Humiliation

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There's a David Lodge novel in which a group of English professors sit around and play a game called, I think, Humiliation, in which they go around the circle confessing to what great books they haven't read. The winning entry is Hamlet. I'm proposing a variation on that game, in which we confess to which "great" books we have read and hated - or been unable to slog through. I'll start with Bellow's Augie March, which, as I've posted here elsewhere, I couldn't make it more than 1/3 of the way into. The Great American Novel kept putting me to sleep, no matter how upright I sat.

― David Elinsky (David Elinsky), Saturday, 22 May 2004 21:20 (twenty-one years ago)

We have done similar threads, David. I don't know if you want to revive one or not. We aren't exactly swamped with duplicate threads, but it is sometimes nice to have things in one place for future reference.

here: Slaying the sacred cow - literary "classics" you think are rubbish

― scott seward (scott seward), Saturday, 22 May 2004 22:11 (twenty-one years ago)

and here: What's A Book You Started To Read Recently(Or Not So Recently)Where All Of A Sudden You Decided-Hmmm-That's Enough,Thanks!

― scott seward (scott seward), Saturday, 22 May 2004 22:12 (twenty-one years ago)

It doesn't seem that repetitive to me. Although the setup question reminded me of the David Lodge book in which there's a computer psychoanalyst--brilliant idea. But I have no problem admitting that I've never read many "great books." I own a lot of them--and a friend loaned me "Lolita" a couple of years ago, knowing it would take me a while to get around to it and that I really will give it back--but when I'm just relaxing, I prefer a nice murder mystery.

On the other hand, I read "1984" twice--had to proofread it for a reprint once.

― Carol Robinson (carrobin), Tuesday, 25 May 2004 16:33 (twenty-one years ago)

hee hee, I think we've all read that Lodge novel -- hands up! What an odd coincidence... is he the "books person's books person"?

― Ann Sterzinger (Ann Sterzinger), Tuesday, 25 May 2004 18:23 (twenty-one years ago)

As an Anglophile who is particularly enthralled by British academic life, I immediately fell for Lodge--though I haven't read his latest book.

― Carol Robinson (carrobin), Friday, 28 May 2004 12:15 (twenty-one years ago)

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