funny and I may even have shed a tear or two. Definitely second half better than the first IMO.

PuhPeng, thats how I found it too. And it didnt get better. Cant remember anything much about it now, which sums it up. A fine waste of time! Very Emporor's New Clothes.

I loved the second half

PuhPeng, I don't think there's anything flying over your head.

You could of course read it as a morality tale; that might make it more interesting. Or a cautionary tale about the effect the media has on people. Or something. It was a long time ago.

Zog, Mrs Ruffalo, I really would like to know why you liked it. Would you read it again?

TBH barnstaple
It was a long time ago, before I had children, but I remember it being slow-going at first and then turning into this funny and touching
tale about modern society, youth, picking the jewels out of the shit kind of thing

Read it because it was said to be soooo good. Hated it. It gets gritty in the sense of child abuse that is somewhat graphic. I found it crude and didn't really "get" it.

I liked it in an adolescnet sort of way. Depends what mood you are in.

Would you read it again, though?

just finished it and loved it! Extremely touching and (without giving too much away) very redemptive in the end. Great morality tale on the effect of media and the powerlessness of the "underclass".

Unusual first person style similar to Catcher in the Rye. Honestly, I couldn't put it down. I was swatting my kids aside as I bit my nails through the last 30 pages. Am amazed to find myself in a minority!
.

I gave up. Life's too short (to waste on something so tedious).

I was really enjoying reading this when it was on the Booker shortlist. Then I saw the Booker Prize when he won and did an interview. I had to stop reading immediately (I was half way through). He completely creeped me out.

I read it and thought it was ok but not incredible.

I hated it. If you don't like it so far, then it's not going to get any better.