The exception to the rule?

[kelby_lake]

Which novels/poems/short stories/plays have you read that despite your misgivings about subject/author, you actually really enjoyed? I've never finished any Hemingway novels but I really liked A Moveable Feast.

[IceM]

Anthem by Ayn Rand. i was essentially told by teachers and Litnet peers that Rand's philosophy is the Devil possessing young souls. I was not possessed but rather captivated by the subject. I'm not a proponent of her philosophy but nevertheless loved her voice in this short novella.

A Portrait of an Artist as a Young Man. I read Finnegan's Wake first and lost all respect for Joyce (what am I to do with that novel?) Then, out of fear of misconceptions of Joyce's skill, I read Portrait. It was brilliant. I loved it. It's a book I've decided to re-read annually. Really, it was great.

[Lokasenna]

I find the works of Alexander Pope mind-bendingly dreadful - they're stilted, awkward and so artificial in sentiment. The sole exception to this is Eloisa to Abelard, which is profoundly moving and tremendously powerful.

[kelby_lake]

Bump.

I'm adding Sons and Lovers to the list.

[dfloyd]

The Odyssey than anthing else. Today, they are my favorite translations of Homer's epic works. As a child, probably due to the miserable English weather, he developed tuberculosis in his bones. This forced him to wear a body brace, without which he couldn't stand up, and he had to be helped into and out of the brace every day. He died at a relatively young age, around 40 I believe. With the obstacles he had to overcome, his work is just short of miraculous. Whether you like his work or not, he must be admired for overcoming adversity and accomplishing much in his short life. He never grew but a little over 4 foot tall.

[Emil Miller]

Decline and Fall by Evelyn Waugh. I had always though that Waugh was a slightly ridiculous figure with his tweedy suits and ear trumpet until I decided to read him because of various posts on this forum.
Decline and Fall turned out to be a brilliant comedy of manners hilariously sending up, not only the English middle class but the English in general.
As his observations corresponded to my own, I have subsequently read quite a lot of Waugh's other work and have never been disappointed.

[blazeofglory]

Resurrection by Tolstoy and this book metamorphosed me and I became a different person than was prior to reading the book. Tolstoy can tell great things and reveal great truths in beautiful allegories and he is unmatched in that he has a wonderful prose style and his greatness is of epical proportion, an artist who has dedicated everything else to art