Question: Top 10 Most Intimidating Books.Answer: In celebration of rewind week (past topics we missed), we decided to pick the topic of the most intimidating books we actually DID read. In almost every occasion our anxiety was linked solely to page length, however, there are a few authors who by name alone have the ability to strike fear into the hearts of readers.
- A Suitable Boy (Vikram Seth) – 1300+ pages. Enough said.
- Ulysses (James Joyce) – Joyce is currently on double secret probation with us. What he did with Ulysses was completely unjust and for the foreseeable future he will suffer our retribution (whatever that means).
- Atlas Shrugged (Ayn Rand) – Another 1300+ page novel. Our experience with this one was rather pleasant...
- David Copperfield (Charles Dickens) – For many years we ran from this novel. As it turns out this is one of our all time favorite novels of all time...
- War and Peace (Leo Tolstoy) – Tolstoy is a very intimidating author. His beard alone is enough to strike fear into the hearts of small children. For us, War and Peace exceeded expectations, Anna Karenina, not so much...
- Gone with the Wind (Margaret Mitchell) – Sooooo glad we read this one! The book is a bazillion times better than the movie. And the movie is a bazillion times better than most other movies.
- The Grapes of Wrath (John Steinbeck) – Not sure why, but this one was always a little scary. Another shining example of how baseless our fear can be.
- The Sound and the Fury (William Faulkner) – Even without a wicked awesome beard, Faulkner is another author who can be very scary. Following our read of The Sound and the Fury, he’s even more intimidating.
- Pride and Prejudice (Jane Austen) – For at least one of us, starting this novel required several pep talks. Jane Austen ROCKS!
- Moby Dick (Herman Melville) – Ouch. Or maybe the better choice of words would be - snore.
For your convenience (and hopefully entertainment), links have been provided for those book’s we’ve reviewed. Customer service is our number 1 goal!
Have a great week and head on over to The Broke and the Bookish to join the fun!
I agree with many of your choices, however, I would have to add some Charles Dickens to the list!
ReplyDeleteI agree with Atlas Shrugged. Every time I see it in the bookstore I get a little shiver.
ReplyDeleteDefinitely agree with your list! I'm currently reading Anna Karenina which I always found intimidating, but its wonderful so far. So I'm thinking I should give a few of my intimidating books a chance. War and Peace, Swanns Way, they are definitely on my list! I read Atlas Shrugged in 8th grade for class and to this day I still don't know how I got through it. I don't remember it being that hard to read, just kind of baffling in its style.
ReplyDeleteWow, some of these are kind of intimidating. It's funny, though, once I pick up a book and start reading it it often turns out to be not so bad. I took a chance on Crime and Punishment last year and liked it enough to seek out some more of Dostoevsky's other books.
ReplyDeleteAgreed, Jane Austen rocks! Any book that is 1300+ pages is scary. Why do they need to be so long? lol
ReplyDeleteNew follower here. Great list!
ReplyDeleteReading Lark's Top 10 Tuesday
These certainly are intimidating! I haven't crossed very many of these off my list yet.
ReplyDeleteI love Grapes of Wrath. I think it is the title that makes it scary. Who wants to read about wrath?
ReplyDeleteHere is my list
Thanks for dropping by my blog.
ReplyDeleteI confess that I have only read three of the books on your list: David Copperfield, Gone with the Wind, and, of course, Pride and Prejudice. Almost every time I read a classic a say to my self. "Oh, no wonder this book is a classic!"