Nicholas Guyatt, “The Absence of Peace. Understanding the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict”. Boooooring! Christian Jacq, “Ramses III – The battle of Kadesh”, I read it and disliked it even more than the first 2 installments of this Ramses saga. The first one I read in a German translation and I liked it. Then I read the second one in an English translation. I did not like the style of the whole thing, which might be due to the different language. Perhaps the German translation is a bit more lively. But after reading the third book, I think it is the characterizations and the plot that are the actual problem. I know that lots of people really like this series, but I just find it annoying. I don’t relate to the characters and there are just too many times that I find the plot unbelievable and too far fetched. So I now actually dumped part IV and V, sorry! “Lost Cities Of Atlantis, Ancient Europe & The Mediterranean” by David Hatcher Childress. I bought this at the British Museum bookshop (isn’t that new glass roof absolutely stunning?), thinking that would guarantee a certain seriousness and academic level. Boy, was I wrong! This is one of these stupid pseudo-scientific ramblings, that try to sell you the idea that the Ancient Egyptians had electricity in their pyramids bla bla bla. Before he could tell me, that little green men had built Atlantis or whatever his point is, I tossed it to the side. I made it to page 62, before I lost my composure….. And the description of the book sounded so interesting, oh well! Carol O'Connell, "Flight Of The Stone Angel". A woman comes back to the town, where she witnesses a horrible crime as a child, to finally take revenge. The story is told from the view of a friend, who followed to prevent her from doing something really stupid. So far, so good. But I just could not get into the story. I found the female character to be totally unbelievable, could not relate to her or her motives, could not relate to the guy following her and found the writing un-inspiring. Out of sheer stubborness I plowed my way through half of the book, just to realise that I did not give a damn, who did what and why 30 years back. I just kept thinking 'yeah, right, that's what would happen' - I just did not buy any of the storyline and I was constantly thinking how else it could have been written to make it work. I was just not able to get into the story at all. Suzanne Cleminshaw, "The Great Ideas" - only 60 pages left to go, but after reading this book on and off for a couple of months, I am now finally tossing it to the side. This is what the publishers have to say: 'a gripping mystery....an etiquette guide, a 'how-to' book, a survey of classical philosophy, a tour of the A-section of the encyclopaedia, a comedy of manners....' Besides of the mystery beeing as un-gripping as can be, all the other bits and bobs are quite nicely done and even amusing, but all put together, it makes a pretty boring read. Use it by its index and you will get the occassional chuckle! As for the philosophy-bit - don't bother, it has been done before and better. Read "Sophie's World" by Jostein Gaarder for that, the actual storyline of that book did not keep my attention either, I stopped that book short of a few pages as well, but the history on philosophy is excellently written. Or, for a really spirited read on that subject and a good story, read "Zen and the art of motorcycle maintenance" by Robert M. Pirsig - one of my all-time favourites. Giles Foden, “Ladysmith” – I actually finished that book out of sheer stubbornness. The book is set during the Boer war in South Africa and based on actual events. The town of Ladysmith is under siege by the Boers and the English, townspeople and soldiers, try to hold on till they are rescued by the British army slowly closing in. Boring! Why did I finish the book? The story is actually really good and I wanted to know the outcome. Nonetheless the writing itself is so contrived and probably trying to give you a feel for the period – I just thought it was incredibly dull! T. Coraghessan Boyle, “Water Music” – Yes, I gave up, on page 160. Honest, this book might be considered an exceptional book and T.C. Boyle a great writer (so I have been told), but I couldn’t have cared less what happens to the hero next. I kept dragging myself from chapter to chapter without ever developing any real interest in the characters. It’s quite nice to read something a bit on the unusual side, but I kept getting the impression, that the author was trying very hard to show off his vocabulary. Sorry, but no thanks! Peter Sheridan, “44” – A childhood in Dublin. Save the effort, go for the real thing and read “Angela’s Ashes” by Frank McCourt! Some good ideas and funny anecdotes, but couldn’t get interested enough to stick around. Richard Mason, “The Drowning People” – What on earth is the point of this story? If you find out, tell me. Apparently he kills his wife and then goes back in time to tell you why. Who cares? |
Books that I gave up on…… |
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When I was younger, I had this rule – I start a book, I finish the book, even if I do not like it. Being older and a little wiser now, I realise that there are too many books out there that I would enjoy reading, so why waste time with the ones that I do not like. Here are the more recent books that I have given up on and the reasons why….. If you have read them and liked them, good – people have different tastes, otherwise life would be really dull… |
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