Wednesday, September 06, 2006

Enough! So long Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell. We hardly knew ye. Three hundred pages and another wasted lunch hour were about all I could take of Jonathan Strange.

I never got into Harry Potter and I can't deal with the adult version either. I enjoy a magic show, but I appreciate it for what it is. Magic, illusion, slight of hand, mind games. In Jonathan Strange, the people believe in magic for real and want to use it for practical purposes...war! I couldn't grasp it. I've already given it to a co-worker and have decided to read Donna Tart's The Secret History. A friend has recommended it and let me borrow it and so...I begin.

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

Sorry to hear you didn't like the Clarke book! I guess 300 pages is a pretty fair chance....

Mike B. said...

I'm too set in my ways. I simply couldn't believe that adults would believe and rely on magic in reality.

Rebecca H. said...

It sounds like it wouldn't be my kind of book either. It's nice to bail on a book rather than stick with it and dislike it the whole time.

Anonymous said...

Well, I think you definitely gave it a fair chance. I usually stop at 30-40 pages if the book isn't grabbing me. Hope you enjoy The Secret History much more.

Mike B. said...
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Mike B. said...
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Mike B. said...

I'm enjoying The Secret History much more. I've already read 225 pages. I guess I've been on a reading binge as of late. It's an interesting novel, but it's not too novel. Young, smart college students kill someone and try and get away with it. Nothing new, but Tart writes well enough that it's interesting nonetheless. Could be a good movie if nothing else.

Stefanie said...

Secret History is a good one, very interesting characters. Hope you like it better.

Mike B. said...

I'm enjoying Tartt's novel much more. It's engaging

litlove said...

I still have this book waiting on my shelves to try. The problem is it looks so big - sounds wimpish, I know, but sometimes I'm not in the mood for that kind of reading committment. Still, I guess it's perfectly possible to do as you did and give up if it doesn't suit.