So I was reading Kristin Lavransdatter based on the recommendation of a friend of mine. It’s a three-book set about a girl in the 16th or 17th Century and my friend said it was her favorite book of all time.
I got about 40 pages into it and had to put it down. Because in 40 pages absolutely NOTHING happened. I’m serious – not a thing. Her father took her on a business trip and some monk told her about paint. That’s all. Not plot points at all. I can’t stand books that take so long to get into the headspace of the leading characters.
To counterbalance that book I picked up the final book in the “Key” trilogy that Nora Roberts put out last year. Nice fluff. I have a lot of other books on my list still to read, but “Kristin” really kind of dampened my desire to plow through my booklist. I have a feeling I’ll be reading a few fluffy books to get back into it.
Have you ever been recommended a book only to discover upon starting it that it is total garbage? Do tell…
Yes! I have been given a book with the promise that I would not be able to put it down nor had I ever read anything that good. It was The Mists Of Avalon. I tried to read that book, I really, really did. It was awful. I hung in there as long as I could (at least 100 pages), and then gave the book back. I believed I should have burned it, but it wasn’t mine to incinerate. I appreciate your experience. It’s happened to me more than once, but Mists was one of the more painful experiences.
Punditz, I read “Mists of Avalon” a long time ago – I recall doing a lot of skimming throughout the book. I just kind of read the highlights and skipped over large chunks in order to finish it!
I tried to read Kristin Lavransdatter last year after someone said it was the Best Catholic Novel Ever, but like you, I had to quit after about 40-60 pages. There were a few interesting images, but I just got this sense that nothing was going to happen. Maybe one day I’ll try again.