Thread: Worst books you've ever read

Why does it seem that most of the "great classics" are unworthy reads?
Don't get me wrong, there are a few I enjoyed, Animal Farm, and Killer Angels are just the ones I think of immediatly.
I can't even take the classic Tokien books.
Maybe its the language used, maybe I'm not smart enough to "get" the Great Gatsby. I understood what it was about, I just simply couldn't bring myself to care.

I think a lot of it is the language. Every page is a chore when the language is difficult and you have to read it all. I'm not a huge fan of the Great Gatsby but I thought it was ok, mostly because it was too short to truly hate.

The language in some classic novels will many times become easier with every page. I know that for War and Peace after a while the Russian and French words became familiar and then the language wasn't the obstacle it was in the first chapters.

Another reason I think sometimes they're hard to enjoy is that it's hard to find the angle. Current writing seems to be good vs. evil, what they call moralistic. Many older books didn't focus so much on good vs. evil but rather individual challenges and emotions. It's difficult to get into a book when you don't know the goal.

If you're just reading a book to pass the time or for enjoyment it's ok to meander but if you're studying it looking for a moral or purpose then it's frustrating.

I don't know that this is the case but I also think that many old novels suffered from a lack of word processing power. It's relatively easy to edit a novel today with a word processing tool. It would be much less easily edited back when everything was done with paper.

I think some of the difficulty of reading classics is simply that they're in need of a good edit that couldn't be done when they were written.

All just my opinion of course. I like classics but I know the difficulty that you're talking about, if you really want to feel it try reading Moby Dick. That book is just huge and boring. The first and last three chapters are the only ones worth reading.

Brave New World by Adolus (sp?) Huxley. Definitely the worst book I've ever read. Boring and pointless. I just hated it with a passion.

The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros
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Dark Aevin, You're totally right House on Mango Sreet. I read that shit and hated it. (for school of course.) Strong advise, Don't read it!!!!