This week's topic at The Broke and the Bookish is "Top Ten Hyped Books We've Never Read". It's hard for me to do this category because I'm not a hype kind of person. I tend to read a lot of classics and older books rather than jumping on too many bandwagons; still, there are books that are hard to avoid if you follow the blogging community, so here are some books that would fall into this category:
Books with General Hype:
1. Eat Pray Love by Elizabeth Gilbert: I generally dislike the whole genre of "I did this thing and found some kind of enlightenment and let me write a book about it." I didn't particularly like Wild (I know, I know), and I have the feeling I won't like Eat Pray Love. If I do end up reading it one day, I'll just focus on the eating part. ;)
2. Lean In by Sheryl Sandberg: Yeah, I know I should thinking about developing in my career and all that, but I like to read books that bear little resemblance to actual life.
3. Bossypants by Tina Fey: Everyone seems to like this book, and I probably would too, but I tend to only read biographies of dead people.
4. Outlander by Diana Gabaldon: I hear about this all the time, especially now with the television show, but it's a huge time commitment. Maybe one day....
5. A Song of Ice and Fire series by George R. R. Martin: See above.
6. Captivating by Stasi Eldridge: I really wanted to like this book because it was soooooo hyped in the Christian community for a while and most of my friends were raving about it. I have never managed to get past the first chapter. I remember having a great bonding moment with a friend when we realized that neither of us could get through Captivating.
Books With Blogging Hype:
7. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak: It's on my list, I swear!
8. Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins: So many bloggers seem to think this book is the bees knees. It doesn't seem to be my kind of thing, but I won't rule out reading it one of these days.
9. The Selection by Keira Cass: I hear about this book all the time and it seems you either love it or hate it.
10. Ready Player One by Ernest Cline: I've been hearing a lot about this book lately and I'm not sure if I'd like it. Anyone want to convince me? ;)
What about you, readers? What hyped books have you never read?
Oooo, I loved reading Outlander by Diana Gabaldon!
ReplyDeleteEat, Pray, Love --- I didn't enjoy this book very much at all. It didn't live up to the hype for me.
Here's a link to my TTT post for this week: http://captivatedreader.blogspot.com/2015/07/top-ten-tuesday-top-ten-hyped-books-ive.html
Thanks for stopping by and commenting! I'll have to check out Outlander one of these days... maybe when I'm done school, I'll do the whole series.
DeleteI just recently listened to Bossypants on audio. If you decide to go with this one, definitely go with the audio version.
ReplyDeleteI did read Ready Player One last year, listened to that one too actually. It stands as one of my all-time favorite reads. It's just so much fun with all the 80's references and snark, but still filled with lots of action. Definitely recommend this one!!
Thanks Tif! I will look into the audio book of Bossypants. I haven't done a lot of audio books as I mainly use them for long drives, but now I'm curious!
DeleteYes on "Ready Player One"! I was so pleasantly surprised by that book. It's definitely going on my best-books-of-the-year list! No on "Anna and the French Kiss." I'm not the biggest fan of YA, but I just could not grasp why so many grown-ups like it so much! It was just a sappy teenage love story.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the previous commenter that the audiobook of "Bossypants" is the way to go.
Thanks for stopping by and for your comments. I'll definitely have to check out Ready Player One. I'm glad to know I'm not the only one not drawn to Anna and the French Kiss though. :)
DeleteI also generally dislike the "I found myself through....now I wrote a book and made a whole lotta money" books like Eat, Pray, Love. However, I did appreciate the storyline of Wild, I just did not care for the protagonist. Some of her thinking was just beyond my comprehension.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comment. I felt the exact same way about Wild. It was a fascinating story, but I wanted to smack her sometimes!
DeleteThis was one of my favourite reviews of Outlander on goodreads.com (copied below). It does contain some spoiler-ish references, so maybe read it after you've read the book? I'll say I stopped reading Outlander because I was bothered by the outrageously inaccurate accounts of sex and intimacy by a female author, who wasn't doing women any favours. Also, please feel free to delete this comment if the language is too strong for what you want on your blog. Cheers! Marilee
ReplyDeleteA special note to those who say my review stopped them from reading this book: No no no! Read it! I actually reread the whole series last summer and enjoyed it immensely. Just read it for what it is: ludicrous, well-written, humorous, delicious TRASH. Just don't expect it to be the most brilliant novel ever written and you'll be fine.
How To Commit Adultery Without Being a Cheap Slutty Whore: A Q&A by Diana Gabaldon
Q: I love my husband but I'm feeling kind of restless. But adultery is wrong. So what do I do?
A: Easy! Go back in time!
Q: What do you mean, Ms. Gabaldon?
A: If you go back in time, your husband hasn't been born yet. So you can have wild and crazy S&M sex with impunity.
Q: But won't I still be married to him?
A: Aren't you listening? He hasn't been BORN yet. So you aren't married! But if you are really being such a stickler, then just have someone force you to get married to someone else.
Q: But, but, no one can force me to get married against my will!
A: Okay, let me lay it out for you: You're really hot for this sexy warrior barbarian guy, right? I know this, because you stop thinking about your husband about 24 hours after you've been dropped in this guy's arms. So you get in this situation where some obscure tribal law insists you have to get married, make a little protest, sign some papers, and voila!
Q: But that doesn't mean I have to sleep with him.
A: Oh but you do, because some random dude insists that you have to. Don't worry, the sex will be great even though he's a 23 year old virgin. So you see, you HAVE to do it, so it's okay.
Q; But isn't it a sin?
A: Fine, find a priest at the end of the book to absolve you, whatever. And anyway, it's okay because your husband basically told you it was okay, right before you were whisked back in time. Seriously, go for it. When else will you get the chance? You've been married for years. You deserve a little hot and heavy barbarian action.
Q: So what's this hot barbarian guy like?
A: Well, watch out, because he loves to reminisce about how his dad used to beat him and how wonderful that was. And he really gets off on beating you, but it's just the once. Oh, and it seems that he wants you so badly he can't restrain from ramming you repeatedly with his male member while telling you how much he can't restrain himself and that gets seriously annoying after the twentieth time. But otherwise, it's all good.
Q: Anything else I should be aware of?
A: Surprise! Buttsex! But not for you, so it's okay.
Oddly, I'm going to read the next one in the series. Because I'm bizarrely fascinated. It's like a train wreck.
This is awesome. I love this kind of snark.
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