"Really? You've never read X?"

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Paranye

Constable
Feb 27, 2012
61
2,150
#1
We have a thread for books we read and loved, books we read and hated, books we never finished and books we're in the process of reading right now. What else is there, I hear you cry - well, you probably don't, because the name of the thread sort of gives it away. Oh well.

So, which books have you never read? Obviously the answer for anyone is "the vast majority of them, Paranye, there are like a gazillion", but I mean that book that you know you really should have read, or that everyone tells you you should read, or that everyone but you seems to have read, or that you've been meaning to read for years but never quite got around to. It's the book that surprises people when you say you haven't read it. Here are a couple of mine.

- Jane Eyre. Been meaning to read it for forever but never seem to get to it.
- The Princess Bride. This is such a cult hit that I feel like I'm missing out on something! Any fans among us?
- Kurt Vonnegut. Like, any Kurt Vonnegut at all. Shame on me.
- The Great Gatsby. More shame on me.

And one I'm almost sure I'll never read is Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand. I know it's wrong to condemn someone's philosophy without due consideration, but the whole thing sounds so bloody dreary and awful, I just can't see myself ever picking it up when there are so many other things I could be doing with my time, like scrubbing out my shower or picking those little bobbles off my woolen garments.

So, how about you folks?
 

Tonyblack

Super Moderator
City Watch
Jul 25, 2008
30,997
3,650
Cardiff, Wales
#2
It's interesting that you mention Jane Eyre as I really felt I was missing something when I read Jasper Fforde's 'The Eyre Affair', as I hadn't read it either.

I've never read any Dickens either. Somehow it just does appeal. o_O
 

Penfold

Sergeant-at-Arms
Dec 29, 2009
9,125
3,050
Worthing
www.lenbrookphotography.com
#3
"Acts of the Apostles" and the "Bible" were books I really should have read when I was at school. I was doing 'Religious Studies' for O' Level, which I failed and got a D Grade for. (Mind you, I suppose still getting graded despite making my answers up was quite an achievement of sorts.) :laugh:
 

meerkat

Sergeant-at-Arms
Jan 16, 2010
9,413
2,800
68
Pocklington East Riding Yorkshire
#4
Atlas shrugged,- I wouldn't bother. Wish I never had brought it.Now is in a charity book shop.

All the Spike Milligan books with the exceptions of the Bible and Wuthering Heights and the hound of the Baskervilles (they are really hysterical)
Jasper Fforde - never read nay of his.
 
Mar 16, 2012
66
2,150
#5
God this could be so long.

Tess of the D'Ubervilles and The Ambassadors because I could easily have read both of them but I didn't.
 

Paranye

Constable
Feb 27, 2012
61
2,150
#6
Tonyblack said:
It's interesting that you mention Jane Eyre as I really felt I was missing something when I read Jasper Fforde's 'The Eyre Affair', as I hadn't read it either.

I've never read any Dickens either. Somehow it just does appeal. o_O
I've read ALL the Dickens - even the Child's History of England, a history textbook he wrote, essentially, so that he could teach his children his own version of history. It's the most hilariously biased thing you've ever read, and there's this virulent anti-monarchist sentiment right until he gets up to modern history and Queen Victioria, who he completely wimped out of criticizing in any way XD

Dickens isn't for everyone at all. He's sentimental and melodramatic and in quite a few of his books he just seems to be making it up as he goes along or throwing in twists for the sake of it - but he'll always be one of my favourite authors.
 
Jan 13, 2012
2,337
2,600
South florida, US
www.youtube.com
#9
Nah, i get what she means.

The Lord Of The Rings (or any Tolkien really). everyone seems to love it or at least have read it, but i was never interested in it.

Same with the Bible.

and speaking of, never read any of the Narnia books either. despite liking the films. same with Harry Potter, love the movies, never any interest in the books.

Sandman by Niel Gaiman. everyone i know has read them. and Watchmen too. still never been all that interested. may get around to it one day.

AS for Atlas Shrugged, its only because of Bioshock I had any interest in it.
 
Jan 13, 2012
2,337
2,600
South florida, US
www.youtube.com
#14
I had seen a brief review of the third hunger games book when it first came out, the premiss of the series sounded interesting and i've been eyeing them ever since, but never got around to getting them. now with the movie i may wait to see them first.

Eragon i grabbed blind when my store was first carrying it. it was interesting, on the third book now, but got side tracked with other books.
 

Dotsie

Sergeant-at-Arms
Jul 28, 2008
9,069
2,850
#18
Paranye said:
- Jane Eyre. Been meaning to read it for forever but never seem to get to it.
- The Princess Bride. This is such a cult hit that I feel like I'm missing out on something! Any fans among us?
I've read the Princess Bride, I know I enjoyed it but it's different to the film, and now I can only remember that version o_O

Jane Eyre I loved, but it's a bit of a misery fest, with an unlikely ending.

If the Bible were shorter and less boring I'd read that. But as it is I can't see the point.

Dickens - not interested in any of his stuff except a Christmas Carol, which is lovely :laugh: (it's also very short, unlike his other stuff).
 

CJDobs

Constable
Sep 10, 2009
67
1,650
#19
I'm very sad to say I never read 'The Hobbit' - and yet I adore Tolkien.......I read LOTR first and then tried 'The Hobbit' but all those dwarves and their red and blue hats didn't really work for me so I callously abandoned it.

As for Dickens - I love him, mad as a box of frogs! Have a read of Dan Simmons 'Drood' if you haven't already, then go and read some Charlie D, I find the dark fantasy biography version of him helps :)
 

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