Most overated author?

I'm going to have to say Margaret Atwood.... I have never been into her... Another vote for Dan Brown. I did like the DaVinci Code, but then I read Angels & Demons and I was like "This is the same book!"
Yes, he is entertaining, but definetely overrated, when you consider how many people buy his books and how long they've been on the bestsellers list. Although I believe that any reading, even inferior literature, is better than no reading at all. I think that books like The DaVinci Code and Harry Potter serve to introduce people to how great reading can be, like a stepping stone.

I'm so glad theres someone here who agrees on my sentiments of Margret Atwood. To be honest I've never read any of her novels so I can't judge that. But her poems are terrible. She puts comparitively little work into the structure and layout of her poems: line breaks and word choices have little significance. And they tend to be based on a sing;e interestig concept, an idea that says nothing. I'm sure she would be much more positively taken if she wrote epigrams instead.

Yep, I read The Handmaid's Tale and it didn't really affect me at all.... Usually books make me think a little bit, but I really didn't feel much while reading it.

I haven't read any Atwood for years - but when I read 'The Handmaid's Tale' years ago I loved it. I haven't read her poetry for years - but I seem to remember quite liking it. I quite like 'room to think' in a poem - if that makes sense?

I would say Tolkien. To be fair Middle-Earth is an astounding world (and he deserves praise for his efforts), but currently he's too popular.

haven taken several canadian lit courses i've been forcibly exposed to atwood, however, there was one piece i loved, and that was Oryx and Crake, it's actually one of my favourite recent novels, i'd recommend you give it a shot, i found it nothing at all like the other books of hers that i've read

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Originally Posted by IrishCanadian

Ayn Rand
She is loved for her p[hilosophy ... but modern philosohpy students and proffessors do not consider her a philosopher. She also repeats ideas in the re-accurring themes in her very long books: The Fountainhead went on for about 700 pages of the same old thing to drive home a point that she made in the first 50 pages.

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Yea, if you decide to beat your audience over the head for that long, at least have the common decency to make it entertaining. :smash:

This is a controversial post. I have to defend Hemingway and Joyce because they are two of my favorite, and both have moved me through their writing. Not to offend anyone, but I personally did not feel too keenly about either "The Bluest Eye" or "Beloved" by Toni Morrison.

Isn't it really based on personal decisions and conclusions of the majority that is why an author becomes overrated? Of course we would defend and uphold what we most certainly be fond of, irregardless of anybody else's opinions. People have different views and authors have a wide variety of audience whom they may or may not please. It will be practically realtive and/or argumentative to those of clashing opinions.

i think a lot of modern writers are overrated. i agree with some of the previous posts about their works being overpopularized by making them into movies. a lot of people only find out about these authors because they saw the movie, and not because they're inherently popular or because their work is good. anyway, my list of overrated authors include dan brown, rowling, tolkien and stephen king. i liked margaret atwood, though.

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Originally Posted by bootyqueen

I'm going to have to say Margaret Atwood....

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I saw many of her works when I visited the bookstore the other day. Then I remember her name mentioned in this thread ;). No, I don't mean to say that I judge an author based on people's opinion only, because I have to read it first before I can share the same opinion. But I don't know, I did somewhat hesitated to pick hers.

Cormeister37, I have to agree with you there. Morisson deserver all the praises for her works. Beloved and Song of Solomon are fine literature works, I think.

And Woland, Tolkien is very popular at the moment thanks to Jackson.

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Originally Posted by AttorneyGonzo

Yeah, Hemingway is simple, unlike so-called serious literature.
For me he is among the best and thus deserves every bit of recognition he received and still will.

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Couldn't agree more. He's not over-rated in the least, he's a rare case of living up to the hype.

I would write more against Dan Brown but I think the point has been made.

allen ginsberg is my HERO. why in the world would someone put allan ginsberg on the list.

by the way, i think this thread is pretty negative. instead of bashing these authors, who work on these books for years at a time, devoting themselves wholly to them, lets glorify the ones we love!!

ehh?
ehh?
anyone?

I saw this recently, and it is sort of related!

Adult editions of children's books

If you must follow the adventures of a public school conjuror, even though you are a) notionally a grown adult, and b) have probably been to university or at least to 'big school', why attempt to conceal the fact behind a different cover, as if fellow passengers will assume after a casual glance that you're actually reading Thomas Mann in the original German?

Just because the train on the front is black and white rather than bright red, it doesn't suddenly become a harrowing Booker prize-winner...

How do the dinner party conversations go?
"What are you reading at the moment?"
"It's called The Very Hungry Caterpillar. It's about a caterpillar who get's really hungry - he just has to keep on eating stuff."
"Iv'e read it. Marvellous."
"Oh, don't tell me how it ends!"
"No, I wouldn't. But it's...well it's pretty moving, Oh look, I'm hogging all the Hula Hoops..."