Unpopular Literary Opinions

[baseballgirl]

There's one for movies and one for TV, so why not one for books?

I've already gone on record defending the DiVinci Code, so I won't go into that here.

I don't get the big fuss about Sylvia Plath. Yes, I read The Bell Jar in college, too. Now every actress in Hollywood is trying to get it made into a movie, and talks about Plath's "brilliance," etc. Yes, it's tragic that she killed herself. She wasn't the first or last. But sometimes that seems to be her only claim to fame. To hear some people go on, you'd think I'd lose my female membership card for not raving about Sylvia Plath.

[BinkyBetsy]

ITA. I also don't believe that Ted Hughes was the devil incarnate.

[messageunit]

I'll go broad here. . . Russian literature. Can't stand it. I love the huge English Victorian novels, so it's not a question of length or massive amounts of detail or sheer girth. Hate the thousand different names for each character, the philosophical asides. . .all of it. Anna Karenina, War and Peace, Crime and Punishment - read 'em all, hated them all.

[Deleted]

Mists of Avalon. I cannot stand MoA. Everyone raves about it, but I found it horrid. It's supposed to be a feminist version of the Arthurian legend? Then why are the female characters so thoroughly unlikable? Morgaine thinks everyone is beneath her, walks around with her nose in the air, Vivian is a meddling, nosy brat, Guinevere is a prissy, fundy prude, etc. I HATED it.

[Deleted]

I kinda agree on the Russian literature. Does EVERYONE'S name have to end in "sky"? Do I have to make a chart to get all the characters straight? That said, I do like Doctor Zhivago and some other Russian lit.

[mrpancake]

I hated Tuesdays With Morrie. It was really preachy, which didn't so much bug me (well, actually it did, because it was so in your face). Frankly, I don't need to be told to live each day to the fullest. And you know what? Losing contact with people you once really loved is often a part of life, and it sucks, but you know what? It happens all the time. It's just the way the cookie crumbles. I understand that this professor was inspiring, etc.; but at times it seemed like he was trying to make everyone in the world feel guilty for not being a saint like he was. Not everyone has the flexibility of being unemployed with enough money to make a flight/long drive every week to go visit someone we really liked. But actually, I hold the most resentment for this book because when I voiced why I didn't like it, I was lectured by a kid in my class (who is uber-conservative, pious and strict Catholic) that "I was a nice guy and all, but this book was written for people like you. Oh man, was I pissed when he told me that. I gave him a little speech about how I'd been through enough trials and tribulations in my life that I don't need to be told to appreciate life, etc. I may have been an asshole about it, but his comments pissed me off. If that's the kind of people this book attracts (which I think is actually a large portion of people who really like this book), then count me out.

Not to mention I couldn't help feel a certain insencerity when I thought about how this professor was so meaningful, etc, but he is sort of cashing out on this person's death.

I just really didn't like the book, and when I heard about the Ten People You Meet in Heaven or whatever the Hell it was called, I wanted to barf.

[outlier]

Kris said:

I kinda agree on the Russian literature. Does EVERYONE'S name have to end in "sky"?

Uh, kinda unavoidable with Russian literature. Unless you'd like the translator to change the names as well. ("War & Peace is the story of how Kevin fell in love with Madge and tried to kill the emperor Nathan ...") Seriously though, they are books written to different standard in a different time. And the Russian penchance for diminutives means there are a lot of names to keep track of. I've met more than one person that kept a list of characters by their side while they read it.

[Deleted]

Oh yeah, I understand that, but it doesn't mean I like having to keep track of all the names. I actually do like a lot of Russian literature- I just don't like certain aspects.

[Deleted]

I've been meaning to get around to all that famous Russian literature...for years. Haven't yet.
Most people don't seem to be into George Eliot, but I just love Middlemarch and Daniel Deronda. Even though I couldn't get into the sudden ending of The Mill on the Floss, I love the way she is able to imply sexual tension and chemistry between two of the characters there. It's just so believable without getting explicit. So I guess that's my main unpopular literary opinion.
Also, I don't know anyone who reads Edith Wharton. I just finished rereading "The Gods Arrive" and could not quite figure out exactly how Vance and Halo's relationship turned out. If anyone here has read it and can shed insight, I'd appreciate it.

[caycepollard]

hated Tuesdays With Morrie.

I hope that's not unpopular.