Books : Great books you can't finish (or even start)

Great books you can't finish (or even start)

For me, it's Malcolm Lowry's 'Under the Volcano'. Tried a few times, but I can't get past the first chapter.

Re: Great books you can't finish (or even start)

Anything by Steven King. I did like the Stand. That's it, I cant stand him.

Re: Great books you can't finish (or even start)

Nothing else? Not even It, Pet Semetary?

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Pet Semetary was ok i suppose. I forgot about that one. It did take me awhile to get through it. The stand was pretty good.

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I've tried reading some his books years ago and couldn't get into any of the longer ones at all. Misery and the Backman Books stories were great, which I think is owed to their brevity. I remember trying Tommyknockers when it came out and realizing after struggling through hundreds of pages that literally nothing had happened and I was bored out of my mind, no interest in it at all.

The Lion does not give a fuck. Bring. More. Sheep.

Re: Great books you can't finish (or even start)

I loved Misery, the movie. Never even attempted the book. Corwin was right, I did like pet semetary. More the storyline than the actual writing. I don't like the guy. Hated, 'It'.

Re: Great books you can't finish (or even start)

The movie is a pretty faithful adaptation of the book, iirc. I don't like Stephen King at all or his style, even though he may have some good story ideas. The work he did under the name Richard Bachman, however, are some of my personal favorites. The original four stories, Rage, The Long Walk, Roadwork, and The Running Man are fantastic, nothing like his normal stuff. Rage was eventually pulled from circulation because of how it inspired school shootings. At least in the early days of school shootings it was said a copy of this book was always found to be in the possession of the shooters involved, kind of a bible for outcasts and losers.

The Lion does not give a fuck. Bring. More. Sheep.

Re: Great books you can't finish (or even start)

I think he figures under "Stephen King" he doesn't even need to try. Some of the stories are eh…. I feel the same about Dean Koontz. Never been a fan of his style either. I may try the Running man, thanks!

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The Running Man is awesome. Nothing like the movie.

The Lion does not give a fuck. Bring. More. Sheep.

Re: Great books you can't finish (or even start)

Never saw the movie. The only movie I liked with Arnold was the Terminator. I don't think the dude can act haha

Re: Great books you can't finish (or even start)

Bleak House by Charles Dickens

I got halfway through it and gave up. I intend to read it again sometime.

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Gravity's Rainbow. I do plan on reading it at some point.

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It's great! Tough sledding, yes, but a great book.

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Gravity's Rainbow. I do plan on reading it at some point.

That's my pick, too. Made it about a third of the way and then moved on to other things.

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Same here. Tried twice and I got to maybe page 50.

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The Lord of The Rings. I've started it a dozen times but I can't get into it.

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I did that with the 59 shades books. Could not do it 🤣

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Oh I couldn't even put those books down! So hot.

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I think it was all the emails etc. I hated them.

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To each their own.

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Exactly. My daughters loved them.

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Cool

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I would drop it, then. Enjoy the films, which are pretty faithful anyway.

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Good advice, already taken!

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I actually enjoyed reading LOTR: The Two Towers.


Went through it kind of fast.

Try reading Moby Dick by Melville.. now that's tough. :)

Travel influenser, Skyrizi theme song writer and Most Handsome

Re: Great books you can't finish (or even start)

Moby Dick…lol

Re: Great books you can't finish (or even start)

Damn it I was going to say the exact same thing!😁

Reading that book is like walking 100 miles through high mud. I think I have it bookmarked halfway. And that was like 10 years ago.



Travel influenser, Skyrizi theme song writer and Most Handsome

Re: Great books you can't finish (or even start)

You know what? I hardly read new books at all. I don't have time. People think I'm weird when they see me reading.

So I refer to my youth when reading fiction novels is acceptable. I hard a time staying interested in The Old Man and the Sea. I enjoyed reading Beowulf and Gulliver's Travels.

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Old Man and the Sea. I think that's John Steinbeck. Yeah I remember reading that in high school English.

I never got into it then but I bet I'd probably like it today.

Yeah the last two you mentioned I know are great stories though I haven't read the books.

Travel influenser, Skyrizi theme song writer and Most Handsome

Re: Great books you can't finish (or even start)

I honestly didn't get the point of Old Man And The Sea. The test questions and reading comprehension questionnaire required from us, annoyed me..I wanted to protest.

