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Overrated Books

D

Dahlia

Member
What is the most overrated book you have read ?

For me, it was The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield. I couldn't even finish the book and found it so overhyped.

There's also The Bridges of Madison County, one of the rare books I want to throw at the wall while struggling to finish.


How about you ?
 
I simply loved Wuthering Heights. Enjoyed its little mysteries and an altogether different treatment of a love triangle. I personally found Paulo Coelho and Steig Larsson a bit too over rated.
 
Anu, I agree. I loved Wuthering Heights and found Coelho to be so overrated.

Haven't read Steig Larsson yet :whistling:

.
 
I did read The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and the Girl who kicked the Hornet's Nest and though I liked the first book in parts, the plot of missing girl kept me on heels. But, I simply could not endure the violence of Hornet's Nest. I simply do not understand why the books were bestsellers:confused:

@Dahlia, I like your signature.
 
'The great gatsby' is the most overrated book that I have read...I dont hate the book,but it wasnt as good as i thought it would be..
 
anu said:
I did read The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and the Girl who kicked the Hornet's Nest and though I liked the first book in parts, the plot of missing girl kept me on heels. But, I simply could not endure the violence of Hornet's Nest. I simply do not understand why the books were bestsellers:confused:

@Dahlia, I like your signature.
Click to expand...

I'm reading Hornet's Nest right now(I'm loving it).

I can take almost any amount of violence as long as there's a good story in it :).

Form ost overrated books I'd have to go with Harry Potter. Than again, I'm not really big on fantasy to begin with.
 
I used to loathe the Harry Potter series. Then Stephenie Meyer became famous and now I don't mind The Boy who Lived (still not a fan, granted).

Regarding classic books: I thought both Pride and Prejudice and Northanger Abbey were only okay. I really doubt I'll read more Jane Austen books. Also, I tried slogging through David Copperfield until I realized I really didn't care about the characters or story.
 
The Book Thief - Markus Zuzak. Set in the general context of the Holocaust, its once-over-lightly treatment completely loses the repugnance of that horrific era. Yet the book routinely makes best-of lists -- but I hope not for newcomers looking for historical fact.
 
I've got to agree on both the Stieg Larsson and Paulo Coelho comments. Larsson I found over-violent, and yet still a decent yarn. Coelho I found completely vapid and devoid of the spiritual insight it supposedly offers.
 
I'm glad most of you at least see that the Millenium Trilogy is decent. It's certainly not the worst books ever written.

I personally think they are very good books, and I'll agree that it is a bit too violent, but Salander really helps me to keep reading.
 
aReader said:
'The great gatsby' is the most overrated book that I have read...I dont hate the book,but it wasnt as good as i thought it would be..
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I am reading The Great Gatsby presently, and you almost voiced my sentiments. Though, I am in awe with Scott Fitzgerald's poetic language, the story is a big let down.
 
anu said:
I am reading The Great Gatsby presently, and you almost voiced my sentiments. Though, I am in awe with Scott Fitzgerald's poetic language, the story is a big let down.
Click to expand...

Elizabeth George. Anything, everything by Elizabeth George. "She never makes a point in a paragraph
when she can stretch it out to a couple of pages" as a perceptive critic(me) wrote on Amazon. In the
Mystery field, at least, she defines longwindedness. (If thats not a word, it should be)
 
I thought Girl With the Dragon Tattoo was merely okay. I also didn't like The Help or The Corrections.

I also don't care for Jane Austen. 0.O
 
I'm sure there's a lot of contemporary novels that don't live up to the hype (eg. The Hunger Games)

Just limiting myself to the "classics":

Pride and Prejudice
To Kill a Mockingbird
The Catcher in the Rye
 
Spiritchaser said:
Pride and Prejudice
To Kill a Mockingbird
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Dude, they are amazing books. Like *awesome*. You may have long held this belief after being bullied into reading them at school a long time ago. Read them again sometime, and you may get a pleasant surprise. Mockingbird is a sublime piece of work.

My most overrated book of all time is The Alchemist, by Coelho.
 
I would suggest The Book Thief by Markus Zuzak as immensely disappointing, but which hangs in there year after year on "Best" lists.

And a second for Alchemist, just mentioned, also.
 
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