GREAT EXPECTATIONS... God, it's taking me AGES to get through this

[notnowbernard]

But I am enjoying it, strangely

I normally read quickly

I'm into month 2 with this

Can only read 1 chapter at a time... start to zone out if I do any more than that... it's so bloody wordy

It's my first attempt at Dickens

I'm just over half way through... I'm definitely going to finish it, but please tell me it's worth it!

It's not worth it! Can't be doing with Dickens.

Sorry!

I hate Dickens. Great stories, appaling delivery IMVHO.

Try Vanity Fair next - they say Dickens-haters all enjoy Thackery.

I enjoyed Vol 1

But it's all sort of gone off the boil in the middle

I will persist

I enjoyed Vol 1

But it's all sort of gone off the boil in the middle

I will persist

Oh, and the end of Great E is not the one he planned to write, His mate Wilkie Collins told him to write something more crowd-pleasing, so he did. (Spineless man)

Vanity Fair = fab.

Sassy - that's it! It's a gripping storyline but he blathers on and on, doesn't he?

oh god i am nearly at the and and loved it (lthough I did get a bit lost in the middle - maybe because i am a bit thick and don't get dickens

He was paid by the yard and it shows!

We are singing from the same song-sheet, Cazzy

Janeite, I'm going to finish it... I hate giving up on books and I recently abandoned The Great Gatsby so I've reached my quota already

Ah - now 'The Great Gatsby' is another book with 'Great' in its title, that actually wasn't so great: you seem to have a bit of a theme going here!

Indeed!

It was my O level literature text! Love Dickens myself, but never managed to get beyond 2nd page of "Vanity Fair", so I guess the converse of Sassy's theory is true! Would not recommend "Bleak House" for OP (now, that was my A level text)

I wrote an essay on great Expectations in my finals without having read the book - I just couldn't finish it!

I find audio books very good when it comes to the classics

I finished! (Thank the Lord)

I actually really enjoyed Vol 3 and am so pleased I plodded on

Since it was originally published as a serial, I reckon 1 chapter at a time is the way to go at great expectations. Likewise David Copperfield - I read that to an ex boyfriend once, 1 chapter a night, back in the days when I was romantic like that.

I loved GE (read it on honeymoon!)

But Vanity Fair is brilliant, I'm due for a reread actually.

(In the BBC adaptation, Captain Dobbin was played by Philip Glenister aka Gene Hunt, fact fans)

I think you can get editions of GE with both endings - the one Dickens wanted to write is better and a lot more plausible.

Mind you, the whole book is so implausible, by the time you get to the end you're immune to daft coincidences.

Loath Dickens, except for Hard Times which is remarkably short.....now Wilkie Collins - there's a Victorian writer for you!

It´s worth it, it´s brilliant! Very funny in part, don´t know how people miss this. Agree though that some of Dickens´work is pretty tedious. Move onto David Copperfield for the next one, plan a year or so to get through it though ; )

OP I've just finished Sense and Sensibility and I thought that was also very wordy, took me about 6 months to read that (but did enjoy it!!). Have Moby Dick to read and also Great E too. Will attempt them after the 39 steps..

Persevere with your book, you will get there in the end!

I did GE for my gcse and hated it.Soooo wordy.