Whaddya mean it’s Wednesday?!
I rarely give up on a book, so it’s been a challenge to come up with a post for this week’s Top Ten Tuesday. I’ve included books I ducked out of before committing, plus those I should have ditched! Just in case you don’t already know, TTT was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June 2010, then moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January 2018.
Books I simply DNF’d
The President is Missing James Patterson and Bill Clinton wrote this together. Like White House Down as a book…but worse.
First Man I love Damian Chazelle’s First Man upon repeat watch, but I can’t slog through James R. Hansen’s Neil Armstrong biography. I’d rather read the instruction manual for Apollo 11. Maybe then I’d have shot at getting off this rock.
Books I set aside for another day…(yeah right!)
Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel is convincing and immersive. I think that’s the problem. Although 2020 may be a bitch, it’s still better than the 16th century. I’ve got the audio book, so I’ll pick it up again. One day.
A Tale of Two Cities It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. I refer you all to a Goodreads review that went something along the lines of “Christ on a bike!! I’d forgotten how difficult Dickens is!”
Books I removed from my TBR
Daisy Jones and the Six I picked Taylor Jenkins Reid’s novel up off the shelf at the supermarket, but my companion’s snide remark about wasting money on books made me feel bad about it. 🙁 It’s out in paperback now, so I’ll just return it to the TBR…
The Tattooist of Auschwitz by Heather Morris. I know from experience that the genre of Holocaust romance, or Holocaust chick lit, sits uneasily with me.
The Goldfinch I dallied with the idea of Donna Tart’s The Goldfinch when it was a forthcoming book to film adaptation, poised to become a critical darling. After the near-universal negative reviews, I lost my enthusiasm.
Becoming I saw the new behind-the-scenes Netflix documentary about Michelle Obama’s tour for this, her bestselling memoir. Pfff, I’m lazy, and apparently it’s pretty long.
Books I should have DNF’d
Swing Time by Zadie Smith was longlisted for the Man Booker Prize 2017. A gruelling read, I don’t think I’ve ever felt so disconnected from a novel.
The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah was not for me. It’s one of the books, along with Alyson Richman’s The Lost Wife, that made me decide to swerve The Tattooist of Auschwitz, and its ilk.
Fabulous blog
Thanks! ⭐
hahaha love that summary of Dickens. I completely get what you mean about holocaust romance- not for me either. haha I understand about becoming (funnily enough, for me it was the other way round- cos I’d already listened to the audiobook, I started to watch the documentary and then gave up cos I knew a lot of what she was going to say already). Personally I wasn’t a fan of the goldfinch, but ended up loving the secret history (by the same author)
I think audiobooks will be my way forward with Dickens!
oh that’s a good idea!
I used to struggle with DNF’ing a book but now I find it so freeing. There are not enough hours in the day to waste on a poor book. Mind you I’m strictly an ebook reader so it doesn’t feel like such a waste – I’m sure I’d struggle more to abandon a physical book.
I think that’s very insightful. There is something freeing about giving up on a book that feels like a drudge. And definitely there is a difference between physical and ebooks!
I think it’s okay to DNF books
I know! I just had this thing about it for ages. A friend of mine helped me get over it. Now I have little hesitation chucking a book over my shoulder and moving on! 🙅
YESH
Oh, I love Wolf Hall – and it is immersive, and bitter-sweet, and emotionally draining, and absolutely masterfully written 😀 It’s a moody book, though, so I totally get the decision to keep it for another day! 🙂
Oh I’m going to have to read it now! 🌹💙
Then my work is done! 😉