What book can you just not get into?

LadyJ

Hey all
I've been trying to read "The Vampire Lestat" for about three years and
for the life of me I just can't get into it!
Just wondering what books you've tried to read time and time again but
just can't seem to finish.

Scarinae

It took me forever to get into reading the Lord of the Rings, I just couldn't get past the first chapter, in the end it was hearing about the impending movies that actually forced me past Bilbo's birthday party and into the proper book.
For some reason, I've never managed to get through Bill Bryson's 'A Short History of Nearly Everything', even though I find it really interesting every time I read bits of it.
And a few years ago, a friend lent me a book called 'Three Men in a Boat' that was written in the nineteenth century, insisting that it was the funniest book in the world - however, I just couldn't get into it. That book sat in my room for nearly two years, and even came to Crete with me, but I just couldn't read past the first chapter. I eventually just gave it back, because I knew I'd probably end up losing it

banquo

Fishie wrote:

And a few years ago, a friend lent me a book called 'Three Men in a Boat', insisting that it was the funniest book in the world

i love that book!

Scarinae

Everyone tells me it's great, I just couldn't get into it. Is it sort of specific humour?

OfflerCrocGod

Fishie wrote:

And a few years ago, a friend lent me a book called 'Three Men in a Boat' that was written in the nineteenth century, insisting that it was the funniest book in the world - however, I just couldn't get into it.

It's HILARIOUS, I can't believe you can't get into it - it's worth it!

Goldstein

The Silmarillion. Dear God that took me 3 attempts to get through. I had previously read The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings 3 or 4 times each. I'd heard people likening the Silmarillion to trying to read the Bible but I thought they were just exaggerating. They were not.

kawaii

Goldstein wrote:

The Silmarillion. Dear God that took me 3 attempts to get through. I had previously read The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings 3 or 4 times each. I'd heard people likening the Silmarillion to trying to read the Bible but I thought they were just exaggerating. They were not.

Yeah, I agree.

The book just seems to take a bunch of ideas and stick them together without any story.

At least for the first 200 pages which was about as far as I could get.

dudara

The simarillion was tough.

For me, it has to be "A Brief History of Time", and I'm a physicist, yet I couldn't read that god awful book

LoLth

The vampire Lestat was probably the only book I have actually put down and not returned to. I couldnt . it was an effort to read a few pages before going to sleep. I think I managed about 4 chapters in a little under a month before something shinier came along and distracted me.

Current toughie is Quicksilver. Its good, but I never studied science so I think a lot of the character references he makes just pass me by which I think takes away from the story he is trying to present.

echomadman

Steppenwolf, every time i've started that book i get 80 or so pages in and fall asleep.
I waded through the silmarillion when i was on the dole, it was a hard read, and i dont think i retained a whole lot of it.

Chinafoot

American Pastoral by Philip Roth

i had attempted this one about two years ago and just couldnt do it. then it was on my course this year :mad: and i still couldnt do it!

tim3115

Is Quicksilver not about historical events than any scientific aspects?

I haven't read it, and it's 900 pages long

mokeymokey

anything by stephen king

Dellgirl

I know everyone likes it in here, but I put Catch 22 down after about 50 pages. I know, I know...shame on me.

tabatha

i think cecelia aherns books are so boring they are hard to finish. i know you can skoot through them but thats not good reading to me.

LadyJ

Blingarella wrote:

I know everyone likes it in here, but I put Catch 22 down after about 50 pages. I know, I know...shame on me.

I never got into that either!

arrietty

echomadman wrote:

Steppenwolf, every time i've started that book i get 80 or so pages in and fall asleep.

Oh man, me too. I hate reading that kind of writing, no matter how good the story is.

Also: When We Were Orphans by Kazuo Ishiguro. I quite liked The Remains of the Day, but... meh. For the same reasons, I think, as I didn't like Steppenwolf. There's this certain narrative voice, of a boring middle-class anal-retentive male of the mid-twentieth century, that I find unbelievably unreadable. Both those books have it.

Mr. Presentable

The Silmarillion
Joyce's Ullysses

Three men in a boat was great!

Scarinae

Blingarella wrote:

I know everyone likes it in here, but I put Catch 22 down after about 50 pages. I know, I know...shame on me.

Oh me too, I'd just forgotten about that! Another one to add would be Puckoon by Spike Milligan. But I was young when I tried to read both of those, which probably explains it

ronano

Spring Snow - Yukio Mishima (incorrect spelling of the author i'd imagine)

I read 'confessions of a mask' by him which was fantastic and eagerly bought this book and it was not even the book being bad that i couldn't get into it. I was distracted while reading it and got to page 50 without actaully fully taking in the plot/characters and couldn't go forward in the book nor could i re-read it. I gave up today after 3 weeks of trying

OfflerCrocGod

Blingarella wrote:

I know everyone likes it in here, but I put Catch 22 down after about 50 pages. I know, I know...shame on me.

I am simply stunned! I mean that book nearly had me burst a gut with laughter.

byte

Blingarella wrote:

I know everyone likes it in here, but I put Catch 22 down after about 50 pages. I know, I know...shame on me.

Heh, i did the same the first time I tried to read it. Six months later I tried again, and succeeded to read it all. Maybe it was my frame of mind the first time, but the second time, I enjoyed the whole book.

DapperGent

In the Name of the Rose.

I thought Foucalt's Pendulum was amazing but I just can't get into In the Name of the Rose. Must try again.

Naos

Lord of the Rings as well..

Im on the last book, I should really finish it for the sake of it.

theCzar

Something Happened - Joe Heller

I'm just bothered with mid-life crisis stuff, amybe later, when i'm having a mid-life crisis i'll give it another look!

Dellgirl

I am simply stunned! I mean that book nearly had me burst a gut with laughter.

me bad. I knew it.

Kazujo

Clockwork Orange

And for some reason I just cant get into A Brief History of Almost everything, I managed to get back into Zen and the Art of Morotcycle Maintenance so I'll give Bill another try after that.

Larianne

Angela's Ashes

Read to where Frank gets TB and then just had to stop. Couldn't take all the misery or I was just bored. Cant remember was a few years ago now..

echomadman

Oh yeah, i forgot to mention Great Apes by Will Self.
I just could not read this book, despite trying a good few times.

House of leaves took me a few goes to get into, then tipped along nicely, albeit confusingly.

Easily_Irritated

I don't think I've heard of Three men in a boat... who wrote it?

LadyJ

Yeah this "Three men in a boat" sounds good!