OK, I read two installments of Ulysses — I actually didn’t finish the second — and decided it’s not for me, so it’s off my list. I decided to read Jane Austen’s Emma instead — a book I have actually been meaning to read for some time by an author I know I’ll like. As a wise person once told me, life is too short to read books you don’t like. If a book doesn’t grab me in 50 pages, it’s not going to grab me, and likewise, if it puts me off in one or two, it will most likely not woo me back. Ah, one should be so wise in all matters of the heart.
[tags]literature, reading, ulysses, james joyce, emma, jane austen[/tags]
You know I wish I could do that. I MAKE myself finish a book if I start it…even if I hate it. I'm a glutton for punishment apparently. I like your idea much better because you're right! If I don't like a book by page 50, I'm probably not going to like it at all. *BAH* 😕
I used to make myself finish every single book, but once I turned 50 I realized there are only so many more books left in my life so every page now must be worth it.
Dana, my daughter is reading Ulysses. Her English teacher found her reading an old paperback edition in his room so he let her borrow it. The cover promptly fell off because it was so old. Seriously, it looks like it had never been read just sitting there drying up on the shelf. She's afraid to tell him about the cover. Meanwhile I am thinking he's just happy to have a student reading the book.
Have you managed to read "The Kite Runner" yet, Dana? I've just finished it, Now that's a book that, once started, you're going to stay with till the end and then wish it hadn't ended.