An overhyped classic you really didn't like

sevencrows · Post by **sevencrows** » 10 Feb 2020, 09:32

The Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man absolutely killed me. The Grapes of Wrath drained me. That's the unholy duology for me, because I had a good experience with the other classics that I've read.

AnnaLibri · Post by **AnnaLibri** » 17 Feb 2020, 19:27

The Scarlet Letter was a tough one to get through back in high school. I appreciate it as literature (themes, symbolism, and so forth) but didn't enjoy actually reading it.

I didn't really care for The Catcher in the Rye. I get why it was scandalous when it was published, but I don't see why it's still so fussed over now. And Holden Caulfield is exhausting.

Alyssa · Post by **Alyssa** » 19 Feb 2020, 10:50

MoReBarclay wrote: ↑29 Jan 2020, 14:59 Whenever I read a "classic" that just does not resonate with me, I wonder what I lack that other were able to develop such a connection with the renowned work.

I feel you, it’s a real thing. Perhaps there was something we didn’t experience in our lives (or something we did experience) that leaves us failing that connection. Now I’m curious how often this happens.
For me it was Catcher in the Rye and Lord of the Rings. Both of them seemed to be delivered so dryly.

Post by **CherylTegan7** » 25 Feb 2020, 01:50

For me, it was Dracula. Started great, but had me groaning the rest of the way through. Good chapters here and there aren't enough. The pace dragged and some chapters were just plain boring.

Koltrast · Post by **Koltrast** » 26 Feb 2020, 19:57

It feels almost like sacrilege to say, but for me it’s Les Miserables. I just couldn’t follow Victor Hugo’s way of writing. I found it to be cluttered, messy and confusing with far too many unnecessary details. That being said, I still love the plot of the book.

leareiler · Post by **leareiler** » 03 Mar 2020, 20:33

The Great Gatsby did not interest me at all. It wasn't that it was boring, I just think it's too overhyped and a kind of bland story. The characters are all kind of...annoying and immature, I didn't like a single one.

MK_Lexington · Post by **MK_Lexington** » 05 Mar 2020, 16:00

Lord of the Flies. Usually I like allegorical elements in a story, but not in this case.

FitzgeraldB+D · Post by **FitzgeraldB+D** » 08 Mar 2020, 21:19

"Pride and Prejudice." I tried so hard to get through that book but could not for the life of me formulate an interest in it. With no way to relate to it and no invigorating plot, it was just too easy to put down.

kdhutchinson · Post by **kdhutchinson** » 10 Mar 2020, 17:04

MellieBellie wrote: ↑30 Nov 2019, 06:44 It's a tie: "Wuthering Heights" (every single character is an asshole) and "Portrait of a Lady" (which I've read 3 or 4 times, hope springing eternally that THIS TIME it will be interesting, and I'm always wrong)

I could not agree more; I was going to choose Wuthering Heights myself. I love classic literature, but every time I try to pick up Wuthering Heights and tell myself it will be different, I just can't get through it. I go from confused, to irritated, to basically asleep.

diamonnd · Post by **diamonnd** » 26 Mar 2020, 16:16

For me, it's a tie between The Great Gatsby and Catcher in the Rye. Both these books just annoyed me and were difficult to get through. I couldn't find myself relating to any of the characters at all.

wendilou49 · Post by **wendilou49** » 10 Apr 2020, 08:58

Withering Heights was so sad and depressing. I didn't enjoy it much at all.

Namaste23 · Post by **Namaste23** » 17 Apr 2020, 23:22

I agree. The scarlett letter and to kill a mockingbird never did to much for me. I think because everyone has to read them in school they become overhyped.

thaservices1 · Post by **thaservices1** » 19 Apr 2020, 19:33

I still have not finished Moby Dick. It is a masterpiece surely, I like the writing, even the ramblings. But it is a guarantee I will fall asleep in less than 20 pages.

I never got past the first chapter of The Grapes of Wrath.

And I agree, Wuthering Heights is depressing.