Inverarity (inverarity) wrote in bookish,
Inverarity
inverarity
bookish

Saturday Book Discussion: Overrated Authors




I'm kind of a big deal

I'm a Big Name Author. I'm kind of a big deal.


So, I just read my first David Foster Wallace novel, and was... not terribly impressed. Yeah, he was clever and linguistically adept, but still, the book did not transport me to literary nirvana.

I'm willing to give David Foster Wallace another try (I give most authors at least two shots before I decide they are not to my taste, which is how I decided that I actually like Cormac McCarthy.)

Other authors I have read after hearing rave reviews of how awesome they are and finding, "not so much":

Chuck Palahniuk (his writing ability is not equal to his imagination)
Thomas Mann (pretentious, depressing wanker; reading Thomas Mann is like crawling through syrup while someone is pissing on your head)
John Banville (pretty, pretty writing about whiny middle-aged men and their boring useless lives)
Philip Roth (Ditto. With an added dose of "Women Suck.")
J. M. Coetzee (Ditto ditto, with an added dose of "Bitches be crazy.")
Brandon Sanderson (I actually like a lot of his books, but they are... fantasy product. He's a better writer than David Eddings, but he's in that same cohort.)

Which authors have you been told were the best thing since the printing press, but you found to be underwhelming? Wondering what the big deal is?

Note: Trying to focus on authors here, not specific books that you found overrated.

If anyone mentions E.L. James/50SoG, I will drop a fucking anvil on you!




Anvil

Let's also limit ourselves to no more than seventeen references to J.K. Rowling and Stephenie Meyer, shall we?


And do keep your butthurt in check if someone trashes your favorite author. Even if it does give me a sad when people don't like Dickens or Stephen King.



Previous Saturday Book Discussions.
Tags: discussion
Subscribe

  • The North Line, by Matt Riordan

    A young man on a Hero's Journey to the Bering Sea. Hyperion Avenue, 2024, 313 pages Even at the ragged edge of civilization, some lines…

  • Heirs of the Blade, by Adrian Tchaikovsky

    Book seven in the Shadows of the Apt series. Tor Books, 2012, 622 pages The greatest foe is the enemy within.... Tynisa is on the run,…

  • Witch Hat Atelier Kitchen 5

    Witch Hat Atelier Kitchen 5 by Hiromi Satō and Kamome Shirahama Once again, a framework of gentle, even idyllic tales for some recipes (which I…

  • Post a new comment

    Error

    default userpic

    Your reply will be screened

    When you submit the form an invisible reCAPTCHA check will be performed.
    You must follow the Privacy Policy and Google Terms of use.
  • 95 comments
Previous
← Ctrl ← Alt
Next
Ctrl → Alt →
Previous
← Ctrl ← Alt
Next
Ctrl → Alt →

  • The North Line, by Matt Riordan

    A young man on a Hero's Journey to the Bering Sea. Hyperion Avenue, 2024, 313 pages Even at the ragged edge of civilization, some lines…

  • Heirs of the Blade, by Adrian Tchaikovsky

    Book seven in the Shadows of the Apt series. Tor Books, 2012, 622 pages The greatest foe is the enemy within.... Tynisa is on the run,…

  • Witch Hat Atelier Kitchen 5

    Witch Hat Atelier Kitchen 5 by Hiromi Satō and Kamome Shirahama Once again, a framework of gentle, even idyllic tales for some recipes (which I…