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Yeah I remember that s***. I think I failed that test haha.

Travel influenser, Skyrizi theme song writer and Most Handsome

Re: Great books you can't finish (or even start)

It was like so serious too. We were asked character motivation, what parts were metaphoric or symbolic, theme, sequence of events, character names and specific things like that. We had to be evaluated on how well we understood how this reading material coincided with all that other stuff we were taught about Literature: rules and blah blah I'm bored chatting about my high school English courses.

Re: Great books you can't finish (or even start)

Were you in AP English? (Advanced placement)
That's the class I was in when we studied that.

I love creativity and literature but I was bored with that book too. I actually remember dropping out of that class and transferring to a normal English class.

Woah what a total difference! Instead of reading s*** like that all we had to do was watch movies like Wuthering Heights.

People were asleep, not paying attention or doing drugs.


Talk about a sea change in atmosphere from the hobnob "upper crust" in AP.

Travel influenser, Skyrizi theme song writer and Most Handsome

Re: Great books you can't finish (or even start)

No, I didn't take advance English courses. That was regular English. In AP English or Reading I heard that those students were required to write more essays, longer essays than we did.

There wasn't anything else for me yo transfer. It was required. And if there was a film adaptation of our required reading, and the principal approved, our instructor would allow us to watch it. But only after we finished reading the novel and taken all required test. The movie was a treat. A boring treat usually.

But you know what? I wouldn't be the same person had I not gone through all that. I am grateful for those instructors.

Re: Great books you can't finish (or even start)





Travel influenser, Skyrizi theme song writer and Most Handsome

Re: Great books you can't finish (or even start)

Hey, I'm back;)


Yeah the way you described him does sound creepy. He really wanted to get under your skin it seems like. I hate when teachers do that shit to students. When I was in high school, teachers were snitches. They would tell your parents detailed stuff about your behavior at parent/teacher conference. Mostly they were there to help but you don't understand that when you're a teen.


I don't blame you for transferring classes. You got sharp instincts.

Re: Great books you can't finish (or even start)

The Holy Bible.

The Lion does not give a fuck. Bring. More. Sheep.

Re: Great books you can't finish (or even start)

The ending is a Revelation (couldn't resist).

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I hear it's a very good book, the greatest story ever told, even. I just don't like the format.

The Lion does not give a fuck. Bring. More. Sheep.

Re: Great books you can't finish (or even start)

Steppenwolf, by Hermann Hesse
White Jacket, by Herman Melville

Re: Great books you can't finish (or even start)

I will say a great book I was disappointed in, A Christmas Carol. Not the content, the length. I LOOOOVE the movies and was shocked when I got the book for Christmas. It is TINY! I was hoping to spend the week of Christmas to New Year reading it. I guess it was a short story.

Re: Great books you can't finish (or even start)

The Holy Bible.

Just because I'm not on THEIR side, doesn't mean I'm on YOURS.

Re: Great books you can't finish (or even start)

My choice is also Moby Dick.
As someone else said, I too have trouble getting through many of Stephen King's longer books. Cell is the most heinous example of his unreadable works.

Hark! Harold the angel sings.

Re: Great books you can't finish (or even start)

Our American life doesn't encourage the type of patience and mental awareness required for reading Stephen King. I had no problem reading him when I was a teen. But now, forget it. I just don't have the patience to read even though I have read most of his early work. I saw one of his new novels at the pharmacy store. I almost wanted it, but I know his writing. I wouldn't be able to finish it. I'm sure it is a good book too. He has a very consistent reputation for delivery quality.

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Love the name!

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Re: Great books you can't finish (or even start)

I got about a third into The LOTR books but I found all of the poetry and songs beyond boring.

Like a few others in this thread I've read and enjoyed a lot of Stephen King but I couldn't finish IT, I read almost 2/3 and then I just got bored with it. The Stand, I didn't get beyond the first couple of chapters and The Shining not even that far. I like the films/tv series a lot.

We read King Henry V at school and every second was torture to me.

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We would read a different Shakespeare play each year in high school. It became habit.

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I love LOTR but I agree about the songs and poetry in the first third, none of which is very good. Once the story gets past Tom Bombadil, the story really picks up, the second and third books go by really fast.
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