When I'm "forced" to borrow a book I don't want, what I usually do is read the back cover or skim through a few pages (so as to know what it's about), keep it for a couple of months, and return it saying thanks, I enjoyed it, blah blah (usually offering some sort of comment, based on the half page I've read).
Sometimes you just can't say 'thanks, but it's crap and I'll stick to my own books if you don't mind"
A chap I know was good enough to give me some feedback on the two books I have written so far and so I felt obliged to take on board a book he gave to me called 'Fear' by L. Ron Hubbard. The cover told me exactly what to expect:- haunted house, bats flitting around in the moonlight a woman screaming etc. I read it in less than 4 hours and it was the worst book have ever read. Apparantly R L Hubbard is the founder of the Scientologist movement so, even without the cover, I might of guessed.Originally Posted by Pecksie
When I'm "forced" to borrow a book I don't want, what I usually do is read the back cover or skim through a few pages (so as to know what it's about), keep it for a couple of months, and return it saying thanks, I enjoyed it, blah blah (usually offering some sort of comment, based on the half page I've read).
Sometimes you just can't say 'thanks, but it's crap and I'll stick to my own books if you don't mind"
I am a regal snob when it comes to literature, especially considering that, as I'm 17, every one of my peers are reading Twilight.
I started and finished Twilight last night. I could not put it down it is one of the best books I have read in a long time.
same sadly...no other 17 yr old thinks James Joyce is cool
I AM THE BOY
THAT CAN ENJOY
INVISIBILITY.
I don't know - I heard in the forth volume of Twilight the vampire guy knocks up his girlfriend, and she's pregnant with some sort of demon-halfbreed baby, who tries to eat its way out of her womb.
In concept, that is the dumbest thing I have ever heard. Sorry to say, this was brought up during a break in one of my lectures by a person sitting near me, and me and the girl I sit beside couldn't help but uncontrollably laugh.
JBI I will let you know when I finish the fourth book if that is the case or not
I have very strong opinions on opinions because they are so personal. About 25 years ago, I had a good friend with whom I had a mutual appreciation of Kurt Vonnegut's work. He was child of the 60s and recommended some books by Richard Brautigan. I found them entertaining. I made the mistake of giving him my copy of Another Roadside Attraction by Tom Robbins. He read 20 pages, declared it trash, and tossed it back to me.
To this day, I hesitate to recommend books, TV shows, or films to anyone. These are matters of taste and personal preference. So where I might say that I enjoyed x or y, I'm very careful not to push it on to anyone else. Likewise, I usually politely say something to the effect that I will take a look at it, whether I intend to or not.
No damn cat, no damn cradle - Newt Honniker
I also love this anology.
The one I like to use, is that trash-lit is likefast food. The masses love it, cheap, etc. But real, good, worthy literature is a carefully crafted gourmet meal that only selected and chosen few may enjoy...
"My warm hands have made the paper limp,
So that its feel reminds me of slept-in sheets: comfortable and safe"
"All these things I say... I say them because I want you to know, I don't ever want to regret afterwards that I didn't say enough, I would rather say too much." ~ Samuel Selvon
Actually, what's wrong with Rant?
(I didn't like "Life of Pi" very much but I admit that it was mainly because it was diagonally opposed to my world-view, being a hardcore agnostic and skeptic.)
And I have actually been lent "Angels and Demons" about four years ago. Well, yes, I didn't enjoy it very much, but I generally try not to look down on people who like it, since I very much enjoy better pieces of speculative fiction to which a lot of snobs look down to - so I don't look down on people for their reading habits so that people wouldn't look down on mine.
If you believe even a half of this post, you are severely mistaken.
Are you serious? My friend sent me the e-book and I couldn't go beyond the first few pages, so I read it in bits and pieces. I'm quite skeptical of the kind of books whose audience is skewed to a particular gender. My skepticism could be unfounded though...
Despite the snow,
Despite the falling snow.
Yes I am serious, each to their own that is the beauty of reading I guess. I loved it and I know a few people that couldn't read it also. Thats what makes the world go around
I notice people say 'speculative fiction' a lot on these forums. It sort of annoys me, maybe i'm looking at this the wrong way but it feels like giving in to people's assumptions about Sci-Fi and coming up with an alternative name for it. Sci-Fi is a genre laden with ****, but so are all the other genres, you have to search for the gems and i kind of like that.
excellent! I'm gonna use that one from now on.
I AM THE BOY
THAT CAN ENJOY
INVISIBILITY.
Actually, speculative fiction is a term to basically group sci-fi, fantasy, and horror (in the marketing sense) together, since the lines are often blurred, and specific publishers often publish all three.
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