I recently read Gabriel Garcia Marquez's Autumn of the Patriarch for a book club. This book soon became known to participants as "the paragraph." We called it this because there are no absolutely no paragraph breaks, and sentences go on for pages. Pages.
It's possible a University of Toronto representative will show up at my door any minute now to revoke my English degree, but I can't stand books without proper punctuation. I know, I know, some allegedly great works of literature feature the stream of consciousness style that throws the rules out the window, but as sentences go on and on and on, my eyes glaze over. I don't mind a little creative license with style, but we invented periods for a reason!
James Joyce's The Dead is a lovely novella. However, you'd have to pay me (quite handsomely) to read his Finnegans Wake. Pure biblio torture.
So what's your least favourite literary classic? Honestly, give me a good romance any day. *g*
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I don't care much for any of Edgar Allen Poe's stuff. His writing just bothers my sensibilities.
Sons & Lovers by D.H. Lawrence. Made me want to dig up his dead body and kick it repeatedly. The only nice thing I can say about that book is that it ended.
Least favorite literary classic. Hmm. It's a toss-up between Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton and Hard Times by Charles Dickens. Both unrelentingly grim and unhappy, with protagonists you want to strangle with your bare hands.
A Portrait of an Artist as a Young Man by James Joyce. *gag* The only book in university that I never read. For about 10 years it sat on my bookshelf with the page turned over at page 17. I never got further, thank god for in class discussions I made it through the exam based on everyone else. I don't remember WHY I didn't like it, but as I said, I managed to read everything else I was assigned so it must have been something BAAAAAD.
George, I love the way you put that. *g*
Maia, I avoided that book in school, and now I'm glad I did!
Louisa, I don't like Dickens. He was paid by the word, and it shows! I totally agree about Ethan Fromme. Ugh.
Tam, did you finally get rid of the book? I think The Dead is the only Joyce I ever enjoyed.
Sons & Lovers is the only book I have ever thrown across the room. Gods, it felt good to do it, too! You were very wise to avoid it.
There's always someone who hated having to read Portait of the Artist.... I loved that book. And The Dead, too. Have you seen the movie? Anjelica Huston stars, and Colm Meany is in it, too, if I remember right.
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