I have come to the conclusion that I don't like quite a lot of female writers

[OrmIrian]

Nicole Krauss - History of love. Yaaaaaawnn!
Someobody Niffeneagger? 'Time Travellers Wife' made me so cross I wanted to burn the f*ing book!
Even struggled with Zadie Smith.

OK I've had too much soave and I can't think of any more examples but I have come to the conclusion that I don't want endless analysis of emotions, angsting over love affairs. I want interest, something actually happening, description, intellectual analysis. Not who fed who and who didn't and what is the emotional mess that results. If someone behaves badly and irrationally, I want to kow why*, not just put it down to past traumas and say 'of that's OK then'.

Does that make me a bad sister? Or just a man manque?

I love Terry Prathcett. I suspect that indicates serious emotional embolism. But wtf.

i don't read by gender,i read by content.i likey or likey not regardless of gender.good literature transcends gender

Agree, Hilary Mantel can write like a dream. House on whatsit street? - the one about the Saudi Arabian princess to whom something happens.

Have an indulge in Posy Simmonds (but pre-Tamara Drewe) if you're in need of sublety authored by femaleness

PolicyWonk- all of Atwood I'm afraid. And I'm a feminist lit. lecturer by profession. Tis my guilty secret (but not a shocking enough one for the thread on that topic.)

Wharton is truly fantastic. Does that redeem me?

My votes are for Helen Simpson, Rose Tremain, AS Byatt (short stories mainly) Alice Munro, Kate Atkinson, and wild card, Rosie Thomas....

I'm with Sibh on Margaret Atwood, and am going to compound it by adding Jeanette Winterson and Angela Carter to my disliked list.

Anne Enright and Lorna Sage are faves too....

What are people's thoughts on Nicola Barker? I just read Darkmans and can't tell whether I love it or hate it.

I just read it too Jux. I think I liked it - I certainly liked bits of it, but I know what you mean. I'm never happy when a book leads me to believe there'll be some kind of proper conclusion to all the plot twists it's led you round, and the ending was a total copout IMO.

Sibh, that must be a hard cross to bear in your profession I don't like Atwood's sci-fi bits but I do like her examinations of relationships between women.

I love Nicola Barker. Apart from Clear which I found irritating. I thought Darkmans was genius, and I really really enjoyed Behindlings. You've finally reminded me to dig out Granta 83 to find out which of her novels they took an extract from when they put her in the 'Best of Young British...' as I thought it was brill and wanted to read the whole thing.

To the OP, I think as others have said you must just be reading the wrong women... not difficult though with the glut of chicklit on the tables, some of it even sneakily disguised as literary fiction sometimes. But hurrah! MN to the rescue.

Mmmm, I'm not at all sure I knew what was happening at any point, Brokenrecord! I liked the detail, but there wasn't really one character in it I liked, except the mad girl who broke her leg.

Just finished Night Watch by Sarah Waters. That was really really good (unequivocally so)

Mine include:

isabelle Allende - House of the spirits, Ines of my soul. Also City of the Beasts (didn't even realise at the time of reading it was a children's book, my 9yo DD has also read this and loves it)

Doris Lessing - Mara and Dann. Some of hers are hard going though - gave up on The Golden Notebook, life is just too short!

I love Atwood - especially Cats Eyes. Have read all of Lessing many times. Like AS Byatt. And Iris Murdoch. And Edith Wharton. Brontes and Austen ditto. During the 80s I read almost entirely female literature - Virago press mostly - and some if was trash TBH, but most of it was good. But it seems to me that so much of recent female writing seems very tame now in comparison.

But I shall investigate the new names on this thread. Thankyou.

Second Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie - brilliant. Have just read and quite enjoyed Life Mask by Emma Donoghue

I can barely stand fiction these days. I like biography, history, sociology, art & architecture.

Oh and I'm quite partial to books on housework (especially cooking) and childcare

Please, investigate the following and come back and say you don't like novels written by women. And why does your dh buy your books for you?? Get out there and buy your own!

Margaret Atwood
Angela Carter
Pat Barker
Sarah Waters
Liz Jensen
Kate Atkinson
Anita Brookner
Ali Smith

kingrolo - I suspect you haven't read the thread

I like Carter, Atwood, I had briefly forgotten Walters. And I did narrow my complaint down to 'recent' female writers. But I will give all those other authors a go. Thanks for the suggestion.

I find Anita Brookner a bit meh.

You are reading too many reading group books. There are lots of terrific women writers out there.

try the literature map

put your author in and similar types come up the most similar closest to the middle

my fav author is margaret forster,also anne fine

Ok then OrmIrian - obviously we both like UK (goes without saying). I would also agree with the people who have recommended Rose Tremain. I've read a lot of her stuff and all brilliant. I also like Penelope Lively and Elizabeth Jane Howard, also Margaret Attwood and Iris Murdoch (so far, haven't read many of hers yet).

I've only read one of Sarah Waters - Affinity, which I enjoyed, and I have been given Fingersmith so will be reading it soon. Also read a book by Ann Patchett (Bel Canto) last summer, which I enjoyed.

Hope this all helps. By the way, which is your favourite UK Le Guin book?