Shreve Memorial Library discussion

What is a book that you couldn't finish? Did you ever feel guilty about not finishing it?

For instance, I know that 'Catch-22' by Joseph Heller is a classic book. It has a dark sense of humor and is usually characterized as "postmodern" fiction. These are all things that I love about books, so 'Catch-22' should be perfect for me.

However, when I started to read it, I just couldn't get into it. I didn't really like the writing style and I quickly put it aside. I still feel that maybe I didn't give the book a fair shake, so I'm planning on revisiting the book this year to see if I like it. I'm hoping that I'm able to get into it this time and enjoy the read. :-)

This one is easy: Infinite Jest. As far as I know, I should love the darn thing, since I like DFW's nonfiction work. But I tried it once and stopped after about 50 pages. And, yes, I do feel guilty....

Mark wrote: "This one is easy: Infinite Jest. As far as I know, I should love the darn thing, since I like DFW's nonfiction work. But I tried it once and stopped after about 50 pages. And, yes, I do..."
Hmm...you may know that is one of my favorite books! Haha.

I'm sure you're not the first person to pick that one up and put it down again. I was in college when I read it and had a lot of free time. It would probably more daunting to read now. I could see how easy it would be to cast it aside if you really aren't into it. It's a large time commitment.

There was a joint effort for a lot of people to read it at the same time in 2009: http://infinitesummer.org/

I started The Post-Birthday World a long time ago, then got interrupted and put it down. I really regret it, too, because I was enjoying it. It's just never come back into my consciousness at the right time . . .

Lynn wrote: "I started The Post-Birthday World a long time ago, then got interrupted and put it down. I really regret it, too, because I was enjoying it. It's just never come back into my consciou..." I liked the movie version of "We Need to Talk About Kevin." I remember that was really good. I'll have to look into Lionel Shriver's works. So many books, so little time.

I think the only ones I haven't been able to finish this far is Firestarter and another one by King called the stand. both are a bit to dark for me at times so I've been working my way through for several years

Celeste wrote: "I think the only ones I haven't been able to finish this far is Firestarter and another one by King called the stand. ..."

Well, since this thread is shaping up to be a series of "I couldn't finish that," followed by "I love that!" statements, I'll chime in and say you've named two of my favorite Stephen King books! I'll concede that they're dark, but I found Under the Dome to be far darker. I finished that one, but at the end my general impression was, "Way to pile up a huge body count for no particular reason."